06 March 2020
Designer Spotlight: The Boho Pet
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I’m Erin, the maker behind The Boho Pet. I create handmade macramé pet accessories which are a little bit boho and a lot chic!
The Boho Pet started out of a desire to use my hands in a creative craft and be able to incorporate this with my love of dogs.
Dogs have become so much more than just companion animals and domesticated pets that they are now a part of the family and some (my own dog included) have even filled a role similar to that of a child. Hence, it’s becoming more and more popular now to accessorise and style your dog in the latest fashions for any special outing or occasion. The Boho Pet caters to this by providing products that serve a common function e.g. dog collars and leads, but which also set a benchmark for style.
The Boho Pet is my second business and is still in its early stages having only officially launched late in 2019. I’ve been a professional photographer for many years and found my calling when I started specifically photographing pets 10 years ago (having now won numerous awards for my pet photography), so I’ve spent a lot of time working within the pet and creative industries.
I’m a very visual-based creative person, and I’ve wanted to further delve into my creative nature to be able to make something more tactile and create a product that is 100% crafted from my own original ideas and style.
The maker community is a great way for individuals to come together and share their love for what they create. Sharing a common passion - the love for handmade - means it’s easy to find support in this community and having platforms such as Madeit provide a great way to bring creatives together and help to give us a place to showcase and sell our wares.
From a young age I used to cross stitch, I’ve knitted and recently started admiring macramé so I wanted to learn this art as well. It didn’t take long until I established how I could create items for pets made from macramé techniques and this is what set The Boho Pet in motion.
Because I’m also a pet photographer, I’m lucky to have a creative workspace that is also my photography showroom full of dog photos! Seeing as my products are created for dogs, I get inspiration from being surrounded by all these amazing happy dog faces of all different breeds.
I’m lucky that I only need minimal tools to create my pieces, and this is reserved for the fiddly end stages of each piece. It’s mainly just my working hands, which means I can take my work and make my pieces almost anywhere! So I find if I am going away, I always try and think ahead and pack the thread and parts I might need so I can put my hands to work in any environment where I might feel inspired to do so.
My creative process involves a lot of research, thinking and planning before I start making new products. I need to make sure the threads and components are true to my brand and represent not only the bohemian style I’m going for but also that they are natural, safe and will work for animals.
I’m inspired by nature, the outdoors, colour, imagery, particular threads I find, and always by my dog. She is the ultimate little boho princess! I’ve based my main signature boho style around beautiful lush metallic threads as I love the little bit of subtle shimmer and glam they bring.
I love the satisfaction and sense of pride I get from knowing I crafted and created something from scratch with my own two hands. Each of these little items are curated and created lovingly with a lot of thought and reflection having gone into the process, each being unique. This is a process of handmade that I love.
I am passionate about the idea of being able to have and create something which is not mass manufactured and doesn’t use factories or cheap resources or labour. To me this gives it value.
For me handmade means being able to offer something to dog lovers just like me. Something that is new, different, original and offers a sense of individuality in style which people can appreciate for their pets.
Visit The Boho Pet to find more chic boho pet accessories: Thebohopet
