It was always clear to anyone that knew Laura that she was going to be an artist, in one way or another. It was the one thing she really, truly, loved and what she was best at. Laura's late Great Uncle was a landscape painter, and encouraged her to draw and paint and pushed her to attend painting courses when she was growing up. Starting along this path, Laura discovered the true escapism and happiness that creating art brings to someone who is really meant for this work. She went on to study at Glasgow School of Art, specialising in Printed Textiles, where she explored applying her drawings to something that could be a useful end product.
This area of study took Laura to London, and through a masters in Fashion. But the cut-throat industry, the fast pace, and the application didn't come close to that escapism and happiness she felt when she was younger. A re-set, a re-route and a re-locate later, Laura found herself in Yorkshire pondering her future and wanting to carve out a little corner of her own. What seemed like a step backward, was really her step forward, and Dear Prudence was born in a flash of inspiration and a leap of faith. Laura booked her first trade show, started work on her first collection... and the rest is history. Dear Prudence now has more than 100 stockists around the world, including Liberty, Fenwick's of London and the V&A.
The world of Dear Prudence is deeply entwined with nature and folklore - animals, each their own character, plants, trees, birds, the trappings and comforts of home and story telling. Her time in the world of Textiles wasn't wasted, either... you will see many influences from that world peppered here, too. Intricate Lace Patterns, Traditional Welsh Blankets, Cross Stitch and Patchwork Quilts. The fabric of life, woven together perfectly with Laura's unique take on place, story and sentiment.
Every Dear Prudence product starts out with Laura picking up her paints, her pencils, pastels and more. A clean, quiet, orderly studio allows ideas to flow on to blank sketchbook pages... the whimsical little characters Laura conjures, the textures she captures and the details she notes will later be digitised and turned in to cards, calendars, notebooks, ready to be sent out in to the world. Messages of love and congratulations, hearty thanks, and words to cheer on birthdays and wedding days, heading out all around the world, in to homes and warm hands. The power of paper, pen and a stamp and the power of intent - all at the very heart of Dear Prudence, all at the very heart of Laura.
“People often ask me where the brand name comes from... it’s from my favourite Beatles song, and of course, I had to include the comma!”
In addition to being an artist, Laura is also a wife to Andrew, and a Mummy to two delicious little chaps - Amos (Mossy) and Eli. Things have changed a lot since these two wee men have come in to Laura & Andrew's life, so there's now a lot of juggling and multi-tasking going on, late night drawing sessions, a slightly less tidy studio and a good bit more focussing on the special things in life (like walks on the beach, family dinners, sleepy snuggles and trips home to Scotland to see family)... this new chapter in life has fed in to Laura's work, and you'll spot Amos & Eli as characters in the Dear Prudence collection.
Laura enjoys licensing her work to like-minded companies, and collaborating on unusual and exciting projects. If you would like to discuss a collaboration opportunity, please get in touch.
If you are a magazine or blog, and would like to feature Laura and her papery-works-of-art, please reach out here.
Stay tuned for an exciting project with Marks & Spencer, coming in 2017. Follow along on the blog, for more project related news.
*On an ethical note, everything from the Dear Prudence brand is made with care in the UK. No expense is spared, and no skimping is allowed, ethics and quality is at the heart of this range...