July Studio is a London-based design studio founded by Laura Olson, focused on creating thoughtful, sustainable home goods. At the heart of the practice is a commitment to material exploration and environmental responsibility. Each piece begins with waste or found materials, giving new purpose to what might otherwise be discarded. Surfaces are formed using a custom bio-resin blend mixed with natural pigments, expired teas, herbs, and other organic materials, resulting in distinctive textures and one-of-a-kind finishes. This process-driven approach challenges conventional uses of bio-resin and reflects an ongoing curiosity about the intersection of design, sustainability, and storytelling. Our aim is to bring a sense of the earth into the spaces we live in—quietly grounding, subtly complex, and always connected to the natural world.
Find our curated collection of Laura's ceramics here.
Where are you based?
I live and work at home in Leyton, East London.
How did your brand / company begin?
I’ve always been a creative person but my specific practice that I’ve formed now originated from my uni days - experimenting with this ‘new’ material I came across called Jesmonite. I liked that it was a more sustainable alternative to other materials I had experimented with. My specific practice of mixing waste materials within fresh batches of the bio-resin mixture began when I was interning with artist Hilda Hellstrom. After a day of sanding slabs of her work - we were left with piles of Jesmonite ‘sawdust’ with hues of whites, grays and blues. Instead of throwing all of this away, I had asked her if I could take it home to experiment with. After casting this ‘sawdust’ with virgin material - I was left with a surface with speckled blue/white/gray hues and thus my experimental practice was born!
I love to source materials from holidays so that I can capture that location within a design object for other’s homes. In the future, I would love to do custom pieces where people can
supply me with materials from their favourite places that I can turn into design pieces to bring into their homes.
How would you describe your company ethos?
My company ethos is fully focused on sustainability and also allowing space for myself to experiment and mess up. As someone who has been diagnosed with ADHD since a young child, I have always been put into environments where my brain has had to fit into perfect ‘neurotypical’ boxes. Next to sustainability, the other most important factor in my work is experimentation and the right to ‘fuck up’.
Where do your materials come from?
About 90% of my work is built from sourced or waste materials: things like cleaned food containers or leftover packaging that become the base of my pieces. The coating is a bio-resin, tinted with natural pigments I’ve made myself from ground stone, or even expired herbs and teas. I also collect pigments from specialty shops, especially when I travel, finding colors and hues I don’t already have is one of my favourite parts. Each pigment feels like a little piece of the place it came from, and bringing it into my future work is both grounding and inspiring.
Did you study design anywhere or are you self taught / naturally fall into this work?
I came up with my process in uni. I was studying textile design, but slowly started to realise how much waste is involved with textile production and the clothing trend cycles. I wanted to find a more sustainable practice. I started to experiment with sustainable materials and came across Jesmonite. I really wanted to push the boundaries as to how this material is typically used and explored different ways of working with it that involves re-used materials and naturally derived pigments.
How does your design process work from idea to finished product?
I usually start with a rough sketch of the piece I have in mind. From there, I explore the materials and colors I want to bring in, this means mixing different pigments and waste materials until I land on the right hue. I make a few test samples to check how the colors behave, since bio-resin can be tricky; the liquid bonding often shifts the natural pigments, so a shade might dry lighter or slightly different than expected. Once I’m happy with the results, I move on to creating the final piece.
What do you listen to or watch while you work?
I have a playlist that you can catch here. If I’m not listening to music - I usually have youtube on in the background and really enjoy cultural/societal commentary creators like Mina Le and Jordan Theresa. It has to be something that I can’t really ‘watch’ since my eyes have to be on my work most times!
Who inspires you?
I have so many different sources of inspiration; from people, to nature, to anything in between. My interest in home decor design came from the website Sight Unseen that I have obsessed over since I first discovered them. I love their voice and eye for design. Their publication highlights many artists and makers that have become favourites of mine such as Eny Lee Parker, Max Lamb and Charlotte Taylor.
What is your favourite material to work with and why?
Any new pigment or material that I collect is one of my favourite things about my process. Breaking down the material into different sized grains and casting the piece - you never know if it will look good, or even work! The downside of my practice is that sometimes, due to the material composition - some materials prevent the bio-resin from drying completely and therefore have to be tossed.
What are you reading at the moment?
I’m re-reading one of my favourite books from last summer, Some Strange Music Draws Me In by Griffin Hansbury. It is the perfect book for the end of summer (which it currently is at this time!). It is a gorgeous trans coming-of-age story that swaps perspectives between a
pre-transition teenager living in a small town, and a post-transition 4 -ish year old coming back to their home town to deal with helping sell their childhood home. It is a super underrated book and I highly recommend it. Especially at a time like now where trans-hate is on the rise around the globe.
What dream would you still like to fulfil?
In 2021, I took a break between jobs and lived/worked in the south of France near Biarritz in a ceramic studio. It was a truly magical time but one of the local beaches was absolutely rammed with microplastics. It was such an odd contrast to the beautiful sunsets and clear skies - this reminder that we still have so much work to do to keep this earth beautiful. I would love to be able to do beach cleans and re-use microplastics within my mixes - therefore adding body to my work and making use of material that would have otherwise caused ecological harm.
I’d also love to collaborate with people on custom pieces. They could share materials from their favorite places—like stones from a childhood garden or sand from a beach holiday—and let me know what kind of piece they’d like (a vase, candlestick holder, table decor, etc.). I’d then create something that not only adds character and style to their home, but also brings a piece of their favorite place into it.
Do you have any tips you'd like to share with other artists?
Don’t hold ideas in your mind because you’re not ready to make the ‘perfect version’ yet - get them out, no matter how messy, unfinished, or imperfect they feel. A rough sketch, a quick prototype, even a scribble on the back of an envelope is better than letting an idea rot in your imagination. The act of making, even badly, gives you raw material to refine later. Don’t wait for inspiration to feel polished or profound before you move; momentum comes from making. And remember, the ‘bad’ work is often what leads you toward the surprising, the original, and the good. Trust the process more than the product, and let the work itself teach you where to go next.
