Mollie Makes #56

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EASY SEW

RETRO DUFFEL bag PATCHWORK CUSHION KIDS'

wrap, cut, display!

pull-out papers

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PROJECTS!

PAINTED CHAIRS TSHIRT YARN RUG

clay trinket dish

THE COLLAR UPDATE MINI

FELT CACTI SHIBORI SCARF

STARRY WALL ART &more..

r e d n o w

WOODLAND

contents

issue number fifty six

56

58 Weaving

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folksy fawn Talk to us! facebook.com/MollieMakes

pinterest.com/MollieMakes

on the cover PhotographY: PHILIP SOWELS, styling: helena tracey and jen gardner, model: LEANNE MEGSON

hack

INTRODUCING... living

The latest news from the world of handmade

Fill your life and home with crafted goodness

9 introducing…

45 LIVING

Handpicked crafty happenings

Our top picks of the most lovely buys for a hand-crafted, creative home

14 trends Three ways with the anatomy motifs trend, plus our top product picks

20 fawn hoop

54 painted stools

30 tea and a chat

58 woven rug

Screen printer Laura Spring reveals how she discovered her passion

Turn a hula hoop into a loom – genius!

An easy kawaii-inspired IKEA hack

62 star cushion A Scandi twist on the Moroccon classic

What we learnt at the Mollie Makes Handmade Awards – plus the winners!

67 pull-out papers exclusive!

41 shibori scarf

Grown-up florals by designer (and Handmade Awards judge) Lisa Levis

Learn a fresh take on the ancient Japanese shibori tie dye technique

100 templates

MollieMakes

youtube.com/user/MollieMakes

Ellie Jarvis’s historic seaside cottage is inspired by its nautical surroundings

Stitch and appliqué a folk art-inspired woodland fawn in a hoop frame

36 handmade awards

@MollieMakes

48 HOME TOUR

Make all the issue’s projects 4 MOLLIEMAKES.com 56

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96

Statement collar

62

Star cushion

the winners are…

41 Shibori

tie dye

loving

17

Clay hand dishes

Treats and treasures to fall in love with 75 loving

What a month! Our Handmade Awards day at The Proud Archivist in London on 11 June was such an inspiring day and you can read all about it on page 36. So much talent! Well done to all our winners and our shortlist. You can see more from all of the talented designer makers we met in upcoming issues of Mollie Makes, and start this issue, by trying Established Business finalist Amy Phipp of Super+Super’s shibori scarf on page 41. Straight after the awards, we were off to Blogtacular 2015, where Mollie production editor Jessica Bateman and I shared our tips for Finding your Voice and Cultivating your Creativity. It was a blast!

We so enjoyed meeting so many fantastic bloggers. Read about our day there on page 13. As always, keep in touch and remember to tag your makes, #molliemakers!

Beautiful things to adore and make

76 collectOR Curating a cacti and succulent garden

Lara Watson Editor

77 felt cactus No time for watering? Make your own!

80 boho top Just add flares for that ’70s look

87 duffel bag An update on a wardrobe staple

90 moon and stars Lino print banner and string artwork

96 two-tone collar Swap necklaces for a statement collar

106 the back page project A day with Hester’s Handmade Home Subscribe at molliemakes.com

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Kawaii stools

Turn the page For moere on your free kit! se page 67 For your papers

INTRODUCING trends

This month we’re obsessing about...

anatomy

Photograph: KAMI WEDDICK, MODEL: ALEX, MAKE UP AND HAIR: HELEN MCDONALD

All together now: heads, shoulders, knees and toes, knees and toes...

Hands combine with the doodle trend on this gorge blouse. www. mylittlebelleville.com

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INTRODUCING trends

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All eyes are on this

leather-printed tote bag. www. urbanoutfitters.com 02

This emoji-style

pendant is a-ok. www. benushop.etsy.com 03

Customise your

furniture with a hand stencil and chalk paint. www.anniesloan.com 04

There’s a touch of

mysticism about this watercolour print cushion. www.esther sandler.etsy.com 05

Fingers crossed we

get our hands on one of these ornaments. www.

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boldenceramics.com 06

Get this trend nailed

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(sorry!) www.paulina paulinum.etsy.com 07

04

We’ll be slipping our

phone and keys in this metallic leather clutch. www.thegoodflock.com 08

Wear it on your

chest with a brass pin. www.casamalaspina. bigcartel.com

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MAKE IT! TURN THE PAGE FOR 06

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THREE WAYS WITH anatomy 56 MOLLIEMAKES.com 14

If you go down to the woods…

Get stitching and appliquéing Kirsty Neale’s folksy fawn wall art for summertime kitsch

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PHOTOGRAPHY: PHILIP SOWELS, STYLING: HELENA TRACEY, JEN GARDNER, FLORAL FABRICS: www.liberty.co.uk

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INTRODUCING trends

INTRODUCING trends 01

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THIS MONTH WE’RE OBSESSING ABOUT...

DOODLES & SHAPES

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Forget plaid or polka

– here’s our new fave fashion print. www. loelaloela.etsy.com 02

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For a more subtle

take on the trend, try these hand-drawn chevron earrings. www.amillioncity

Break out of the traditional pattern and go freestyle...

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lights.etsy.com 03

You know we can’t

resist a good planter. www.leifshop.com 04

Say hello to your

new Netflix marathon snuggle buddy. www. arrohome.com 05

It’s like the pictures

we doodle while on the 07

phone... www.lamal conttenta.etsy.com

PHOTOGRAPH: JOANNA HENDERSON, STYLING: CHARLOTTE LOVE

PHOTOGRAPH: ALISA BOURKE

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We love the 90s

feel of this simple monochrome cushion. www.depeapa.etsy.com 07

DIY doodle eggs

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– one to try with the kids? www.alisaburke. blogspot.co.uk

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We love the simplicity

MAKE IT! TURN THE PAGE FOR

of these cut-out style prints. www.seventy

THREE WAYS WITH DOODLES

tree.bigcartel.com

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INTRODUCING tea & a chat

‘My work never originates on the computer – I just draw, draw, draw!’

Describe your style in a few words.

Deceptively simple, focused on texture, colour and colour relationships. My style is really about collections and repeat patterns.

tea and a chat with…

Sarah hamilton Obsessed with colour, texture and drawing, Sarah is a champion of all things creative who can’t stop making art and new friends Words: Lara Watson Photographs: Fiona Murray

You might know Sarah Hamilton for her textured, striking prints on paper, wood and mirrors. Or perhaps you’ve exchanged a fun joke with her on Twitter. Maybe you’ve been lucky enough to meet her in person, in which case you’ll know she’s a people person with infectious positivity. She’s also becoming known for her amazing home studio, a listed split-level mid-century terrace property in south London’s leafy Crystal Palace, where she holds an Open House every year, showing her own and others’ work.

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What books and magazines are on your bedside table?

The New Statesman, Earth and Heaven by Sue Gee, Plainsong by Kent Haruf, Flow magazine and Selvedge.

With a degree and MA in fine art, Sarah considers herself an “artist first and foremost,” but she’s so passionate about the creative community that her work also covers public speaking, charity work, campaigns and writing.

Sarah is fascinated by how things work. She still uses a screenpress she made at college with a £3 piece of MDF, so she could experiment with printing on both wood and paper, and her home is peppered with vintage mechanical toys. We met at her place for a cupcake, a cuppa and a chat.

How does your creative process work?

Everything starts in sketchbooks. I have many on the go at any one time. I just draw, draw, draw. It’s the most important part to me – birds, leaves, stones, pebbles.

Everything has a reference. I have pebbles and flora scattered all over the shelves of my studio. My work is mostly nature and travel inspired, with lots of nods to the British countryside and seaside. I then take my drawings and papercut or scan them. I do a lot of digital printing as well as silk screenprinting, but my work never originates in the computer. So much of what I do is about edges and textures, and I find you just have to draw something to really find the edges, if that makes sense!

I make screenprints from the cutouts or print them as giclée prints and silkscreen on top. The quality of my materials is really important to me – beautiful paper, gorgeously textured wood, mirrors. I love

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the contrast of different surfaces and use the same inks and techniques on all of them. I think what I’m most proud of is that I’ve been able to develop a style that people recognise as mine.

Where do you search for creative inspiration?

Tavelling – Mexico, Corsica, South Africa, Eastern Europe, Egypt, Japan… The American outdoors and around Great Britain – I do so much sketching when I travel. I draw everywhere!

What was your big break as an artist?

Straight after art school I organised lots of buyers meetings, and my first big orders came at the same time – for the Conran Shop and Paperchase. It was six weeks of me locked away, printing it all by myself in my old flat in Brixton. I then worked in a studio cooperative in Rotherhithe that sadly no longer exists but I made some great friends there and really valued their support and encouragement − it’s stayed with me right through my career. I landed a homewares collection with Heals, then

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01

Sarah’s living

All inks are kept

in rainbow jam jars in a cupboard at

London. “Bonfire

Sarah’s studio.

night and New

03

Original sketches

Year’s Eve are

are often cut into

spectacular to watch

paper pieces that

from the sofa,” she

Sarah then scans

says. The wallpaper

into the computer or

is by Mini Moderns.

uses for her prints.

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Subscriber benefits

02

room has incredible views across

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Tutti Frutti Add some zing to afternoon tea with Ayda Algin’s just-for-us neon and lace coasters

51 MOLLIEMAKES.cOM 39

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How did you go about launching your own business?

I studied graphic design at university, but after working in the theatre as a seamstress for five years I was beginning to feel a bit lost. I did a Cove Park residency (www. covepark.org) for six weeks in the middle of nowhere and I got back to basics.

I came up with three designs based around British weather.

starting from scratch with…

Laura spring Screen print designer Laura Spring discovered the medium while searching for a career change. Here’s how she built her business

What started you down that road?

It started with the idea of what you take with you in certain weather – I liked the idea of carrying a bag that matches the day.

The first thing was a wet weather suitcase, then I made designs for sunshine and wind.

Words: judy darley Photographs: FIONA MURRAY

Laura Spring studied at Glasgow School of Art and Parsons School of Design in New York before dabbling in costume making for the theatre. After realising how much she missed designing, Laura took an evening class at Glasgow Print Studio and fell in love with the technique. She launched her self-named business in 2011 and has been creating dazzling screen printed products ever since, as well as commissions for the likes of National Trust For Scotland.

Her inspirations have included meteorological symbols, wildlife and 30 MOLLIEMAKES.com 56

nature, transforming source ideas into abstract motifs in eye-catching shades. This style helped land a recent collaboration with House of Voltaire, the bi-annual shop run by Londonbased arts organisation Studio Voltaire (www.studiovoltaire.org).

Many of her pieces are printed by hand, using traditional methods, waterbased inks and locally sourced fabrics.

Laura also runs screen printing classes, sharing her passion in the relaxed environment of her Glasgow studios.

We sat down to hear all about her story.

How did you get your products out into the world?

Charlotte Abrahams invited me to show my work at Spotted, the area she curates at trade fair Top Drawer. So that was where I launched Laura Spring in autumn 2011. It was an amazing experience. Charlotte picks out 12 up-and-coming designers, so you’re all quite new to it and it’s a great way to experience your first trade show. I then took part in Spotted+, the spring edition, and exhibited at Pulse in 2012.

How would you describe your style?

Bold, graphic, colourful.

INTRODUCING tea & a chat

‘It’s important to support businesses that create jobs for local people.’

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01

How did you go about launching your own business?

I studied graphic design at university, but after working in the theatre as a seamstress for five years I was beginning to feel a bit lost. I did a Cove Park residency (www. covepark.org) for six weeks in the middle of nowhere and I got back to basics.

I came up with three designs based around British weather.

What started you down that road?

It started with the idea of what you take

with you in certain weather – I liked the idea of carrying a bag that matches the day.

The first thing was a wet weather suitcase, then I made designs for sunshine and wind.

How did you get your products out into the world?

Charlotte Abrahams invited me to show my work at Spotted, the area she curates at trade fair Top Drawer. So that was where I launched Laura Spring in autumn 2011. It was an amazing experience. Charlotte picks out 12 up-and-coming designers, so you’re

03

01

Laura’s kitchen,

03

Laura screen

featuring chairs

printing the Lush

reupholstered

knot wraps she

in offcuts of her

recently designed

‘Convergence’

for the brand’s new

print fabric.

flagship store on

02

Some of Laura’s

Oxford Street.

barrel pouches and make up bags.

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Meet the mini-mes Grab the spray paints – Debee Ruiz shows us how to transform plain IKEA stools into smiley seating spots

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Do The

hula

Spin yourself a spiral rug with Anne Weil’s fun hula hoop loom technique

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photographs: gemma huntingford http://gemmahuntingford.co.uk, styling: becky hoh-hale of eclectic eccentricity

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the moon & the stars Bring some galactic wonder indoors with a lino print moon hanging and constellation string art by Lucy Crick of Eclectic Eccentricity

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Instant

update

Fall back in love with that old dress or T-shirt by adding Lucia Cocconcelli’s statement two-tone collar

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Photography: PHILIP SOWELS, STYLING: HELENA TRACEY, JEN GARDNER, Floral illustration: © www.istockphoto.com/LeeYenz

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