Over the Christmas period, as well as much partying and eating festive treats, something else quite exciting happened. The online shop Pretty Dandy was finally launched! I say ‘finally’ because I’ve been following it’s owner Becky on twitter for a few months and waiting eagerly while she tweaked the site till it was ready for show. Now it is open for business and I’m happy to be able to share it with you all.
Vintage Tin Candleholder
Pretty Dandy is an independent interiors boutique dedicated to finding the best in handmade, new design & vintage homewares. The online store features a variety of products from ranges of handprinted lampshades and contemporary lighting, to handmade cushions in a range of colours and patterns, vintage tea sets, limited edition artist prints, twinkly tea lights, fairly traded bird houses, illustrated tea towels, linen photo albums and lots of lovely cards & stationery. Phew! That is a lot of fab stuff to choose from!
Plumen Lightbulb
Having a browse over the site you get to learn a little more about what inspired founder, Becky Morris Knight, to set up Pretty Dandy:
“I decided to set up Pretty Dandy when I realised that the thing I have been most inspired and fulfilled by has been creating my home. My home is the place that cocoons me, energises me, inspires me and, most importantly, expresses something about who I am and what is important to me. I established Pretty Dandy so that I could be a part of helping other people to create their home.
It can be easy to find the big pieces for your house – a sofa, table, bed etc – but the small details, the colour, life and individuality, is harder to come by. Pretty Dandy is a place where vintage crockery for a gorgeous afternoon tea sits beside a striking contemporary origami-inspired wall light and a hand-knitted cushion. My interiors style is eclectic, vintage, somewhat obsessive, generous, colourful, and free from rules. I wanted to create a shop which would help other people to create a welcoming, fun home to match their personalities and their style. When I asked friends on twitter, Facebook and in real life, to describe their interiors style the word used most often was “eclectic”. However when I looked around at the high street home offerings many shops carried very similar ranges with very small points of difference. I hope when you look at my range you will find some wonderful pieces, some beautiful details which can help you to create your eclectic home.” Becky Morris Knight – proud new owner of Pretty Dandy!
The lovely Becky Morris-Knight
Once Pretty Dandy had launched I quickly got in touch with Becky and asked her if she’d mind answering a few questions so I could share with you a bit more ‘behind the scenes’ detail to Pretty Dandy.
Sophie: Happy New Year Becky! How are you doing?
Becky: Great thanks! Hope you are too
Sophie: I love Pretty Dandy, I’m so glad to see such a wonderfully varied product range. May I ask – Have you always had an ‘eclectic’ interiors style?
Becky: No, definitely not. My Mum is a big influence on me, she has kind of crazy opulent taste and is a big fan of everything matching. So it took a fair while for me to break out of that mould and find my own style. I went through a phase of being totally retro and have since matured (I hope) into something that suits me – a mash up of vintage (mainly mid-century), rich jewel tones (I have a teal/mustard obsession), quirky new design and handmade treats.
Sophie: I am a big fan of vintage, particularly mid-century pieces myself. What are your favourite vintage pieces that you own in your home?
Becky: I did an exercise the other day where I looked around my living room to think about where I purchased everything in it. I think out of the sofa, coffee table, wallpaper, curtains, sideboard and lamp only one of those was new, so this is a pretty hard question for me to answer! I will go with something that I have been looking at every day for three years and have never fallen out of love with… our wallpaper. By the way, the new thing is the curtains, Habitat.
Becky’s fabulous wallpaper!
Sophie: So, what are your favourite items from Pretty Dandy and why? This will probably be a tough one to answer – I’ve liked everything I’ve seen so far!
Becky: Argh, this is definitely a case of Sophie’s Choice! (See what I did there?!)… another tough call given that I chose everything because I would want it in my own home. I hope it’s ok if I sidestep the question slightly and choose something which will always be special to me as it was the very first item I chose when I decided to set up Pretty Dandy – before the business had a name, brand, website or anything. It is this print: http://www.prettydandy.co.uk/shop/this-is-what-happened-at-the-beach-collage-print - which I love because it has a really great pop-art sort of feel to it and rainbow rain is a great idea. The others in this style are also all rather wonderful!
Sophie: It’s fabulous! I really love the prints too, infact I’ve just purchased this one and I’m really pleased with it. It looks like the boutique is really taking off – how do you hope to progress Pretty Dandy in the coming months?
Becky: My aim is really to let Pretty Dandy grow and develop at its own speed. I hope that by continuing to seek lovely vintage homewares, or handmade treasures, that people will love them as much as I do and buy them to love in their own home, or (reluctantly) give as gifts. There will definitely be more vintage pieces coming on to the site soon, as I have various fifties fancies and mid-century design classics waiting for me to find a moment to upload them. I also hope to add some pieces by small British manufacturers and more kitchenware – one of my passions… I should probably stop there – I could answer this question forever, because as soon as I think of one thing to do another five spring to mind as well!
Wooden Studio Shelf
Sophie: It’s brilliant that you’ve got so many creative ideas for the business, you must have lots of work to do! Is there anyone else working with you on Pretty Dandy?
Becky: Yes and no, while I’m the girl with the dream and passion for interiors my husband is a trusted advisor, my website has been built by a talented guy called Chris Tebbit and my beautiful brand is designed by a very very talented illustrator/designer and all round lovely lady called Angi Fletcher. So, although day to day it is just me, I’m surrounded by a wonderful group of supportive friends and family who are all helping me along the way.
Cake Plate – Midwinter Mayfield Pattern
Thanks Becky for taking the time to answer my questions! I have every faith that Pretty Dandy will be on everyone’s lips in 2012.
With a feature on the HeartHomeMag blog already under her belt, Becky’s online store is sure to go from strength to strength over the next few months and I wish her the best of luck.
* All images by Becky Morris Knight
