Clarissa Hulse: Costa Rica

Homewares designer Clarissa Hulse is launching a new range of bed linen and towel designs for 2020 inspired by her travels to Costa Rica. Here, the London-based designer, famous for her use of botanical imagery and bold colour, talks about her plans for the year and finding endless inspiration in the plant world.

What are your plans for 2020?

January and February will see the launch of two new bed linen designs and a towel collection, inspired by my time traveling in Costa Rica, as well as two designs that use plants from the beautiful British countryside. Designs include Jungle, Costa Rica Fern, Ginkgo Patchwork and Goosegrass and each design has coordinating curtains, a soft throw and accent cushion. The Rainforest towel collection will be available in three colourways – pink/mustard, green and blue/mustard – and will perfectly complement the new bedding. We will also continue with workshops in my studio, which we started last year.

After two decades as a designer, how do you continue to stay inspired?

Most of my inspiration comes from being out in nature and seeing beautiful plants in situ. I have made a few trips to far flung places; my favourite being a recent trip to the Cloud forests in Cost Rica, which has been the inspiration for my new 2020 collection. I also loved South Africa and am still using images that I took for reference even though it was five years ago. That is the great thing about nature, it is absolutely timeless and transcends trends.

How does a design you create become a product?

My design process often begins with scouring the countryside for interesting plants and flowers, which I then photograph. These are worked along with mood boards and design palettes. I work with a team to make the designs come to life through digital means (though the overall aim is that things stay true to how nature intended as much as possible). Silk screens are made up with the designs, and colours are painstakingly chosen. Samples are produced; going through editing and testing before finally making it into the range. Each collection evolves in this way.

For more information about Clarissa Hulse products and workshops, visit www.clarissahulse.com and Clarissa’s Instagram.