Sophie Cooper
From Scoops Design
Tell
us a little about yourself and what you do.
I am a jewellery and accessories designer. I started Scoops Design
in 2005 as a way of relaxing from a stressful job. My background is in graphic
design and art direction and Scoops is an extension of everything I love. All of Scoops Designs are
limited edition, hand made and based on characters and an illustrative style
that I have developed since early childhood.
Who
(or what) inspires you to do what you love in your own creative business?
I love designing and making things and have so many ideas of what I
would like to do future wise. I have to keep a book beside my bed as I wake up
in the night with lots more ideas! I love travelling and looking at shop
windows around the world and have a terrible online shopping habit.
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My favourite fashion designers are: Marc Jacobs, Eley Kishimoto,
Tsumori Chisato, Akira Isogawa and Sonia Rykiel. Anything bright and colourful
that uses lots of pattern catches my eye. I also have a huge love of retro
fabric and have boxes full of Marimekko and cute Japanese fabrics.
Where
do you get your inspiration from when you design & create?
I get my inspiration from every day things and life in general. I
tend to see everything as a pattern and start making a simplified design in my
head as I walk around the neighbourhood and work out how it would look as a
piece of jewellery. I also love going to art galleries and looking at artists
different points of view and curious ways of seeing the world.
Overseas trips, especially to my favourite places Venice and New
York help me relax and come up with new ideas.
Limited Collection for
National Gallery Victoria
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What
are the five words that people who know you would use to describe you?
I put this out to some friends and this is what they came back
with…Tenacious, focussed, stylish, confident and talented. I love them- they
rock (thanks Anna, Kate and Lauren).
Tell
us about your very first job and what path have you taken since then?
My first real job after studying Visual Communications at UTS was
in the design department at Foxtel, designing graphics for television. I ended
up staying there for 5 years and becoming a senior designer mainly designing
for Nickelodeon and Fox 8. After that I worked in a post-production house
called Zspace for a few years, working mostly on commercials and television
branding. I decided to go freelance and had a successful broadcast design
business for 5 years under the name of Fifty3 Creative. During this time I
designed television show packages and channel branding for The Discovery
Channel USA, Channel 9, 10 and 7, Lifestyle Channel and I also re-designed the
Channel V and Music Max website. I was approached by a head hunter towards the
end of 2004 to start up a new department at Channel 7 and have been Network Art
Director ever since. During this time I have managed a group of 9 designers/
compositors and also looked after the on-air branding for all of Channel 7, 7
Two and 7 mate. I started making jewellery and baby clothes as a way of
relaxing from this stressful job and Scoops (my nickname) was born. In 2007 my
brooches were picked up by the National Gallery of Victoria and I have designed
exclusive ranges for major exhibitions such as Salvador Dali, Art Deco
1910–1939 and Rupert Bunny. Scoops Design has been slowly building and I have
just resigned from Channel 7 to concentrate on Scoops- wohoo!
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Describe
a typical day in your studio space?
I have to have a coffee first thing in the morning and like to look
at blogs and check my orders to see if I need to make anything or post some
packages. After that, I have a list of things to do and try and do the things
that need my concentration the most first. I’m much more of a morning person,
so I like to do the creative things in the morning and the ones that require
less attention later on in the day.
Sophie's Home Studio
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I am moving early next year and hope to spend more time with Sally
the poodle (my parents dog). I will steal her in the morning and as she is
getting old, she can sit and listen to me all day long!
Sally
As an
Artist and Designer, what is your biggest frustration?
Not having enough time!
Tell us about how you prioritise your studio work.
If I have orders, I try and complete them first, otherwise I like
to give myself time to create new things as well as working on the production
side of things. I am a list writer, so I follow my list!
Xmas Limited Edition
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Tell
us more about the PYD market that you will be doing and how it has come about.
The PYD design market is based in Waterloo and is just around the
corner from one of my favourite places in Sydney Fratelli Fresh on Dank St. I
have been in two markets in the life of Scoops Design; The Young Designers
Markets at the Powerhouse Museum and the original Hope Street Markets. I
decided it was time to venture out again into the world of markets, gain a
different audience and hopefully meet lots of new people.
I have made some cute limited edition Christmas decorations and
cards to complement my jewellery and baby clothes for these markets.
Since
you are working at home, can you please tell us about how do you connect with
other artists, and your customers (i.e. how do you network)?
I spend a lot of time chatting to like minded friends and running
designs past them. Its great to get different points of view! I also make sure
I go to lots of galleries and different shops to see what everyone else is
doing out there.
Since I have made the decision to concentrate on Scoops design, I
have come into contact with so many amazing and helpful people- it feels like
it’s the right thing to do.
What
advice can you offer other creative people who are just starting out and
following their passions?
Believe in yourself and have a plan! I have been working on my plan
for several years now and its great to see it finally coming into place. Don’t
listen to people who make you doubt yourself- you can do it.
Brooches
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What
dreams do you still want to achieve or fulfil in your life?
I’d like for Scoops Design to continue growing and one day open a
retail store. My mother and I have been chatting about opening a store called
‘Scoops and Mrs C.’ Mum is fabulous at PR and can talk you into anything, so I
hope when she retires as a school principal we can set this up.
What
is your proudest moment so far?
Every time I see someone on the street wearing one of my brooches I
get really excited. My friends will also text or email me when they see the
same- love it.
Who do
you most want to meet and why?
I would love to meet Marc Jacobs. I have loved his clothes for
years and find his range Marc by Marc Jacobs very inspirational.
Henri Matisse and Gustav Klimt would be up there too!
Xmas Cards
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What
is the most important lesson in life that you have learned?
After working ,y way up in a corporate job I’ve realised that money
isn’t everything and happiness is more important.
What
book are you reading right now, and do you have a book you would like to
recommend?
I don’t have much time to read books as I have no spare time. I
just read Handmade Market- great tips for selling online. I love design books
and have about 400 in my collection!
Where
do we find you and your products?
Online you can find Scoops Design at www.scoopsdesign.com.au and my online store at http://scoopsdesign.bigcartel.com/.
Online stockists are www.hardtofind.com.au and www.georgielove.com
Store wise Scoops Design is stocked in: The National Gallery of
Victoria and Antipodes in Victoria, Form in WA, Lellow and the Handmade Market
Shop in Canberra, The Collective Store and Anna and Sally in Queensland. The
Powerhouse Museum and Published Art stock my brooches in Sydney.
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2 comments:
Coops rocks
Now-a-days jewellery designing as a career is flourishing like never before. This profession is not only rewarding but also available for anyone who has a creative bend of mind. People these days have become very image conscious and the want for jewellery is no more a symbol of financial security but a trendy fashionable wear that can go well with different occasions. jewellery designing institute
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