In a former cotton spinning mill outside Manchester, the artist Megan Price screen-prints and sews colourful home accessories - wall art, tea towels and shopping bags - for her brand Mr PS.
With an industrial sewing machine and a view of the moors, she's continuing a manufacturing tradition that has largely died out in the area. Megan started screen-printing as a child on the kitchen table. "Now, that same old table is in my studio, so it's still pretty important to my creative practice," she says.
Her designs are nostalgic but never twee. Her screen-prints of old fashioned British cafe menus, featuring a list of English breakfast options, would look great on the wall of any kitchen-diner. I also like the cute ice cream and "pick 'n' mix" sweet shop menus, which feature retro delights such as pear drops and rum and raisin. Mouth-watering and retro, they're irresistible.
Megan's latest range has an Olympics theme, all decorative medals and gentlemen in one-piece bathing suits above punchy slogans such as "Going for Gold". She is currently designing a collection of ceramics, too, which will launch later this year.
Her printed shopper tote bags are lovely as well, and there's a fun range of paper goods to explore. The little cheap-to-ship postcards and gift tags could very easily slip into your shopping basket if you're not careful. I like the vintage jelly mould labels best. They're too pretty to give away. I'd tie them to napkins for fun dinner party table settings.
The Mr PS shop has a section selling prints, postcards and handkerchiefs by the artist Robert Shadbolt. I like his Manchester United football design - possibly the only football-themed artwork I've ever been able to tolerate. The little jigsaw brooches that Megan stocks are cute, too. Made from vintage maps, they're a really personal gift – to me, from me.
For shipping rates to the UAE, visit www.mr-ps.co.uk
