Across Australia on weekends you’ll find people queuing up. It’s not for nightclubs or hot new restaurants. It’s for something very different: plants. Succulents, monsteras, cacti and fiddle leafs are said to be taking the place of children in our homes. And, like children, plants need to be appropriately dressed (aka planted in pretty pots). Here are a few of our favourite brands.
Capra Designs
Capra Designs was founded by Melbourne couple Bianca Lambert, an arts marketer, and Thomas Wilson, a carpenter. They established their company when their son Banjo was born, to show him the importance of living your passion, “Which was creating gorgeous objects to bring joy to others.”
The result is a series of resin pots, all with removable trays to ensure proper drainage. They’re made in small batches to minimise waste, and handcrafted in Vietnam. Terrazzo patterns in a variety of colours form the bulk of Capra’s latest release, the Golden Collection, which also features flatpack cork plant stands and a new design that combines the water tray with a raised plinth for the pot.
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Based in Sydney’s inner west, Public Holiday crafts clay planters with glazes in a variety of whimsical colours and patterns. Each is hand-formed on a pottery wheel and handpainted and glazed, so the finished product will be a one-off (it also means that while the base pattern and colour will resemble what you ordered online, it won’t be exactly the same). Polka dots, horseshoes and zig-zags cover the pots, some of which have stumpy little legs to stand on.
As well as pots with limbs, Public Holiday makes hanging planters with twine cord, and more traditional flat-based pots. All are made with non-toxic clay and glaze.
Rough Idea Designs
Michele Ewing, the founder of Rough Idea Designs, really loves concrete. Everything she sells, from her vases to her planters and trinket dishes, is made from the stuff. She started experimenting with the material a few years back when she was working in marketing and found she much preferred it to spending all day in front of a computer. So she threw in her office job and now hand-makes every vessel she sells in a shed in her family’s backyard on the NSW central coast.
Ewing has an ever-changing roster of patterns and colours, with the only constant being pale pink. At the moment on her site you’ll find plenty of geometric patterns, marbling and monochrome, all designed and made by hand, by her.
Jones & Co
Founded in 2006 as Have You Met Miss Jones, Jones & Co has since undergone a name change to reflect all the people involved in making its bright and quirky pots and planters. All its products are designed in Sydney’s Bondi, and crafted in limited quantities by artisans across Southeast Asia.
Jones & Co’s pots aren’t for those who enjoy clean lines and neutral colours. They’re covered in geometric patterns, stripes, faces and polka dots. Some are in the shape of mice and dingos, others resemble Frida Kahlo and llamas. The pots are painted in colours that are far from drab – burnt oranges, bright yellows and deep blues are used with abandon.
Jacob & Roy
For a slightly more understated vibe, there’s Jacob & Roy. Founded by Esra Roy, and co-named after her young nephew, Jacob, this brand’s goal is to create a sense of calm in busy city lives. All of its pots come pre-planted with greenery. A tineke ficus (rubber fig) plant, for example, is in a metallic rose-gold pot, and a sweetheart vine is planted in a matte black pot that contrasts splendidly with its deep green leaves.
Each style comes in pretty packaging, so it’s a perfect gift for you or a mate who needs a little nature in their life.
This article first appeared on Broadsheet on August 6, 2019. Some details may have changed since publication.
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