January Blues is a handmade banner and screen-printing project created by Laura January, born during the early chaos of raising twins and shaped by music, lyrics, and poetry. What began as an experiment at her dining room table has developed into a tactile, typographic practice rooted in experimentation and the individuality of making things by hand.
Working primarily with felt and velvet, Laura produces small batch printed and stitched banners from her base in Norwich. From mini pennants to large-scale statement pieces, each banner carries the marks of its making. Screen printing and monoprinting on fabric introduce subtle variations, ensuring that many pieces are entirely one of a kind.
Music, lyrics, poetry and passing phrases form the backbone of the work. Most designs begin as quick sketches or scribbled words, capturing a feeling before it disappears. The process itself remains open-ended and intuitive. Rather than over-planning, Laura allows the unpredictability of ink, fabric and pressure to shape the final outcome. Experimentation is central. Each print is an act of figuring it out in real time.
Monoprinting has become a defining feature of the project. The technique allows for layered textures and unexpected imperfections that cannot be replicated exactly. In a world dominated by screens and endless duplication, these banners bring tactility, individuality and physical presence back into people’s spaces.
Custom commissions have played a significant role in pushing the work forward. Clients have ranged from couples and tattoo artists to small businesses, with briefs that span from romantic declarations to playful motifs such as shrimp hearts, sunshines and cherry disco balls. Each commission becomes an opportunity to test new ideas, refine typographic compositions and stretch the limits of the process.
At its core, January Blues is about translating emotional states into physical objects. The name itself suggests both melancholy and resilience. The banners hold space for hope and pessimism at once, acknowledging that both can coexist. They are designed to be hung, lived with and revisited daily, small reminders that language and craft still carry weight.
Laura January continues to build the project organically, piece by piece, maintaining a small batch approach that keeps the work intimate and hands-on.
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/jan.uaryblues
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