When childhood chic meets crazy patterns, meet
Molly Smith Design
And here she is, founder of Molly Smith Design in all her purple and pink independent business pride
Molly Smith is London’s cooky crafter of ‘weird and wonderful pots, sculptures, installations and more…
Words by Jodiane Milton
Molly found herself and her style whilst studying Illustration at Leeds Arts University. With the help of tutors that gave her the creative freedom to experiment and delve into the areas of illustration that meant the most to her, Molly instantly began applying her illustrations to large scale artwork, installations and sculptures.
Before the pandemic, Molly revelled in everything from event décor, festival installation and window display projects in her nine to five. Although in early 2020, as the pandemic trudged on Molly found herself with a lot more time on her hands and decided to begin to explore her ideas and bring her “dream of running a small business to life,” birthing Molly Smith Design.
During our brisk chat for this issue, Molly explained, “Making my own products was something I really wanted to begin experimenting with but I didn’t have the time,” she began before adding, “I am very grateful for the time away from commercial projects to be able to put more time and effort into building my business.” Running her whole business from the corner of her kitchen in Clapham, she decided to participate virtually in the South London Makers Market last April, providing her not only with confidence in herself and her fresh brand but an audience she may not have otherwise found.
“Most importantly,” Molly said, “the market really opened my eyes to the amazing small business community on Instagram. Feeling part of a community really boosts morale and especially with small business owners doing a lot of work independently it’s nice to have that group support! The South London Makers Market has really created a space for this and it’s so encouraging to see.”
While the internet has provided her with a sense of community during all this - with around 6k people accumulating at her instagram account @mollysmithdesign - it is the natural world that provides the inspiration for her work. “I also work from my garden a lot when the weather is nice and take all my pieces outside with me to sand and paint and get a good tan in the process,” she joked. But what about when the weather isn’t all too inspirational and rather drizzly? “I always felt drawn to creating work that was inspired by the natural world. I love to fill my flat with houseplants as it makes me feel closer to nature and helps to create a positive and uplifting environment.”
Environmental issues also come into play when Molly is designing, and her previous work, such as her interactive installation Ideological Land for Brainchild Festival, demonstrate this clearly. Set in a future where humans are no longer in control and the natural environment takes matters into its own hands, she created large mutated plant life sculptures made from waste materials found at scrap yards.
Molly in her natural back garden habitat working on her wonky, weird and wonderful designs
It’s genuinely hard to overestimate the amount of love, care and attention that goes into every single one of the pots Molly creates. The same goes for her commitment to running her business sustainably - thinking through every single detail. “Sustainability is very important to me, especially being a small business. I believe we all need to be considerate of the environmental impact of the products we create and bring into the world,” she emphasised.
Early after the launch of Molly Smith Design, Molly started to think about her goals for her business and made a commitment to sustainability, asking her followers for ways they thought small businesses could improve their environmental impact. “I think it’s realistic to understand you can’t be a sustainable business instantly and that it takes work to get to a stage you can be happy with. I think it’s good to be honest and open with your customers about your journey and the area’s you want to improve,” Molly explained. “As your business grows, your sustainability can grow with you,” she added,
Packaging is a huge part of sustainability for Molly. Whilst bubble wrap, unfortunately, is tricky to recycle, she’s pleased that the kind she uses is accepted by some councils and her chosen FRAGILE tape is made from kraft paper, meaning it can be popped straight into the recycling bag. Every pot is also accompanied by a beautiful hand printed packaging bag, sustainably made with unbleached calico and water based inks, keeping each piece extra safe. Every pot starts as papier mache, recycling copies of Metro and the Evening Standard from across the city, a technique influenced by her Mum who sadly passed away earlier this year.
“My mum owned a business where she created and sold papier mache décor items that were all inspired by ocean creatures back in the 90’s. From mermaids and whales to fish and shrimps. I grew up with these and even used to help her when I was younger. This definitely inspired me as I pursued my own creative journey and began to discover my own style of work”.
This otherworldly sense of childhood nostalgia is ever-present in Molly’s mad ceramic designs that, oozing with colour and playfulness, feel uniquely reminiscent of the little collectable trinket boxes sold at Claire’s accessories. Her online shop, found at www.mollysmithdesign.com., is a booming, bright biz of its own.
As restrictions ease evermore, Molly plans to continue to build her new business. At the moment Molly is pursuing some exciting opportunities with physical, IRL shops, and her new flower pot designs will be released as part of her next drop along with some other new and exciting products. She added, “I see myself working on a range of hands-on projects; installations, murals, window displays whilst carrying on growing my own products and exploring more into homeware and décor. Stay tuned!”