Catching up with PATCH NYC: The inspiration behind their second collection

Five years ago we had the good fortune of collaborating with the oh-so-talented (and extremely likeable) co-founders of PATCH NYC, Don and John. You can read about their debut wallpaper collection here. Fast forward to today, and we couldn't be more thrilled to launch our second collection with them!

Serpentine (Ebony) Wallpaper

These new wallpapers feature more of their signature ink drawings in unexpected color palettes and shimmering metallics, as well as a lush forest mural. We're catching up with Don and John at their gorgeous home in New Bedford to hear what's new in the world of PATCH NYC and learn more about the inspiration behind their beautiful new collection.

Bring us up to date on PATCH NYC since 2020 - any significant changes?

In the early months of 2020, we took a leap of faith and bought a house in a new (for us) city. For close to three years, we had been house hunting on and off with little success so we started casting a wider and wider net outside of Boston. We ended up finding an amazing old home in New Bedford, a waterfront city about an hour south of Boston that has incredible architecture from the whaling and textile industry heydays.

Of course, 2020 turned out to be a challenging year for everyone so it was strange moving to a new city just as everything was shutting down. Needless to say, we didn’t do a lot of exploring of our new home town that first year. Instead we hunkered down and focused on our business and settling into our beautiful old house. Now, five years later, we are really enjoying New Bedford and the creative energy here. We love history and there is a whole lot in New Bedford. Our house was built by one of the founders of the New Bedford Cordage Company that supplied ropes for the whaling industry. One of his sons studied art in Paris and became a well-known local artist. He also inherited the house from his father and there are a few of his paintings on a door and over a fireplace. We feel so fortunate to live and work in a house that has a creative history.

What has been inspiring you the last few years in your work, shop, home life?

We’ve definitely been inspired by our new home and having the living and working spaces we always dreamed about. The very first PATCH NYC studio was one room in a basement off 8th Avenue in Chelsea. There was no natural light and visitors had to walk down an alley and past trash cans to find us. Now, all these years later, we have natural light pouring into our work studios and we have plenty of space to indulge in creative projects.

Fortune (Butterscotch) Wallpaper

It has also been such a treat to incorporate our designs into our new home. We’ve always lived surrounded by our art and designs but it’s so different being in an historical house with so much character.

Since launching your last collection, how would you say your aesthetic has changed or morphed, if at all?

As artists, we thrive on a creative challenge, on learning new craft techniques or experimenting with new materials and, fortunately, there is never a shortage of ideas for how to push PATCH NYC. Our core aesthetic hasn't changed because it is such a part of this business we’ve built together but, hopefully, it continues evolving.

Tell us more about painting Tapestry. We see you’ve created some gorgeous linens with it as well. What makes it so special and where do you envision the mural being used?

In 2019, we visited Antwerp and saw some beautiful Flemish tapestries in museums there. We were drawn to the oversized scale and the imaginary landscapes rendered predominately in shades of blue. That trip inspired Don to paint his version of a blue landscape so he started a series of paintings inspired by those Flemish tapestries.

When Hygge & West suggested creating a mural we thought it was such a great idea because the tapestries we saw in Antwerp were so large they practically filled a wall from floor to ceiling, much like a mural.

The Blue Tapestry linen collection came about because we wanted to explore other ways to bring Don’s paintings into an interior. We love the idea of draping a dining table in a giant blue tapestry or piling a sofa with blue tapestry pillows.The linen collection is a full circle from our original inspiration: it started with tapestries that became paintings that became linens. 

Tapestry (Indigo) Mural

We could see the Tapestry mural on a bedroom wall. How wonderful would it be to go to sleep surrounded by all that beautiful blue?

Connections (Indigo) Wallpaper

We’d love to hear more about the inspiration behind Connections too. And where do you envision it being used?

Since our first jewelry collections we’ve incorporated vintage elements into our designs and we’ve always liked working with intricate Victorian watch chains because they have wonderful details. A few years ago, we were fortunate to work on a special project for Hermès and part of the development of that collection was a deep dive into the company’s vast archive which included many images of chains and cords and twine. That research inspired Don to create a series of drawings of beautifully detailed chains and tassels that ended up becoming the Connections design. We imagine Connections in an entry hall or a powder room.

Trellis (Dusk) Wallpaper

Lucky (Cornflower) Wallpaper

Same for Trellis and Lucky - how would you decorate with those patterns?

For some reason, we think of a kitchen and a breakfast nook for Lucky. It’s such a sweet, cheerful pattern and we’d love to have our morning coffee surrounded by it. We could see Trellis in a dining room or a guest bedroom because it has such a nice energy and flow to the undulating vines and big blooms.

Thanks so much for chatting with us, Don and John!