Collaborations
Written by Niamh Albin
We don't have regular merch... We have cool merch.
We don't have regular merch... We have cool merch.
Deep dive into all the brilliant brands that have collaborated with Farine to bring our merch dreams to life. Hear about our love stories with various small business owners and learn more about each inspiring business straight from the founders with our mini Q&A.
Lemmy, by Rob Davies Studios
Rob Davies Studios is our unpaid, overworked intern / nepo baby (a.k.a. Elisia’s husband and Niamh’s brother-in-law). Jokes aside, Rob is an incredibly talented artist and animator. His quirky, full-of-life artwork is an infusion of colour, music, storytelling and often dark humour - and we are, quite frankly, obsessed. Rob has created the perfect embodiment of our brand with our iconic mascot Lemmy…she’s just a sexy little lemon with a mission to f*ck the patriarchy.
Find Rob @robdaviesstudios
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Tell us about your business birth story
During the pandemic, I suddenly had loads of free time to waste on whatever I wanted. I had always been into art as a kid, so I downloaded Photoshop and started messing around with drawing and collage type stuff. I was learning really fast, and partly because of my background of being in a band, I took on some commissions doing cover art for musicians. The projects started to add up and I was going back to work once the lockdown had eased up a bit, but doing both things was feeling like a bit too much, so I went full-time at the end of 2020. Since then I’ve transitioned from artwork more into animation type stuff, and now I’m mostly creating music videos and animated content.
Do you play favourites? Which of your own products do you love most and why?
I don’t really have products, but maybe if I could choose a favourite project, I recently finished working on a music video with Judah & the Lion for their song “New Tattoo”, which took massive inspiration from the films Mad Max: Fury Road and Redline. It’s the most adrenaline-fuelled thing I’ve made and it pushed my skills to another level!
What advice do you have for female / minority founders or aspiring business baddies?
Building something is a lot of hard work and can often feel hopeless, so I would just say try to have as much fun doing it as you can. There isn’t really a destination unless you’re trying to build a business you’re trying to sell, so if the process is fun and you’re working with people you like being around then you’ve pretty much made it in my opinion!
THE LEMMY EARRING, BY AAMU STUDIO
Aamu Studio is dopamine dressing at its finest! Vicky makes handmade, lightweight, hypoallergenic earrings designed to brighten your day. Her shop is a perfect mix of whimsical, joyful, fun. You can expect cute, colourful fruit, veg, and more - some of our favourites being the lemons (of course!), the croissants and the limited edition blueberries which were made with vintage beads. We could think of no one better to create earrings of our mascot Lemmy’s iconic boots.
Find Vicky @aamu.studio
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Tell us about your business birth story
I’ve always dabbled in creative stuff. I did illustration for a couple years and thought I wanted to be a children’s illustrator. After realising this wasn’t the right path for me, I took a big break and went back to enjoying art as a hobby, and made some earrings just for fun last summer. They were super messy and ugly, but I was so happy with them and thought I’d try and refine the process to see if I could make them any better! Fast forward a few weeks, I’d made a big batch of earrings and thought why not start a small business selling them. I decided on the name ‘aamu studio’ after the finnish word for the morning (i’m half-finnish!), and took the plunge and made an instagram & etsy page. Initially I was just selling to friends and the odd etsy customer, but gradually I made connections online and started taking part in markets and it’s all snowballed since then!
Do you play favourites? Which of your own products do you love most and why?
Eek yes I think I do have favourites (don’t tell anyone). I definitely have a few earrings that I gravitate towards the most when it comes to day-to-day wear: my croissant hoops, tomato hoops, pansy hoops & cherries. I always get compliments on all of these when I wear them, and I feel like between these 4 pairs I literally have all vibes covered, no matter what mood I’m in or what outfit I’m wearing I know one of these pairs of earrings will suit haha!
What advice do you have for other female / minority founders or aspiring business baddies?
Besides the obvious advice of ‘just go for it’, I’d say to be nice and genuine. I really think that connection is the most important thing, and you ARE your business. There’s nothing more off-putting than a great product/service but an unfriendly business owner. It’s so important at markets especially to be warm & open to everybody, from market organiser, stall holders, customers, any staff. You genuinely don’t know who you’re going to meet, who might buy something (it could be the person you least expect to vibe with your stuff on first impression), who you might bond with, or who might have an opportunity for you later down the line. That said, being nice for niceness sake is what it’s about, not in the hopes it might benefit you! I do believe though that the more good energy you put out there the more good energy you’ll get back ;) Oh also post on tiktok (I hate myself for this advice but trust me if you get it right it works!!)
The Farine Print, by Georgina Docherty Printmaker
Georgina Docherty is a talented printmaker, creating delicate & beautiful lino prints as well as unique greetings cards and wrapping paper that are to die for! After discovering her “bag of flour” print at a market that we were both trading at, we knew instantly that we needed to collaborate. Our brand name, Farine, means flour in french so the inspiration for this collab needs little explanation! And so, our limited series of “paquet de farine” prints were born.
Find Georgina @georginadocherty_
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Tell us about your business birth story
I have always been interested in printing. I studied Textile Design at University where I always found myself drawn to printed motifs. After leaving university I missed having a creative outlet and started Lino printing more at home, got my own print press and thought… this could actually be something!
Do you play favourites? Which of your own products do you love most and why?
My new oyster print has instantly become my favourite. I had this print idea in my head for months but I kept putting off the design as I couldn’t find the right paint for the pearl, but now I have and I love it!
What advice do you have for other female / minority founders or aspiring business baddies?
My advice would be to push yourself and get to as many markets/events as possible! Not only is it a great way of selling your products, you will end up finding people with similar interests, hobbies and career aspirations. It is such a great environment to be part of, although the early starts can be hard believe me it’s worth it!
Farine Uniform & Brownie Points Tee, by Noelle Ltd
Noelle brings you ethically made, considered clothing…for people that won’t settle. We have been sworn Noelle hype women ever since Elisia bought the “Nifty Bag” at a market we were both trading at. She put it on immediately and is now never seen without it. After discovering that Noelle is size inclusive (round of applause!!!!!) we got to work on collaborating for our custom uniform. Needless to say, we are obsessed with our aprons and we have t-shirts on the way too!
Find Eliza @noelle.ltd
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Tell us about your business birth story
After studying fashion for 5 years and then a further 6 year career in the industry, I had got to the end of my tether with the over consumption and green washing in the fashion world. Everywhere I worked had one goal which was profit and it didn’t matter who was exploited along the way. I adore clothing and didn’t want to step away from it completely so I decided to go at it alone. My goal was to create well made, high quality, timeless pieces that people would love forever.
Do you play favourites? Which of your own products do you love most and why?
I try not to play favourites but I must say, my nifty bag has had so many outings, I think I have worn a different bag once in two years and that was for a wedding! I feel lost without it, it’s the most practical and comfortable everyday item. It’s like having a giant pocket in the most convenient reachable place.
What advice do you have for other female / minority founders or aspiring business baddies?
Just go for it! What is the worst that can happen?! You’ll be cross with yourself for not giving it a go and everyone is just winging it!
Salad Days Market
An honorary mention goes to Liv and Daisy who curate the best markets in London! Salad Days bring incredible small businesses to iconic London venues to help more people shop small. Without trading at these markets, we would not have met these other small businesses that we have been able to collaborate with… so our merch dreams have become reality all thanks to these lovely, empowering and supportive gals!
Find Daisy & Liv @saladdaysmarketlondon