The Funky, Vintage, and Decidedly Masculine World of Patch NYC

Don Carney and John Ross, the endlessly artistic duo behind the design label Patch NYC, have a vintage-inspired aesthetic they describe as “more masculine than granny.” They apply the look to a whole cache of products that includes pillows, rugs, wallpaper, journals, candles, scarves, jewelry, handbags and even original artwork. We got the inside scoop on their inspirations, their collaborations, and the secrets of their success.

 

John Ross and Don Carney of Patch NYC

Background Check: Ross has a BA in design from UCLA and Carney studied illustration at the Art Institute of Boston. The pair met through a mutual friend in New York when Carney was designing shoes and Ross was doing visual merchandising for the FAO Schwartz store on Fifth Avenue. Ross’s mom sent him a hand-crocheted hat for his first New York winter, and Carney loved it so much that he suggested they try selling them. And they did, with considerable success. The following year, they wanted to add fabric scarves to the line, so Ross learned how to sew and add appliqué and embroidery details. A buyer at Bergdorf Goodman loved the the scarves and asked for matching bags. “The bags were the most basic of constructions because we did them all by hand, but the detail work was beautiful and that's what we became known for," the design duo tells us. "Those bags ended up at Harrods in London and Barneys New York.”

Of-the-Moment Inspirations: “We try to keep a masculine edge to what we do. We’re inspired by masculine things, like pipes and fedoras,” they say. They’ve bought old track and field medals, graduation and sports team rings, and watch fobs and chains that they incorporate into their one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces. For their textiles, like the pillows and scarves, they love “fabrics with gentlemanly patterns, like chevrons and paisleys, as well as ethnic textiles.” Lately, they’ve been inspired by the Iris Apfel show, which they saw at the Costume Institute at the Met in New York. They also revel in vintage books, especially reference books like old encyclopedias. What do they do with all this stuff? “We might buy something when we’re antiquing, but then it could sit around for five years before we actually use it,” they say.

Current Projects: Ross and Carney are a two man show, designing two collections a year of jewelry, textile pieces and more. But they have a never-ending well of ideas, some of which they can’t really achieve on their own, at least with their current setup. A variety of collaborations with larger retailers over the years has allowed them to reach a broader audience and explore other mediums and categories of merchandise. Recednt designs include nature-themed glazed ceramic plates, foil-printed linen pillow covers and metallic letterpress wall art for West Elm, and botanical throw pillows and tufted wool animal rugs for Anthropologie. The duo also teamed up with Soap & Paper Factory in New York City to produce a collection of handcrafted soy candles with scents inspired by worn leather and tobacco.

Trade Secrets: The secret behind the multitude of enviable collaborations?  Trade shows. They go to a lot of them, and have for years. They show their artwork, which Carney creates, at gift show Maison & Objet in France, where they share a booth with high-end porcelain maker Astier de Villatte. It was there that they connected with Alex Bates, Creative Director of West Elm. “She’s known about our work for years,” says they say. It was at that show that it clicked that she could add Patch NYC's hand-drawn images to a plate or a pillow. “Most people know Patch NYC as an accessory collection, and for so many years we just did fashion trade shows. When we started to do home shows, we would attract the fashion and home stores. Definitely more fashion types go to home shows than the other way around.”

Fabulous eBay Finds: “We've bought fabric and old fixtures from stores from the ‘20s through ‘50s, including display stands for jewelry and old cast iron coat hooks that we use in our showroom or at trade shows to display scarves and totes," they say. "Our costume jewelry is manufactured, but we source for our one-of-a-kind pieces on eBay, like old sports medals from the early 1900s. Then we disassemble and rework them by incorporating them into our own designs.”