“My whole design career, both with Lagom Design and before, has been about celebrating popular contemporary culture, both with my own designs as well as collaborations with leading illustrators all over the world, so finding myself confronted with thousands of historic botanical etchings and paintings took me out of my comfort zone somewhat,” Kelly Hyatt, founder of Lagom Design confessed to PG Buzz about working with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew to create a range of greeting cards, postcards and gift wrappings based on the brand. The collection will launch at PG Live (Tuesday 4 June and Wednesday 5 June at London’s Business Design Centre).
It was gin that is to blame for this new twist to Lagom’s portfolio. Inspired by the beautifully designed packaging on The London Distillery Company’s gin collection, produced in partnership with the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Kelly made contact with the horticultural brand.
It was not just that Kelly’s timing that was spot on, but that Lagom was just the right kind of company that Quincy Leon, the head of licensing and product development at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, had been hoping for.
“I had wanted to find a greeting card partner for some time, but knew they had to be the right one. As with all our licensing relationships, our licensees not only have to be true designers but also real masters in their own respective fields,” Quincy said.
It has become a labour of love for Kelly who has spent many months on the designs, “dissecting the originals and then re-recreating and re-colouring them so that they work as greeting card designs,” he reveals.
The inaugural collection launching at PG Live comprises 18 greeting cards as well as postcards, with co-ordinating giftbags on the slate for a launch in January.
Lagom Design is also the sponsor of the free keepsake tote bag for PG Live which proclaims, the confession ‘I’m a card-aholic’ in five different colourways.
Lagom Design is one of 230+ companies who will be exhibiting at PG Live (June 4 and 5 at London’s Business Design Centre). To make sure you are at this amazing celebration of the exciting greeting card industry, register now (and receive your free 2019 Show Preview) https://pgl-2019.reg.buzz/
Online registration works really well, but if you don’t have an easily accessible email address or you would just rather speak to someone in real life, please call the PG Live show team on +44 (0) 1635 297070 during office hours.
Top: Three of the designs that will form part of the Lagom collection.