From Buff to Boardmasters: How Hotels, Designers and Brands Work With Me

A few years ago, if you'd told me my paintings would end up printed on a beanie, wrapped around surfers' necks at a festival, or stretched across an entire wall at a spaceport, I'd have laughed and asked what you'd been drinking. But here we are.

People ask fairly often how these collaborations actually happen, so I thought I'd write it down properly — partly for anyone who's curious, and partly because I keep meaning to and never quite get round to it (much like my inbox). If you're an interior designer, a hotel, or a brand wondering whether something like this could work for you, this is the honest, behind-the-scenes version.

Buff x Gemma Lessinger

The biggest of these so far has been Buff - yes, the neck gaiters, beanies and caps you'll have seen on half the surfers, runners and hikers in the country. In 2024 I designed a capsule collection with them, created in partnership with the Surfrider Foundation, with 10% of sales from the collection going directly to Surfrider's work protecting oceans, waves and beaches. My textures ended up across their Coolnet UV neckwear, their Drisk knitted beanie, and their 5 Panel Go cap.

A lot of people ask me how this actually came about - did I approach them, or did they approach me? I was lucky enough to have worked with Buff many years ago in my buying career, but that's not actually how this one happened. Two years before the capsule collection was released, one of their designers started following me on Instagram and gradually fell for more and more of my work. She messaged me a few times to say she worked for Buff and had an idea for a collaboration, but wanted to wait for the right moment. That moment came when Surfrider Foundation wanted to work with the brand on something unique - something that linked to ocean conservation and the surf world. My work aligned perfectly.

What I loved about this one is that it wasn't just a nice logo swap. Sustainability isn't really the "subject" of my work - reclaimed textiles, vintage fabric, beach-found rope and net, offcuts of surfboard fibreglass are just how I make things. So working with a brand that cared about the same things, for the same reasons, felt like an easy yes.

Smaller, Just as Personal: Waterhaul & Celtic & Co

Alongside Buff, I've hand-painted pieces for a couple of other brands I genuinely love — a pair of sunglasses for Cornish eyewear brand Waterhaul, and a pair of boots for heritage bootmaker Celtic & Co. Both were smaller, more personal projects than the Buff capsule, but they're some of my favourite pieces of work. There's something quietly satisfying about taking the same wave I'd usually put on canvas and finding out it works just as well on a boot.

The Waterhaul piece became a five-piece collection, exhibited in The Exchange at Newlyn Art Gallery as part of their Storm Warning exhibition. I was incredibly proud to see that collection on display in such a prestigious gallery.

The Celtic & Co boots were auctioned off through Crowdfunder, and I donated the profits to The Wave Project - a collaboration between three Newquay-based businesses and charities coming together to make a change.

The One That Still Surprises Me: Spaceport Cornwall

Then there's the project that still catches me off guard every time I think about it: a large-scale mural for Spaceport Cornwall, as part of their "Space for Good" wall. It's a strange and brilliant thing, painting a wave the size of a room somewhere that's usually thinking about rockets rather than the sea — but that's sort of the point. The ocean and space aren't as far apart as people assume; both are about awe, and both need protecting.

How did it come about? Pure chance, really. The original painting was sitting in my printers, The Logical Choice in St Mawgan — which, as it happens, is in the same building as the Spaceport Cornwall team. The head of the Spaceport facility at the time was looking for something a bit different to put on the huge wall, and when she spotted my painting through the printers' window, she thought it looked like the view of Earth from space.

It's a strange and brilliant thing, seeing a scan of your painting blown up and printed to this size, and in a room somewhere that's usually used to load rockets - but that's sort of the point. The ocean and space aren't as far apart as people assume; both are about awe, and both need protecting.

What Ties It All Together

What all of these actually have in common isn't the brand name on the label - it's that each one let the work do what it does best: take something ordinary (a neckwear, a boot, a blank wall) and give it a bit of the ocean's texture and memory.

If you're reading this as a designer, a developer, a hotel, or a brand wondering whether a collaboration, a bespoke commission, or a licensed collection could work for your space or your product — that's exactly what my trade programme covers: bespoke commissions, art rental, licensing, and yes, murals too.

You can see the full details here: Trade, Hospitality & Licensing →

Or just email at hello@gemmalessinger.com

Gem

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