These couples have a combination of creative power that will inspire designers everywhere.
They say it takes two to tango and that might just be the case when it comes to hitting the floor within the creative industry. These couples combined their talents of illustration, design, photography and more to create some of the most exciting offerings packed full of inspiration and of course, lots of love.
Husband and wife duo Gavin and Jane Strange recently launched their online shop, aptly titled Strange
Despite being a full-time senior designer at Aardman, Gavin Strange has an array of side projects on the go, his most recent being a new online shop, Strange, set up with his wife Jane. Launched via a pop-up store in Bristol in August, Strange sells an array of carefully curated products.
"You can never have too many side-projects!" says Strange. "But it was nothing more than a nice idea until we returned home from The DO Lectures all inspired, and thought: ‘Let’s just do it, together, as a joint venture.’ We didn’t have any capital or a business plan, just an excitement to make it happen."
And that's exactly what they've done, having recently released their first collection, titled Rockmount, which includes a mug, cushion, tea towel and necklace and is inspired by the duo's adopted rescue racing greyhound.
123KLAN was founded back in 1992 by husband and wife design duo Scien and Klor
123KLAN is originally a French graffiti art crew founded back in 1992 by husband and wife Scien and Klor. Based in Montréal, Canada, the design duo crafted an hybrid style that gained them swift recognition, influenced by the various 90’s graffiti art expressed in Europe and New York. Since then, they have branched out, creating and producing a range of their favourite items through their BANDIT1SM brand.
Ben and Fi O'Brien have worked together for almost a decade
Huddle Formation is a multi-disciplinary creative studio that collaborate, make, illustrate and play to bring colourful ideas to life. Formed of husband Ben the Illustrator and wife Fi O'Brien, the pair combine their talents of textile design and gorgeous illustration to bring art direction, branding and product design to the table.
"We have worked together for almost a decade on a multitude of commercial projects and self-initiated product lines and are now super happy to bring everything together into one formation, the Huddle Formation," explains Ben O'Brien.
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TADO started with a Flash animation based on the story of Willow pattern china plates
UK-based artists Mike and Katie, aka TADO, have designed everything from a Judge Death plush for 2000AD to a cereal brand for Sainsbury's. In our in-depth interview with the pair, they told us of their meeting, living together and why Japan is one of their favourite places in the world.
"We met during the second year on the Leeds Met Graphic Design course. A tutor of ours suggested we tried collaborating on some projects… and the rest is history!" they explain.
Andrew and Emma use Miscelleaneous Adventures as a way of getting creative outdoors
Created by illustrator and craftsman Andrew Groves, Miscellaneous Adventures aims to get screen-focused designers out in the open. A place where design and illustration meet traditional craft and outdoor skills, it's chance to get your hands dirty and make some pretty wonderful wooden items within a beautiful enviroment.
Girlfriend and embroidery expert Emma Ruth Hughes joined officially in the spring of 2013 to assist with the organisation and running of the workshops. The pair were also joined by fellow woodsman and surfer, Oliver Last late last year.
This couple are obsessed with the sea, seen with their beautiful underwater photography
This husband-and-wife duo work collaboratively to create highly detailed paintings and drawings for both illustration and fine art. They are obsessed with the ocean and being underwater, stating that they 'hope to someday come to rest at the bottom of the sea and slowly be devoured by deep creatures over many years.'
They exhibited across the world, including shows in Los Angeles, Seattle, Melbourne and Toronto. Their underwater photographs are particularly extraordinary.
An Italian couple in Australia, they certainly love Byron Bay!
This small, perfectly-formed team are made up of Italian boyfriend Ivano Salonia and Portuguese girlfriend Ana Rita Sousa. Based in Portugal, they offer a variety of creative services, including graphic and web design, art direction, creative consultancy, branding, video production, photography and illustration.
They've also just launched a new photography project - I Love When You Smile, that sees the couple embark on a new passion together.
With the help of their beloved pooch, LouLou and Tummie produce cute and colourful designs
This adorable Dutch illustration duo spend their days building an ever expanding empire of colourful graphics and characters. With the help of their beloved dog, they crave happiness and all things cute in their designs that can be found in magazines, books, advertisements, plush, papertoys, on walls and interiours, t-shirts and shoes.
Comic book artists Jack and Donya with their awesome kitty Molly
As hugely popular comic artists in their own right, boyfriend and girlfriend Jack Teagle and Donya Todd came together to create Chubby. A collaboration that combines their brilliant illustrative talents, they make clothing and comics for hot dogs and cool cats.
So far they've created some inspiring apparel as well as some pretty wonderful comic sketches that prove when you combine your creative forces, wonderful things can happen.
Hello DODO aim to make people smile with their adorable range of screen prints and more
When they're not posing for wonderful, fancy dress photos, Hello DODO are playful printmakers Ali and Jam. A couple based by the seaside in Brighton, their designs aim is to make people smile. Creating hand printed screen prints, relief prints and tote bags as well as greetings cards, the corners of your mouth will be rising in no time.
Diana and Dave make the kind of toys that adults and children alike will love
Pygmy Cloud is a little brand of home decor, plushies and accessories run by couple Diana and Dave. Every product is designed in London for adults and children alike, with adorable animals, mountains, beards and beasties making their way onto the soft, gorgeous offerings.
"Being from England, we love talking about the weather - but we like to put a happy spin on dreary British rain and clouds in our products. We only reserve grumpiness for our bears!" they explain.
Karli and Jaques of DesignosaurYEAH doing their best raptor impressions
Creating fun, dinosaur inspired laser cut jewellery in Plexiglass, Perspex and Cherry Wood, Brighton based couple Karli and Jaques are influenced by all things bright, colourful and brash. Their range includes necklaces, brooches, rings and more that almost everyone will want a piece of.
Anna Fidalgo and Roger Kelly skip the red, white and blue for some monochrome
Crispin Finn are a London based couple who work exclusively in the colours red, white and blue. Patriotic Anna Fidalgo and Roger Kelly have worked together since 2008, creating illustration, design, screen prints, stationery and homewares. Their minimal approach to graphic design and illustration has proved a massive hit across the world.
The pair would meet up after school before realising each other's love for design
Everywhere We Shoot are as cool as they come. Made up of couple Ryan Vergara and Garovs Garrovillo, their moniker is not just the duo’s name but also a statement of intent, a manifesto of sorts in praise of the ambulant imagination.
"We were two kids who would meet up at a fast food joint near school, just to hang out. As a result, we ended up smitten not only with each other, but also with each other’s good taste," they explain.
Do you know a design power couple? Let us know in the comments box below!
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Sammy Maine was a founding member of the Creative Bloq team way back in the early 2010s, working as a Commissioning Editor. Her interests cover graphic design in music and film, illustration and animation. Since departing, Sammy has written for The Guardian, VICE, The Independent & Metro, and currently co-edits the quarterly music journal Gold Flake Paint.
