Brook’s work is fun, fresh and bold and often filled with all the colours of the rainbow. Totally inspired by her colourful designs and illustrations, we approached her to illustrate our very first collection.

We collaborated like all good collaborators should to make an inspired idea a real-life reality. Thanks to Brook and her amazing creativity, the cheeky monsters, butterflies and rainbows imagined through a striking, bold colour palette are images that now adorn our snuggle-ready Wrigglesuits and Supersinglets and that we hope to see on the backs of babies and toddlers across Australia.

We caught up with Brook recently to find out the inspo behind each print and the lowdown on her creative process from go to finish. There’s a lot that happens to make magic is all we can say!

What was your inspiration for the illustrations?

Creating the designs for the first Bambi Mini Co. range was so fun. I really love creating patterns for kids so this was a dream come true! For the Palm Springs Monster range we wanted some cute cheeky monsters with a childlike quality. My son used to draw prolifically when he was little and often drew strange and cute creatures, so our little guys in this design are a homage to the slightly weird and wonderful characters our kids come up with when they get creative. For the Sunshine & Rainbows range, we wanted a sweet print lots of colour, cuteness and happiness, and the first thing that came to mind was sunshine and rainbows, because they always make us feel good! My youngest daughter loved butterflies and moths when she was little so I had to add them in too. 

What did your creative process look like?

Firstly, Nicky shared a moodboard with me for the general vibe of the ranges and then some initial thoughts on what she wanted for the first range. From these moodboards and discussions, I sketched out my initial thoughts and had a LOT of fun drawing whatever came to me with the brief in mind. Some of my ideas were really cute and some where terrible! That’s all part of the fun and process. I then honed the concepts down to the illustrations that met Nicky’s brief best and sent them through, while crossing my fingers and my toes...And they were enthusiastically received!

From there I went straight into designing the characters and creating repeats. Creating a repeat pattern is a lot of fun, but not always as easy as it looks. A maximum of 16 colours were allowed for manufacturing the garments and this was kept in mind while designing. To make the two ranges cohesive, I used some of the same colours in each range with slight variations. It’s great to be able to mix and match if you like!

I remember that the Sunshine & Rainbow’s design took a little longer than our Palm Springs Monster design. We ended up dropping some of the elements that were in my original concepts, to get the design looking just right. Once they were approved I started creating the other print that goes with each range and I love hey they turned out.

We worked on what colour base we wanted for these designs and then pulled some of the elements from each of the original patterns to create a sweet little tossed print. It was such an enjoyable process from beginning to end and with Covid changing the timeline, it is just so wonderful to see these designs out in the world and on cute little babies! 

What did you initially think about the opp to work on the Bambi Mino Co. brand?

As soon as Nicky reached out to me and told me how much she loved my work and pictured it for her baby brand, I knew I wanted to hear more. Once we chatted and I heard more about the idea behind Bambi Mini Co. and that it was going to be ethically and sustainably produced and at a super reasonable price point, I was in! 

Three fun facts about you/your brand – GO!

The essence of my work is that it’s playful, optimistic and fun. I love sharing good vibes and creating designs that encapsulate that help me feel good too. 

I am an identical twin and my lovely twin sister is my biggest cheerleader!

I have three kids who are all teenagers now, so I’m so bummed I can’t dress them in Bambi Mini Co! 

About Brook Gossen

Brook works from her home studio in Meanjin/Brisbane in Australia. She creates fun, colourful, feel-good artworks inspired by the small moments of joy she experiences throughout the day – like fluffy clouds floating in a blue sky, a pretty flower picked while on a walk, the laughter of her children. From planners and giftware to clothing and accessories, homewares to pet products and everything in between, Brook’s art sure does bring a little joy to the day. To check out more of her awesome work, head to www.brookgossen.com.au