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Pink Harrison

We are fascinated by the stories to be discovered about our customers and their artwork. When we see sarongs on the order sheet, we have an idea that they are heading to an exotic location, which makes us want to know more!

Artist Pink Harrison creates beautifully delicate watercolours, inspired by her travels to some wonderfully romantic destinations. These paintings translate perfectly into Chiffon sarongs to be worn in such places and then as a reminder of relaxing days in warm climates.

It has been a pleasure to create these sarongs for Pink!

pinks hanko

To find out more we invited Pink for an interview and a tour of our factory, so she could see where her sarongs are printed and then finished by our in-house seamstresses.

pink in the studio
pink sarongs

Pink Harrison - Interview

Q Can you tell us a little about your artistic background?

A I always had a passion for art (and the arts), but had no formal art education beyond A-level. This changed when I met my husband, Michael Harrison (1948-1983) who was gaining a following as an artist and taught in Italy. I learned much from him. After a few years, whilst living in Rome, he invited me to hang some paintings alongside his in an exhibition there. My success helped give me the confidence to believe it may be possible for me to try to make a living as an artist myself.

Sarongs

Q What inspired you to turn your paintings into sarongs?

A I think the inspiration for my sarongs began with a desire to create on a larger scale, and to actually be able to feel and wear beautiful fabrics of my own design. And sarongs seem to sum up happy thoughts of sunshine. It gives me great pleasure to see them being worn on a beach by the sea or as a deliciously floaty scarf in all seasons.

Q Can you tell us more about your collaboration with Rebecca and your connection to Sardinia?

A I am immensely fortunate to work in collaboration with my great friend Rebecca in Sardinia rebeccainsardinia.com. Having lived there for years, she knows the island from top to bottom, and I have been treated to many idyllic locations whilst staying with her. The exquisite villas her company lets are wonderful subject matter for commissions, as are the views from them over the sea in its myriad colours.  I design new sarongs for each summer season and Rebecca gifts them to her clients – so her repeat clients are now collectors of my designs!

Inspiration

Q We can see from your website that you enjoy travel. You also live in an idyllic part of the Cotswolds. How influential have these places been in the subject and style of your artwork?

A From my time in Rome, I have always had a deep love of Italy, and it continues to draw me back whenever possible.

My sister lives in southern France. When I stay with her, she opens my eyes to all the places she has discovered over the years that will excite me to paint. Seeing somewhere unfamiliar with a fresh eye makes for some great focal points… It may be an open door in a back street, a market scene, or a serene seascape.  

Now settled back in the Cotswolds, I am able to look with a refreshed eye at the gorgeous countryside and villages that were once so familiar to me, that I perhaps took for granted when I was younger. I love my garden by a stream. Our English spring is an enormous inspiration as the beauty unfurls. I work in both watercolours and oils, but find that on my travels (and in my garden paintings) I rely mostly on my watercolour box.

Future plans

Q What’s next for Pink the artist? Will we see more sarongs? If so, what subject can we expect?

A I shall be opening my studio to visitors for Broadway Arts Festival  broadwayartsfestival.com during June. I’m currently busy working towards paintings for that. Then later in the summer I plan to be back in Sardinia for a recharge of delicious inspiration for next years sarongs, filling my head with the colours of the sea and the sand there. Rebecca and I are also discussing the possibly of a line of small children’s clothes for the Sardinian market – bright sunny colours, for which I have already created some designs…

pink sarong
pink sarongs

Pink Harrison's choice of Fabric

A light weave chiffon fabric suits the delicate nature of the sarongs perfectly, whilst beautifully reflecting Pink Harrison’s watercolour techniques. With a simple pin hem finish they have a wonderful romantic feel to them – ideal for warm, sunny days!   

Pink’s sarongs are available through her website, where you can also find all her original artworks and prints for sale. 

There will be more...

"Later in the summer I plan to be back in Sardinia for a recharge of delicious inspiration for next year's sarongs, filling my head with the colours of the sea and the sand there."

Pink
pinks sketchbook
pink sarongs

If you are interested in commissioning Pink to create an original painting (and perhaps a sarong!), then please email pink@pinkharrison.co.uk

Find out more

Pink Harrison website: pinkharrison.co.uk

email: pink@pinkharrison.co.uk

Instagram : @pinkharrisonart

Photography: Courtesy of Pink Harrison
Videography: Filmed at The Silk Bureau

Contact us if you would like more information on how to turn your artwork into a sarong or scarf.

Would you like to have a video of your order being printed. Ideal for your social media channels! Then just let us know when you place your next order.

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Printing Scarves

Shrinkage

The processes involved in digital textile printing causes the original fabric to shrink. If you are printing scarves, the size of the finished product will be important to you. For example, if you have square artwork, you will be expecting your finished scarf to be square!

To get the printed fabric closer to the size you need, all fabric intended for scarves must go through an extra step to reshape it. Please allow extra time on your deadlines to allow for this process. 

Let us introduce you to the …

Stenter

The stenter is an enormous piece of machinery that has many uses, including coating our fabrics and reshaping scarf orders.

After travelling through a solution to soften the fabric, it then passes over a flat bed, gripped on the selvedge edges to pull it back into shape. 

It’s a long and precise process that needs to be carefully monitored.

Shrinkage Disclaimer

If you have selected to use our hemming service, we will check the stentered fabric for you before we begin to finish your scarves. If you are not using our service, it’s up to you to check the size BEFORE you cut out the individual scarves from the fabric length. We cannot re-size after your scarves have been cut out. 

Featuring: @clarehaggas Autumn Winter Collection