Zoë Umholtz

Design comes in all materials.  Zoë Umholtz, Canadian at heart, lives and works in Portland, Oregon as a fiber artist and designer. Zoë’s work is seen as a curious investigation to the light-hearted side of her own life.  Zoë received her BFA from Oregon College of Art and Craft in ’08, and now works in her quiet studio creating unique styles to everyday objects such as pillows, clothing, blankets and plant hangers.

As a designer and maker, Zoë finds her inspirations in nature and life.  It’s all around her, as she creates well made objects that display her appreciation to organic materials, muted earth-tones and the simple functions they provide.  “Fabric can be used to house a body, a plant, or even serve as walls -think nomadic homes.  It can also be used as an aesthetic choice for decorating a home.”   Whatever the project, Zoë’s talent and understanding of materials give her an advantage to making exceptional work.

“I think some of the pieces I’ve made have a sense of irony involved, which can be read as –playful“.  One example is her felted Shpony’s.  The Shpony’s were mythical creatures roaming the Canadian prairies before being hunted into extinction. Now they live on, through her hand felted re-claimed toy horses.

Not only does Zoë have a great eye for design, but she has a green thumb for gardening.  Her studio and living space are filled with lively green plants.  To accommodate her lush indoor garden Zoe hand knits plant hangers, which support small clear spheres. Within the spheres is water and plant shoots just sprouting their roots.  These plant hanging systems are seen on her walls in her kitchen, in the dining room and above her sewing machine.  When Revolution Design House discovered Zoë’s hand knit plant hangers, she was invited to come aboard as their first designer in the design house.  Zoë’s interest was to take her creation to the next level of manufacturing and offer her planter in a larger version.  Working with RDH, she developed The Bloomer.  The Bloomer is a modern plant hanger for soil plants which can be easily installed and offers a diverse design solution by using wall space.

“The options for hanging plant systems are limited in style and function.  The Bloomer is seen as an extension and accessory to the natural beauty plants provide.”

Bloomer Slim – $99

Bloomer Hempster – $79