OB’s Spring/Summer 2024 Mood Board: Nature-inspired Prints

For spring/summer 2024 the Oliver Bonas designers have been looking to the natural world, and you’ll find prints across our homeware, clothing and accessory collections that are inspired by all kinds of flora and fauna, from sea life through to safari.

Variations on markings found on animal skins and shells feature on vases, ceramic accessories, doormats and knitwear. Coral shapes can be found on jewellery stands and cushions, while zebra-inspired stripes blend into ikat waves across lampshades and seating. Tie dye techniques mimic fossil-like patterns and the dappling of sunlight across the ocean surface, while ocean-inspired botanicals appear on fashion and accessories.

Perfectly imperfect

The design teams wanted to focus on the imperfections and randomness found in nature, bringing it into our homeware and clothing products through a variety of materials and techniques such as tie-dye, mouth-blown glass, batik and marbling. The different techniques allowed for experimentation and playfulness.

‘Some prints were hand-drawn and painted using inks or brush pens,’ explains OB’s Head of Home & Gift Design Kate Butler, ‘while some were entirely digital and others were achieved through block printing and dip-dyeing. It was a very exploratory and creative process.’

The fashion teams were inspired by the sea and artists who create unique narratives using the natural world as their muse. ‘We looked at the colourful and luminous abstract photography of Paul Rousteau,’ says Senior Print Designer Danielle Williams, ‘and the mixed media landscapes caught by Leah Kennedy.’ Mineral textures were used to add depth and interest to clothing, while wavy graduated stripes are diffused for an almost painterly finish.

We wanted to see how we could interpret nature’s patterns with our distinctive OB lens. Specifically, we focused on patterns from shells and animal skins, but we didn’t want to be too literal, so we played with colour and scale to reimagine it.

– Kate Butler, Head of Home & Gift Design

The colour palette

The use of colour is very considered throughout. Ombre blending reminiscent of sunset skies sits alongside simple monochrome contrasts and earthy terracotta, weaving in the natural palette of the world around us. Integrating accents of natural tan and sandy tones was intentional and creates an elevated feel throughout our homeware, furniture and fashion collections.

‘We always like to use a variety of shades,’ explains Kate, ‘but this season we wanted to incorporate a thread of sophisticated monochrome to balance the vibrancy in the rest of our ranges.’ Rich, brighter pops sing out within our tie dye and ombre homeware collections, with fresh, vibrant greens appearing on dresses and shirts to celebrate the move into warmer weather.