In honor of the November 1 launch of Mulberry Park Silks, The Gallery Collection, a collaboration with Florida-based artist Elyssa Helfman, our brand decided to go live with the artist herself.
During this intimate chat, Kendra and Erika of Mulberry Park Silks discuss their dynamic collaboration with Elyssa and the process of creating these functional works of art. The team was excited to offer a giveaway in which one winner took home a pillowcase of her choice. If you missed this Live event, you can still watch the video (which we highly recommend) to see a glimpse of how Elyssa’s paintings on canvas were translated into mulberry silk pillowcases.
Elyssa has been creating art since childhood. However, she only began selling it seven years ago. Becoming a Mom and designing her new baby's nursery, incorporating her favorite animal, the elephant, was the impetus for creating her own Etsy store. In Elyssa’s words, it was “Now or never,” so she decided to offer her decadent prints at a more affordable price point than her larger works on canvas and to create one-of-a-kind commissions for her clients.
Just over a year ago, Mulberry Park Silks was looking to add something different and the design team came up with the vision for a watercolor-inspired pillow. That was when Kendra found Elyssa’s Etsy page, “scrolling through thousands of images, I saw (Elyssa’s) work. It was a leopard print, and it was so vibrant it just jumped out at me. I began reading (Elyssa’s) bio and saw that she was from West Palm, where I grew up, and knew she was the one”, Kendra shares. After reaching out to Alyssa and several phone calls later, the Gallery Collection was conceived.
There were bumps along the way as the team navigated the task of converting Elyssa’s watercolor to a new format, but once the first prototype was revealed, the team was in love. It was what Elyssa calls “a symbiotic” relationship, which makes sense when one understands the mission behind her work. Elyssa’s calling was to bring awareness to wildlife, with a percentage of sales being donated to causes that directly aid in the conservation of endangered species. Mulberry Park Silks will donate a portion of our sales to endangered wildlife.
“Add an extra pop of color, and you can completely change the look of your room”, Elyssa states. We agree that most rooms could benefit from the marriage of pure mulberry silk and fine art! You can view the The Gallery Collection here.
