A bespoke pattern for Lighten Up

‘Sunshine Native’ for Lighten Up

It was such a delight when we were approached by Vanessa from Lighten Up to design a bespoke pattern for her beautiful handcrafted lampshades. Located in country NSW, Australia, Lighten Up specialise in ready-made and custom lampshades.

Initial concept and sketches for the design

From the outset, we felt that it was important for the design to be a reflection of the unique flora found in Australia’s natural landscape. Vanessa communicated her love of the firewheel flower that we had recently painted in our collaboration with Basil Bangs—we were determined to find another native flower similar to its overall shape and form.

We decided that the beautiful isopogon bloom was just that, though with a few more petals!

'Sunshine Native'

'Midnight Native'

The magical hakea flowers and foliage work alongside the feature isopogon, to form a wandering composition that draws you in.

Each motif is carefully hand painted with watercolour and gouache, adding another layer of artistry to the final fabric and ultimately the craftsmanship of the complete lampshade.

The first fabric swatches alongside the original paintings

A big thank you to Vanessa for entrusting us with her brief, she allowed us the creative freedom to do what we do best! We hope you love the outcome as much as we do—to shop this very special lampshade in both colourways visit Lighten Up.