makelike
Based in Portland, Oregon, makelike is a graphic design studio founded in 2000 by artist/designers Mary Kysar and Topher Sinkinson. Their collaboration approach is influenced by a growing list of random yet significant life experiences - late night bike posses Montana landscapes, whiskey pulls at Disney World, truck stop shopping, thrift stores, thermos collecting, sourcing shiny expensive things, dog walking, bird-watching, Jell-O making, plaster casting, demolition, and melon balling. They have been designing wallpaper and other rarified objects for over a decade. To get to know them better we asked a few questions...
A favorite small moment/memory?
M: "When we got our first hand silk screened draw down of our first wallpaper. A great moment that had been a long time coming. So exciting."
T: "I spent a day tracking down a handprinted wallpaper printing studio in Stockholm that was in a tiny house on a small island... I finally found it and they gave me a tour!"
What inspired your wallpaper collection?
T+M: "We live in the Pacific Northwest, but we collect cacti and succulents from all over. We keep the collection at the office, so we are surrounded by their prickly bits...some think cacti are too spiky and dangerous to have around, but we love the way they adapt to their surroundings and protect themselves by forming their unique shapes...we use them as inspiration for our business model!"
Where do you find inspiration?
M: "Walking around my neighborhood, walks in the forest, camping. My home (my partner and I are restoring a 1915 craftsman and I am inspired to create what I want for it. ha!)."
T: "Thrift stores, amateur/found photography, national park/forest ephemera, music (all kinds), my collection of 70's textbooks, the beautiful pursuit of hygge, all things made of wood, anything Swedish, The Thermos Corporation, Space/Time continuum, log cabins and gardening in my spiky agave/yucca/cactus fortified front yard - to name a few."
What are some small things that bring you joy?
M: "Sunshine, cooking, home grown vegetables."
T: "Pretty much the same stuff I listed above. OH! plus my sweet old dog Owen... and what Mary said."