At Home With Lazy Oaf

Have you ever wondered what goes on at the Lazy Oaf London HQ? Want to know what sort of mugs we drink out of? Or what pictures we have stuck up on our wall? Our latest post will help to answer all of your questions.
To celebrate our latest collection, Nasty Gal asked us to give them an insight into our office life, and got our designer Gemma Shiel to tell us a bit more about her design inspirations, that hell yeah moment and what it means to be a Lazy Oaf x Nasty Gal.
How and when did you start Lazy Oaf? Were you more of an illustrator or a designer firstâand how did you decide to bring one to the other?
I started Lazy Oaf straight out of university in 2001. I was a frustrated illustrator studying the wrong course. I studied textile design and was really into print making and was hand screen printing my illustrations onto T-shirts for friends. When I left I really didn't know what kind of job I wanted, so I made my own and started Lazy Oaf. It was a very tough start, I was hand-printing T-shirts in my dad's garage and working 2 jobs, it was 24/7 for a long time. I was lucky and very determined to make it work!
I think at the very beginning I was coming from the direction of being an illustrator as everything was very reliant on my graphics and this is what I loved most about creating, however as the label has grown I feel that I am more of a designer as everything has evolved so much and we are keen on creating a unique look. Our prints are the key to everything we do so I will always be doodling.
Any standout pieces from the LO archives, items that make you say âHell yeah, I made that!â?
There are a few, but I always change my mind. I love the Shut Your Mouth sweatshirt with a zip mouth from AW10, it was pretty nuts. The Watermelon Skirt is still a firm favourite as it is such a recognisable piece. My current favourite is the Bear Bra, it's kinda ridiculous and originated from the worst drawing then Aimee our Production Coordinator made it a reality for me! I still get excited when I see anyone wearing Lazy Oaf, it never gets old.



