About us

HOW WE STARTED

rockflowerpaper was born from owner Katie Smith’s lifelong love of international travel. With a degree in international relations, she not only wanted to see the world but to also work with people all over the world.

In 2009, rockflowerpaper launched its first collection with elegant home goods. We developed innovative techniques to apply nature-based art to lacquer serving trays which nobody had seen before. Everyone loved rockflowerpaper’s unique and lively aesthetic, and they wanted more. Smith brought on VP of Design Katie Shillinglaw, a Savannah College of Art and Design graduate, with whom Smith had worked for over 20 years at Mulberry Neckwear. With Shillinglaw’s strong background in textile design, rockflowerpaper expanded into tote bags and casual clothing which highlighted Shillinglaw’s colorful, hand-painted patterns.

Now a lifestyle brand is in full bloom. rockflowerpaper works with a dozen small vendors in Asia to produce two collections every year. We carefully select all our factories and form strong relationships with them. Employing an on-site colleague to ensure that our products are made responsibly and to our standards, we continue to stay true to our commitment to offering well-priced, high quality goods.

A PEEK INTO OUR DESIGN PROCESS

Each collection begins with an inspirational trip. Past destinations have included India, Turkey, Morocco, Mexico, Greece, Italy, South of France, and London. Smith and Shillinglaw shoot a wealth of reference photographs—including landscapes, marketplaces, doorways, pottery, flowers, baskets, even the tiles on the floor—to visually capture the voice of the city they are visiting. Shillinglaw brings her watercolors to paint in her sketchbook while the moments are fresh. Back at home, she scans her designs to turn them into repeats and patterns. With these patterns, select reference photos, and magazine clippings of current trends, she creates an incredible inspiration board to guide our talented design team as they plan each piece of the collection.

PAYING IT FORWARD

rockflowerpaper is based in the San Francisco Bay Area. Living on the coast, we care deeply about the ocean and the environment. Environmentalism is one of our core values, and Smith started early by spearheading a recycling club in fifth grade at her school. Creating a charitable program at rockflowerpaper was simply a logical step, and we developed our blu collection to help reduce plastic waste. For each reusable bag sold, we donate 20 cents to Ocean Conservancy and have contributed over $250,000 over the past 5 years. Ocean Conservancy has been working on creating science-based solutions for protecting our oceans since 1972, and we are so excited to work with them—and you—to make a difference.