After a difficult 2020 and what will probably be a challenging winter for us all. Publishing a normal Christmas gift guide feels somewhat inappropriate.
This Christmas, and I am sure you will agree with me, won’t be about buying stuff or how many presents are under the tree. No it will be about, making memories and celebrating the simple moments with the people you love most in the world.
So, in the spirit of sharing I’d love to encourage you to search out the small, independent brands like Twenty Birds, who will appreciate your support this year, more than ever!
. . . in the spirit of sharing I’d love to encourage you to search out the small independent brands who will appreciate your support this year, more than ever!
Introducing Twenty Birds Homeware & gifts
Disclosure these beautiful items were gifted but all words and opinions are my own!
Sometimes you come across a designer or a brand and it is love at first sight. When I spied Monica Gabb’s gifts and homeware brand Twenty Birds, with beautiful graphics on fine bone china mugs, I was hooked. Tessellated British garden birds depicted in simple shapes and subtle colour palettes. All made in the UK.
My favourite Mug, The Jay
The Twenty Birds Backstory
Now here’s the thing about small businesses, they are usually run by one person! Who very often has a family, a job and does everything for the business on their own. Designing, selling, photography, packaging, marketing they do it all by themselves.I simply can’t imagine how hard that can be can you?
Now here’s the thing about small businesses, they are usually run by one person!
I asked Monica about how she started Twenty Birds, this is her back story . . .
Monica is a Designer and has been teaching at York College for 11 years alongside working as a freelance designer exploring type, image and print. She Grew up in the south and gained her Masters Degree in Sequential Design and Illustration at the University of Brighton in 2006. During this year she moved to North Yorkshire. Once here she published an anti-bullying book and gained her teaching qualification.
Twenty Birds originated from Monica’s fascination of the wide variety of pattern and colour within varying birds. She is drawn to collections and displaying the differences and similarities within a group; finding order in layout, correlation in shape and contrast in scaling and pattern.
When she began designing these triangular birds she noticed repetition in colour and marks and wanted to find out if she could overlap them between birds. Monica constructed a template to fit 20 birds of varying size and rotation. She spent time working on the best combinations and amount of abstractions sticking to straight lines only. She wanted to stay true to original colour ways yet reduce the amount of tone variation.
This allowed her to explore a five-colour screen print ‘Twenty Birds’; yellow, red, blue, grey and black. The colours were mixed where necessary to create green, orange and brown. The birds were then extracted and separated to be printed onto mugs and onto the tea towel design.
Christmas Gifts, Cards and Tree Decorations!
The cards are stunning, with fold out crests and tails, all have so much character and they re not just for Christmas! i love the lovebirds for valentines perhaps or just because?
Where to find Twenty Birds:
The website: Twenty Birds
Instagram @monicagabb
Buy: The Mugs
Also On Etsy
Even if you just buy a card it will make a huge difference & why not follow Monica on Instagram, or share some of the products on your social media channels?
lazy daisy jones
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