It’s amazing how ideas begin. The newest range of Nancybird goodness, AW13 (and my second range in the Nancybird nest) all started with a picnic trip to the wonderful Heide Museum in Bulleen. How can one not be inspired by the former home and artist retreat of John and Sunday Reed, a place which has accommodated some of Australia’s most important artists from middle of the last century.

The trip got us thinking about Australian artists, particularly from between the wars. Ladies like Grace Cossington Smith, Ethel Spowers, Margret Preston, just to name a few, inspired the colours and textiles from AW13.

It was such a fruitful and inspiring time for art. So much was happening internationally and these influences were making their way to our sandy shores.   Our nation of travellers were bringing back modern ideas from Japan and Europe which would evolve into revelations of colour, texture, shape and line.

In thinking about these artists we also considered the landscape in which they were operating.  Sydney was a hot spot for these creative types and the Harbour Bridge was a bold, new landmark, strutting proudly across the bay. The landscape was still lush with bush much closer to our city fringes. These thoughts guided our choices for leather colours; sandtone buildings are reflected in the tan, indigo comes from the Harbour, greys from the towering new Bridge and plums from the tropical flora.

Here are a few images from the original artworks that I produced to adorn the beautiful new Nancybird range. We hope you like the as much as we liked making them!

CYCAD – a painterly representation of the ancient Cycad plant seed pods.

PEANUT TREE – the seed pods from this tree are particularly beautiful and I was trying to tap into my inner “post impressionist” for this representation.

DAVIDSONS PLUM – this native plum is found in NSW and has a beautiful burgundy coloured flesh.

WINTER SKY- Again, I was taking a leaf out of the post impressionist book with this painting. I was trying to capture that amazing colour and light that occurs on those dark and stormy days over a coastline.

One day last October 2012, right in the middle of the gorgeous spring bloom, we shot our Winter range catalogue.

The range was inspired by female artists in Sydney between the wars. Artists such as Grace Cossington-Smith, Ethel Spowers, Margaret Preston. Inspiring women during an inspiring time in Australia, particularly Sydney.

In creating the photoshoot, we wanted to bring that 1930′s creative spirit into the location.

Bickleigh Vale, in Melbourne’s east, was the perfect spot. Created by renowned landscape designer Edna Walling in the 1920′s and 1930′s, she bought a large swath of what was then bush and farmland, and proceeded to create a small “village” of her signature gardens and Arts and Crafts style houses. They all have a lovely rambling feel, with lots of low stone walls, stepping stones and borderless gardens.

We were extremely fortunate that the lovely Jen let us shoot at her beautiful property. With a couple of her kids with their light sabers keeping us company during the day, occasionally breaking out in Luke Skywalker moves, we shot some beautiful nooks on her property.

Massive thanks to Jen and her family for allowing us to shoot at her beautiful place.

For more images of the range, check out the gallery.

We’re already excited about next year, so much in store…

We really hope you all have a wonderful Christmas break, and come back refreshed and relaxed – we certainly plan to!

Thank you for your support, we love hearing your words of excitement and encouragement with each range.

So… Speaking of new ranges, here’s a little of what’s in store next year!

Happy Christmas all!

We have had a few enquiries about our options for clutches and small bags that would be fitting for the spring racing carnival here in Melbourne.

We of course don’t do glitter or shiny or feathers, but for those of you who want something colourful with beautiful prints and leathers and fabrics… We have some options for you!

They are all available here, and at most Nancybird stockists (they’ll have a selection of these, but should also be able to order them in for you!)

Have fun out there!

I’ve been lucky enough to have visited some interesting countries this year, and have filed away many beautiful images that will filter their way into future Nancybird ranges.

Here are a couple, a mix of Java, Spain, France and Italy x

If you’re still looking for a little something for the dad in your life, why not check out our newest mens range in the shop.

Here you will find a lovely Men’s Bag which is designed to fit 15” laptops and the rest of his stuff, this bag is a perfect commuter or work bag.

You will also find the Men’s Wallet which features a soft, compact style for the back pocket, a coin section with press stud closure and five card slots!

Happy Fathers Day to all the dad’s out there!

Here’s a little something to help get you in the mood for Spring – the brand new Nancybird Spring/Summer range for 2013!

This season we were inspired by the coastal landscape – bright daisies, lobsters,  warm sand, weather ship ropes, sparkling sea and sunshine.

We imagined long, hot weekends, escaping to a holiday shack by the sea.

Check out our newly extended range of home wares, which now also includes two beautiful bed covers and co-ordinating pillow cases, made in gorgeous linen, which are perfect for throwing on the bed for those warm summer nights.

The new season is available for preorder on our web shop now and will be in stores over the next couple of weeks.

We hope you enjoy the new range as much as we enjoyed making it.

XX

Nancybird

Hi There!
I’m Sarah and I am the design assistant here at Nancybird.
I thought I would introduce myself and give you a little insight into the magic of the Nancybird Studio.

As a designer I love seeing how other creatives go about their business and so I thought I would share a bit about how we do things here at Nancybird.
I came on board the good ship Nancybird at the end of 2011, just after I graduated Textile Design at RMIT, which was great as I was immediately able to test out all my newly learnt skills without too much time to forget them! My role is pretty varied, which I love, so one week I may be designing new digital prints (messy, painty fun!) another could be coming up with new ways to send out packages to our lovely online customers (keep your eyes peeled for new packaging in the next few months) and another week I might be putting through sales at our crazy warehouse sale (still getting over that one!).

I came to Nancybird as an avid fan of the beautiful products (and owner of a just a few) and something that has struck me as now an insider, is just how much thought goes into everything that is made. Colours, prints, fabrics, leathers, fittings, everything gets lots of attention and consideration. It all has to work well and feel nice and look great. I think this shows through too. I’m pretty chuffed to be part of the process and there is nothing more rewarding than seeing my own print or artwork on a beautiful bag.

Anyway enough gushing! Here is a little sneaky peak into what I have been working on this week – getting messy on my side of the desk with paint.
We’ll see how this one turns out…

Hope you can join us! Bring your umbrella too x