For more information on Country Living Events for 2024, please contact Ellie Craig, Artisan Growth Manager at [email protected]
The Lost Girls
In our latest Meet the Maker Q&A we have been catching up with Aoife and Georgie, the pair behind the brand The Lost Girls who joined us at our last Country Living Christmas Fair in London. As an artisan company still in their very first year of business, we couldn’t wait to find out more about their backstory and their new Valentines product drop which is now on the market!
Company Overview
The Lost Girls is so much more than an interior brand. Made up of two friends who studied textile design together at Nottingham Trent University, the pair have come together to bring their passion to life.
Aoife, an embroidery designer and Georgie, who specialises in accessories and print design make the majority of their products in house or with local suppliers based in the UK.
They care about zero waste and doing their bit for the environment, so any fabric products that aren’t selling will be made into something else.
How did it all start?
The founders, Aoife and Georgie, met at Nottingham Trent University whilst studying Textiles. Aoife specialising in Embroidery and Georgie in Print, they have always dreamed of having a studio they both can develop these passions with. Deciding to give a career in fashion a chance, they both delved into this after University. However, feeling like it wasn’t quite fulfilling them how they expected, they went back to the studio dream of owning their own business together.
The story behind the name…
Everyone loves our names and always asks us about this! From working together every day we predicted even though we planned to venture into the world of fashion, that one day in our 20’s we would be lost in what to do with our careers. Having come to the realisation that this was happening, The Lost Girls was born.
Where are you based?
We are based in London, just by the river in Battersea, so you can catch us on our lunchtime walks around there. We love to meet new people, so please knock if you see our studio and come and say hello!
What inspires you?
One of the main reasons we started TLG together is because our inspiration comes from the same source. Pattern – specifically florals and all things colours! Colour is so important to us both, sometimes interiors can be so plain, and we like to bring our personalities into everything we possibly can.
What is your creation process?
Depending on the project, whether it’s bespoke or a collection this can vary. For bespoke projects we work closely with the client, seeing their ideas, creating mood boards or samples to then choosing the fabric and colours. For our collections we try and see what’s inspiring us and work from there, collecting fabrics and items to bring together our ideas whilst sketching and making as we go along. One thing that is always the same is everything is handmade by us, here in our London studio or with local artisan UK makers.
What makes you, your brand or products unique?
We feel here at TLG we are more of a community than a brand, we want to bring people together with events and homeware that lasts a lifetime. We try not to follow a structure of trends and seasons but more what inspires us. A big element of our work is sustainability and thinking about the environment. We don’t want to be another mass churning addition to the cycle of consumerism, however we are always on the lookout to improve. We want The Lost Girls to be a lifestyle brand, not just an interior shop.
What is your next project?
We have just done our Valentines collection, bringing 100% Pink Irish Linens a lovely new life with our personalised napkins and tablecloths. However we are so excited to bring our Easter collection to you, we are trying to source lots of beautiful items from charity shops and second hand shops around London. Making use of the already intricate things out there whilst giving them a second life on your tables!
What are your plans for the next 12 months?
Our plan throughout the year is something that changes a lot! However, something we have tried to stick to is evolving different elements of our business. We are currently working with lots of wedding planners, event clients and supper clubs to bring out the bespoke elements of our business whilst bringing you beautiful, well thought out products. We have had a few of our own events planned, having just had a special Valentines event – in which we taught hand embroidery on our TLG tote bags. However we want to push this side of our business to really see the full potential and meet more of you lovely customers!
What is your biggest achievement?
As our business is still in its first year, we both agree this fact in itself is our biggest achievement. From setting it up to balancing all the different aspects of it has been something we are very proud of. Aside from this, having the privilege to work with brands such as Lulu Guinness and authors such as Roxie Nafousi at their events have been a huge highlight this year for TLG!
What is your best-selling product?
We currently have a few best sellers, our product that everyone loves is our Bonita Pillar candle. We have this in a variety of colours and it’s just so different, a Soy wax pillar candle embossed with our bespoke pattern based on our embroidery. This product is so special and unique to us, it’s our favourite also – we have about 3 each at home! Aside from this our napkins have been super popular especially now we personalise these, people have been loving them recently!
How was your first experience at the Country Living Fair?
We really enjoyed the other companies we met at CLF, seeing how they developed their business really inspired us. We were lucky enough to be around really supportive brands and felt this made the experience really fun and such a learning experience for us.
What do you love about Country Living Fairs?
We like that they include smaller brands such as ourselves, allowing us to showcase who we are to such a wide audience and be able to interact with our lovely customers!
Your three top tips for crafters and makers…
This is hard for us as we are so new, and so still taking all the tips we can get! But so far we would say, stick to what you know and love – this way you’re as passionate about the product you sell as your customers would be. Trust your gut, even though sometimes it seems everyone knows what they are doing, they don’t – they are just trusting themselves. And lastly, enjoy it! It really is a once in a lifetime experience working for yourself and we try to remind ourselves of that every day.
Any advice for fledgling businesses…
Being a sort of ‘fledgling’ business ourselves our advice is make sure you are confident in your business and what you do. Everyone will question you a million and one times about it and as long as you believe in it, so will everyone else!