For the famous Maison Simons, we revealed the stages of creating our fruit-shaped cushions:
Inspired by the playful and colorful side of children's rooms , The Butter Flying gently brings little ones to sleep with its cloud-shaped mobiles . For more than 10 years, the designer has created soft worlds, populated by cumulus clouds, stars, moons... and now dapper fruits!
Let's retrace the steps of its creation together. It was after several weeks and several steps that the first lemon cushion was born. Let's retrace the steps of its creation together.
Step 1: inspiration
The idea for a lemon-shaped cushion first came from a need to rethink the production of The Butter Flying , where everything is done by hand. “I had a lot of fabric waste with my moon and star pillows, which are larger. I was keen to recycle as much as possible.” In its ecological concern, The Butter Flying then imagines small fruits made from scraps, part of the summer 2019 trend with its earth and ocher tones, very present in fashion and decoration. The lemon , apple and pear cushions grew like this!
Step 2: research
Once the idea was born, we had to tackle the design. “I worked a lot on the shapes to optimize the fabric to be recycled. At the drawing stage, I had to find a simple and effective graphic form, which would be pleasant to look at. I wanted to produce something decorative that would please the eye.” It took several drawing phases to achieve the perfect shape, not without some funny mishaps. “For the pear and lemon, when you looked at them horizontally, it looked like a fish! I had to work on the design several times so that we could understand the object at a glance.” In our search for shapes and materials, we selected trendy colors, such as mustard, ocher and terracotta, which are easy to combine without being boring. Other artists, like Velvet Mustache for example, also love neutral colors for children's toys.
Step 3: the prototype
Then, the designer moves on to the prototype stage. She sews a first cushion, to see the volume and the final look; she lends it to colleagues and friends and collects their comments. “We also do surveys on Instagram to find out what our loyal customers like.” Each new idea is carefully tested to see if the magic works.
Step 4: production
Finally, each item from The Butter Flying is sewn by hand in the Montreal workshop, to order, in two or three days. To create beauty, you have to take your time!
The one who dreamed of leaving her interior designer's computer to create objects with her hands from A to Z is still seduced by the freedom brought by the world of childhood. “Baby decor is super colorful, we can use a lot of subjects, it’s not restrictive. I have the space to flourish without restraint. I hope to take the theme of fruit and recycling further; I am already designing prototypes of small fruit baskets, with lemons, cherries, oranges, bananas. Maybe I’ll let myself be inspired by vegetables, too!”