In conversation with...
We catch up with textile designer Poppy Treffry
What inspired you to launch your brand?
I started my business in 2004, though back then I didn’t think of it as a brand. I simply loved making things and wanted to see if I could make a living by selling them.
Did you study design?
Yes, I studied fashion and textile design at Winchester School of Art. I specialised in printed textiles so I taught myself to sew and embroider after I graduated.
Describe your typical day…
I get up before the rest of the family and take the dog out for a run on the beach. Once I get to the studio my day can be very varied. Sometimes I’m designing new products and other days
I’m doing VAT returns!
Describe your style…
I describe it as ‘quirky handmade charm’. I love to use a lot of colour and humour in my work. It’s not too serious but it’s also not too twee – I try to tread a line between the two.
Where do you find your inspiration?
Inspiration comes from my surroundings in Cornwall – little Cornish fishing villages, abundant hedgerows, boats and birds on the beach. I also get lots of great ideas from my customers.
Who are you following on Insta right now?
I’m loving Matt Haig @mattzhaig on Instagram
– he just speaks so much sense. More locally, Penzance-based artist Sophie Harding @harding_sophie has done some wonderful paintings during lockdown.
What’s your proudest career moment?
There are lots, including bespoke commissions for Claridge’s and Fortnum & Mason, and even a shop in
The Falklands. What I’m really proud of though is how my team and I have pulled together during lockdown and pivoted our business to create online courses, new products and completely new ways of selling them. It’s been hugely challenging but it’s brought us closer to our customers and changed the way we work for the better.
What does the rest of 2021 hold for you?
We have more online courses happening, which is really exciting and lots of new products in the pipeline, including a new fabric and some beautiful new tea cosies. But I’m hoping to have a better work/life balance than in 2020 and achieve some of those lockdown goals other people seem to have achieved: declutter the house and studio, draw more and see more of my friends and family.
Who would you love to collaborate with?
We’ve done some great bespoke collections creating designs for Anthropologie,
St. Michael’s Mount, Eden Project and more. I’d love to work with a big public garden like Kew or The National Trust. I love to draw and embroider flowers and plants and it would be wonderful to create some botanical illustrations in stitch.
See Poppy’s designs at poppytreffry.co.uk or visit her shop in St Ives. Follow her on Insta @poppytreffry.