We’re delighted to introduce our collaboration with Sally Swannell, bringing a curated collection of thoughtfully designed pieces to our range.
As one of the first launches in our brand-new Aura collection, these designs combine Sally’s distinctive artwork with practical, considered design. Made in the UK from recycled nylon and finished with an ultra-soft texture, the range offers a stylish and hardwearing addition to any retail collection.
We’re also expanding our selection of UK-made Outdoor Mats with two of Sally’s beautiful designs, giving trade customers even more choice when it comes to distinctive, nature-inspired products.
Sally is an artist passionate about wildlife conservation, with her work celebrating the beauty and character of the British countryside. We’re proud to collaborate with her and bring her designs to our trade customers.
Be sure to check out the full collection and don't miss the beautiful new festive deigns Snowy street & Church in the snow
Read on to discover more about Sally, her inspiration and the stories behind her designs.
Beauty for the Everyday, By Sally Swannell
A deep love for home and nature has always been my guiding north star. When I was ten years old, my parents purchased an old, tumbledown cottage that desperately needed repair, care, and attention. As part of an army family, this was our eighth move, yet it was the very first place that truly felt like home. It had thick, sturdy walls, characterful wonky floors, squirrels nesting in the thatch roof, and a large garden with undergrowth eight feet high, entangled with brambles and nettles. In my eyes, it was nothing short of magical. It was there that I first discovered my profound fascination with nature. The cottage was visited by a vibrant cast of characters: birds, field mice, rabbits, bats, owls, pheasants, and foxes, all accompanied by a cacophony of birdsong. There was also a beautiful chalk stream down the road where I spent many an afternoon watching water voles, and observing the comings and goings of ducks, swans, dragonflies, and all manner of other creatures.
I believe our connection to nature and our homes is deeply personal and different for everyone. It lives in our much-cherished objects, paintings, pieces of furniture, ornaments, plants and wildlife in the garden; in the way light filters through a window, the sounds of footfall across a floor, and that specific feeling of relief when you walk through the door. A sense of place, and everything in its place, has a unique way of grounding us. In a creative sense, I think of home as much as a feeling of what feels right, and joyful, a place within ourselves and the physical space where we live, where we can truly own our unique creative expression.
There are countless ways we can achieve this at home by bringing beauty into the everyday through art. This can happen through the use of designs on ordinary household products that we wouldn’t necessarily associate with art or beauty in the first instance. I am a big fan of William Morris, and his famous quote “Have nothing in your houses that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful” is, for me, a good adage to live by.
Hug Rug stood out to me immediately as a fantastic brand to collaborate with. They are an innovative family business, a home-grown British brand that still manufactures on their original site in Huddersfield, which is increasingly unusual in these times. I feel that shared values are paramount in any collaboration: environmental policy, thoughtful product design, longevity, family values, and a truly collaborative approach from design and sampling through to marketing, PR, and ultimately sales. These are the elements that made this partnership a brilliant fit. It is really important to me that my work sits well on a product and remains true as much as is possible, allowing for resizing, materials, and manufacturing processes, ensuring the pieces look coherent across a range. I am truly happy that we have achieved this together in the creation of this new collection.
View the full collection here.
