It has been a very exciting Autumn for my Monterey Cone, which has headed off in various re- designed forms, from its home here on the edge of Exmoor in North Devon, on a journey, not only to regions of the British Isles, but to the far corners of the world as well. Who knows it may well eventually find its way to Monterey!
Firstly this year I was asked by the Swedish company Åry to design a new tray collection. They liked my Monterey Cone cushion, but wanted me to design something exclusively for them. I scaled down the cone, added some pine needles, then introduced a change of scale by including some branches and cones of the Larch. Thinking that a few rare Heath Fritillary butterflies may well have visited my cone in the Heddon valley, I added these in as well.
It's not possible to print metallics onto these beautiful birch wood trays, so I decided to recreate a metallic feel to the design, keeping the look of the copper/bronze tones of the printed cushion. Getting the exact colour balance was painstakingly slow, printing many sample colours in order to achieve exactly the right tones.
When you're working on a project like this, it can seem a long time before you see the product, or even share any images. The final trays and table mats were launched this Autumn by Åry at Formex in Stockholm, then Maison et Objet in Paris and are even better that I'd hoped. I was so pleased and delighted to see them when Åry sent me a photo from their stand a few weeks ago. Now that I have some samples of my own, I thought I'd write about them...
Table mats and coasters...
Moorland co-ordinates (!) with my new hand printed Beech napkins...
I'm reminded of the fact that I drew the Monterey cone after I found it on the ground after a storm in the Heddon Valley on Exmoor, and it has brought so much inspiration to me as well as others.
...and if that wasn't enough, the Monterey Cone cushion is exclusively part of the National Trust's Artisan and Craft Autumn collection, in some of the larger shops and available online here!
I'm exhibiting at Handmade at Kew, in the world famous Royal Botanical Gardens, from 6th - 9th October. I have a few Private View invites left for the evening of the 5th October, if you would like to come, please email me with your postal address and I'll be happy to send one to you (while still available)!
...from my seasonal colour sample notebook.
Firstly this year I was asked by the Swedish company Åry to design a new tray collection. They liked my Monterey Cone cushion, but wanted me to design something exclusively for them. I scaled down the cone, added some pine needles, then introduced a change of scale by including some branches and cones of the Larch. Thinking that a few rare Heath Fritillary butterflies may well have visited my cone in the Heddon valley, I added these in as well.
It's not possible to print metallics onto these beautiful birch wood trays, so I decided to recreate a metallic feel to the design, keeping the look of the copper/bronze tones of the printed cushion. Getting the exact colour balance was painstakingly slow, printing many sample colours in order to achieve exactly the right tones.
When you're working on a project like this, it can seem a long time before you see the product, or even share any images. The final trays and table mats were launched this Autumn by Åry at Formex in Stockholm, then Maison et Objet in Paris and are even better that I'd hoped. I was so pleased and delighted to see them when Åry sent me a photo from their stand a few weeks ago. Now that I have some samples of my own, I thought I'd write about them...
Table mats and coasters...
Moorland co-ordinates (!) with my new hand printed Beech napkins...
I'm reminded of the fact that I drew the Monterey cone after I found it on the ground after a storm in the Heddon Valley on Exmoor, and it has brought so much inspiration to me as well as others.
...and if that wasn't enough, the Monterey Cone cushion is exclusively part of the National Trust's Artisan and Craft Autumn collection, in some of the larger shops and available online here!
I'm exhibiting at Handmade at Kew, in the world famous Royal Botanical Gardens, from 6th - 9th October. I have a few Private View invites left for the evening of the 5th October, if you would like to come, please email me with your postal address and I'll be happy to send one to you (while still available)!
...from my seasonal colour sample notebook.
