WORN WELL SERIES

with Caroline Corrigan

The Worn Well series is back-in-action just in time for our Spring Collection launch. Here, we feature artists, creatives, and style muses we admire who are changing what it means to get dressed. We talk about living well in clothing you love and wardrobe inspiration: from the simple to the off-beat.

Read on to learn more about the artist behind our print for the spring collection: Caroline Corrigan. We get into 1960s style inspo, the power of a well-made cardigan, and how a dreamy, desert-inspired palette combined with organic shapes & brush strokes became our Caroline Print.

How do you get into a creative mindset?

Making visual work is how I inherently communicate ideas. Sometimes finding motivation is as obvious as scrolling the internet, but more often I’ll find myself springing into action when I’m looking at something on paper. I have stacks of things on my studio desk that I’ve torn out of newspapers, magazines, illustrated books, etc. I keep them around while I’m working to reference or help motivate me. Music is also crucial to getting in the right headspace to make creative work.

How would you describe your personal style?

Kind of mix of classic and utilitarian, but usually with some kind of off-beat addition. Lately that’s been Birkenstocks with ragg wool socks or a graphic tote from a shop I love. I gravitate toward simple patterns, cotton, linen and wool. I probably wear turtlenecks and stripes too often.

Where do you look for style inspiration?

My style muse would probably be an art history professor from the late 1960s. Even though where I end up going with an outfit always tends to be more simple, I love looking at the instagram accounts of Diane Keaton, Chloe Sevigny and Leandra Medine for inspiration, especially if I want to try something new. I feel like these women embody the idea of dressing for yourself, and not other people.

How did you go about creating the ‘Caroline Print’? What inspired you?

When I was initially discussing the project with Sadie, she had a few ideas and some beautiful images for inspiration that involved a really dreamy, desert-inspired palette utilizing organic shapes, brush strokes. I knew it would have a lot of elements without feeling too busy. The color palette really helped here. Sadie had referenced a poster I made for a maker’s market I helped coordinate where I live upstate New York, so it was helpful to have a bit of a jumping off point for the pattern.

We worked together to tweak in colors and placement but eventually we got it right where we wanted. I’m so happy with the final result! Making this print for Tradlands was a dream project for me, honestly. It has really piqued my interest in surface design, and I hope to find some more opportunities in that area.

Tell us something special about you.

I’m a mom! Our son Graham is two and a half. This quarantine time has been intense, of course, and has made working from home much more challenging. On the flip side, though, my husband and I are watching our bond as a little family become stronger in real time, just from having a bit more time together than we normally do. I’m trying to find the silver lining right now and I really think that kids are little bringers of joy in dark times.

We saw that you recently released your book Women Artists A to Z. We’d love to know more about the book. Where’d the idea come from? Where can we purchase it?

My very brilliant friend, Melanie LaBarge, is the author of the book. The idea came to her when we were meeting up for coffee and we were discussing a mutual love of the artist, Helen Frankenthaler. She later texted me with her idea to create a children’s book celebrating women artists - in a hopeful effort to make these women household names (so people can come up with someone other than say, Picasso.). After that, she sent me text and research to work with, and I mocked up a few spreads. We eventually turned the page samples into a proposal and approached a literary agent with the idea. She shopped it around and found a home for our book at Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin. It has been a real joy to work on the book and share it with others. You can get the book anywhere, from Amazon to your local indie book shop.

What are your 3 must-have WFH (work from home) items in your wardrobe?

A good tee, a cozy cardigan (the Shelter Cardigan is my favorite thing ever and has rarely left my body since December...), and of course, comfy pants.

Thank you so much, Caroline!

Check out more of her artwork and design on her website and Instagram.

Stay tuned for our next interview coming up soon.