By Stefene Russell
“I am not afraid of mixing colors and patterns,” says designer and Webster Groves resident Lynn Morris. “That’s the key to how I design things ... I approach them without fear.”
Embracing fuchsia, peacock blue, polka-dots, swirls and spots is a braver act than you might think—try painting a wall in your house bright citrus orange and see how your friends react. (It’s proof that the influence of the monochromatic, minimalist ’90s has not entirely faded.)
Luckily, you don’t have to suffer your best friend’s arched eyebrow to bring some color and energy to your table: Morris’ new dinnerware line, “Hits the Spot,” launched by Demdaco, is what happy-go-lucky, pro-color designer Jonathan Adler might call “Prozac for your home.” Though “Hits the Spot” is fearlessly colorful, the clean lines balance the bright blue and abundant polka dots. Demdaco will launch three more of Morris’ dinnerware lines in early ’07—and if that weren’t enough, this past summer Red Carpet Studios released a whole suite of Lynn Morris garden accesssories, including planters, bird feeders, vases and garden stakes. The flowerpots and bird feeders are even more free-spirited than the dishware, painted bright red and green, with stripes, dots, ladybugs and even frogs in yellow polka-dot bikinis. Response has been good—at press time, Morris was engaged in a new round of garden-accessory designs for next spring. Because she’s worked as a studio artist for years, Morris says the yearlong process of creating product blueprints for mass production is new to her, but she’s not complaining—especially because these two companies approached her.
Not bad for a gal who narrowly dodged going to law school. “I come from a whole family of attorneys,” Morris says, adding that her parents were a tad anxious when she decided to head to art school rather than pursuing a law degree. But just one look at her dishes and flowerpots and it’s clear she would have been miserable with the muted, paperwork-heavy life of a lawyer.
“I remember seeing a sign somewhere that said ‘beware of beige,’” Morris laughs. “I thought, ‘I should have that hanging in my entry hall.’"
