Looking through Lalese Stamps’ newest collaboration with home furnishing mecca Lulu & Georgia, you wouldn’t guess it’s the designer’s first foray into furniture design. The collection, which includes everything from large credenzas to dishes and lighting fixtures, exudes a design skillset and craftsmanship on par with seasoned furniture designers. But when the work is driven by creativity and passion, years in the biz don’t compete.

Stamps’ journey from graphic design student to ceramicist and now furniture designer has been an explorative one that’s beginning to come full circle. “My path wasn’t very traditional, but everything has been organic and natural.” Like many creatives, the pandemic served as a catalyst for exploring new ideas and art forms. While working as a graphic designer, she began to dabble in ceramics for fun, selling her works to local markets. But it quickly became clear that it was much more than a hobby.

After completing the 100 mug project, an effort she affectionately notes as her “claim to fame,” things began to snowball, and Lolly Lolly Ceramics was born. Since then, Stamps has broadened the scope of her work, but the intention and playful, contemporary aesthetic she began with remain the same.

For The Art of Home series, we sat down with Stamps to learn more about her Lulu & Georgia collaboration, design process, and what most inspires her work.

Home & Texture: What drives you to create and inspires your work?

Lalese Stamps: There have been times when I’ve questioned my career path, thinking that I’m not adding to society in a beneficial way because I’m not inherently helping people. But through reflection and journaling, I realized that at my core, I’m a visionary and ideas generator, and that can be just as beneficial. I can inspire people through my art, and that, in turn, inspires me to create. Human connection is so invaluable, and I realized that by staying in my lane and being good at making art, I can add to society in a beautiful way.

H&T: What’s your creative process like?

LS: Having structure is probably the most important thing for me. I know it doesn’t work that way for everyone, but I think I really need it. When I had my studio, I’d go in, pack orders, and be in full business mode, and it kept me from being creative. Now, I’m more intentional about my day. I make time to sketch and design or do other creative things during the week. It’s different than I was before, but having the structure has allowed me to put more energy into my work.

H&T: How would you describe your style of art?

LS: Sometimes I use the word contemporary, but I feel like that’s too edgy for me. My designs are very minimal but playful and celebrate shapes. I do draw a lot of inspiration from architecture and am really interested in the way shapes help create a space, which is why I love this collection with Lulu & Georgia. I think it’s a great example of clean, classic minimalism that can still be fun.

H&T: How did the collaboration with LuLu & Georgia come about?

LS: They reached out to me, and I was really grateful for the opportunity to work with them because of their weight in the industry. They’d seen my ceramics and took a chance on me with furniture and were really open to my ideas and designs, so everything felt very natural and seamless. At first, they gave me a list of categories, like candlestick holders, dinnerware, etc., to build products around. But as I was designing, new ideas would come, and when I presented them to the Lulu & Georgia team, they saw the same vision. The Cora Sideboard, for example, wasn’t in the original scope of the project, but it worked, so we went with it. The flow of ideas helped make the collection approachable and elegant but still playful, per my style.

H&T: What’s next for Lolly & Lolly

LS: I definitely want to do more furniture design under Lolly Lolly Ceramics and really focus on growing the brand through other avenues of design. Right now, everything I’ve made has been produced in-house, but I’d like to pass that off to a manufacturer so that I have more time for new ideas and designs. I’d also love to get into museum exhibitions and do some sculptural work and possibly even take on some television roles. I think for right now, I’m just allowing myself to explore and not putting too much pressure on myself because sometimes that can take the joy out of being an artist.

This article has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.