New & Old Retroviral Mugs Restocked!

Hello everyone! Good news! Our online shops are finally restocked and ready for you! All 6 Retroviral mug designs are available on Folksy and Etsy.

The last few months have been very busy post-Kickstarter. Back in May we received our biggest order of mugs to date, and we have been packing orders steadily since then. All of our Kickstarter pledges are on track to be dispatched by the end of this month, so we thought it was high time to reopen the online shops!

You can order mugs via Etsy or Folksy, whichever is most convenient for you. Thank you for all of your orders and support so far. Please keep spreading the word… like a virus!

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We’ve crossed the Kickstarter finish line!

It’s midnight in London and our Retroviral Kickstarter campaign has just ended. What an incredible ride this has been! Thank you SO much to our backers for supporting the project and making Retroviral happen! For a small business like Thefty, this is a game changer.

Our campaign was supported by 136 backers, who pledged £5,517 in total, which is 275% of our target amount. A rough tally of the pledges adds up to almost 500 mugs ordered in under 4 weeks. AMAZING.

What next?

  1. We will be making all 6 designs available for Pre-order in our Etsy and Folksy shops, so don’t fret if you missed out on the Kickstarter!
  2. The manufacturing stage! The designs will be submitted within the next couple of days.
  3. Right now? It’s time to get some sleep.

Once again, an enormous thank you to our backers who made this happen! It’s all very exciting.

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Thefty goes to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Thefty-LSHTM-Measles-1-700pxDid you know that 5 pence from every Retroviral mug sale is donated towards research at The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (aka the LSHTM)?

The LSHTM is a world leader in developing vaccines and treatments, with the mission of improving global health. It is wonderful to be contributing towards this mission. The director of LSHTM, Peter Piot, was a key figure in responding to the recent Ebola Virus crisis, and so it was a natural fit for our charity donations to be given to the school; our Retroviral mugs are covered in images of viruses, so it makes sense for them to be linked to an institution which is battling the effects of these diseases.

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Until yesterday, I had never visited the LSHTM campus! I was kindly invited to visit the school grounds, meet the team, and hear more about the school’s work and (super-interesting) history. LSHTM is housed in a beautiful 1920s building in London’s Bloomsbury. It has many of the original Art Deco features (including a droolworthy library), plus lots of Science-inspired artwork and historical artefacts (for example, John Snow’s replica pump handle… and no, not that John Snow).

Interesting fact: The original LSHTM campus was located near London’s Docklands, because sailors returning from far-flung locations would bring back unfamiliar illnesses  – hence “Tropical Medicine” – that needed urgent attention! The corridors of the new campus have curved, wooden elements which are reminiscent of the hulls of ships, or ocean waves. A nice detail. Thanks for having me, LSHTM!

To donate to LSHTM directly, click here.

To order Retroviral Mugs, click here.

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Retroviral is a collection of Fine Bone China mugs for design nerds and science geeks alike. The eyecatching designs riff off unexpected biological motifs: the microscopic structure of virus particles. The collection includes six designs: Measles, Influenza, Smallpox, Rabies, Herpes and HIV. Retroviral is an artist’s spin on scientific information, and exists at the meeting point between design and science communication.

Retroviral is live on Kickstarter until April 3rd. The more pledges we receive, the more mugs we will be able to make… and the more we can then donate to the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.

If you miss the Kickstarter deadline, fear not! The mugs will be available for online pre-order on Etsy and Folksy. Thank you!

New Retroviral Mugs… on Kickstarter now!

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Hello! Helena of Thefty here with big news:

  1. We’ve got three NEW Retroviral mugs!
  2. We’ve launched them on Kickstarter!

Our Kickstarter campaign is live NOW! See it HERE!

We’ve been working with a new manufacturer to perfect six mug designs, three new (see GIFs below): Influenza, Measles, Smallpox, and three old: Herpes, HIV, Rabies.  Now it’s time to get them manufactured and into our customers’ homes.

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Why Kickstarter?

On Kickstarter, backers can pre-order the mugs before we get them manufactured, thus covering production costs in advance.  If you want to complete or expand your collection then please jump in! You’ve got until April 3rd to get involved in the campaign.
The more you pledge, the more mugs you get.  The more pledges we get, the more mugs we can make! It doesn’t stop when we reach the funding goal! 

What to do next?

  1. Check out our Kickstarter campaign (especially the video!)
  2. Pledge if you can!
  3. Help spread the word! Tell your friends! Share the link on social media with the hashtags #Thefty and #Retroviral (We’re on InstagramFacebook and Twitter)
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Check back here for updates on the Retroviral relaunch. Thank you very much for your support so far!

Thefty x EBSA: Custom Retroviral Mugs

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We’re delighted to reveal our latest project: A true Art X Science collaboration between Thefty and EBSA!

Last December we were contacted by EBSAthe European Biosafety Association – about creating a custom design to celebrate their 20th anniversary. EBSA is a non-profit organisation whose aim is to ‘provide a forum for its members to discuss and debate issues of concern and to represent those working in the field of biosafety and associated activities.’ Now, collaborations are always a delight, but given the subject matter we work with, it’s particularly wonderful to team up with organisations in the scientific community.

We worked with EBSA to produce something in their corporate colours… but absolutely not bland and corporate looking! The custom Fine Bone China mug was given to all attendees of the 20th anniversary conference, held in Lille, France, last week. More than 500 Thefty X EBSA mugs will soon be worming their way into labs and offices across Europe and beyond!

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As this is a custom design, it is not available for general sale. If you or your organisation are interested in commissioning a custom design, please get in touch!

Alternatively, if you’d like to get your hands on our mug range, please visit our online shop.

If you are interested in reading more about EBSA and their mission, you can visit their website.

Thefty x Roger la Borde Greeting Card Range

Last year, Thefty was commissioned to design a range of greeting cards for Roger la Borde, the wonderful London-based publisher and producer of luxurious, eclectic stationery products. It was such fun working with them!

The Thefty card collection includes five typographical designs, with lettering drawn by hand and digitally rendered and coloured. The cards look fantastic in print – Roger la Borde printed them on uncoated, antique wove board, with glossy raised sections produced by specialty thermographic printing. You can see the range on the Roger la Borde Website, and you can now buy the cards from our online stores, either on Etsy or Folksy.

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New Stockist: Thefty at the Wellcome Collection!

Hello! Exciting stockist update: Our Retroviral mugs are now stocked at the Wellcome Collection Shop.

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The Wellcome Collection is one of our favourite places in London: describing itself as ‘the free destination for the incurably curious‘, the collection displays an eclectic mix of medical artifacts and original artworks exploring ‘ideas about the connections between medicine, life and art‘.

In other words, the Wellcome Collection is the perfect place for our mugs to be.

The next time you drop by (perhaps to catch the States of Mind installation) make sure to pop into the gift shop – Retroviral mugs aside, it’s highly unlikely that you’ll leave empty handed.

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The Wellcome Collection

Galleries, Cafe & Shop

183 Euston Rd, London NW1 2BE

New Stockist: Thefty at Drink Shop & Do

Hello! Exciting news alert!  As you might have spotted on Facebook and Instagram, Thefty has a new stockist! You can now shop the Retroviral Collection at the super super cool Drink Shop & Do in King’s Cross.

Drink Shop & Do is part cafe, part bar, part shop and part event space (hence the ‘do’ in the name). I’m guessing that many of you Londoners have already been to DSD, but if you haven’t, you now have the perfect excuse! There are always plenty of creative and offbeat events going on, and the products in the shop are just as eclectic as the events list. We’re so excited to be involved.

Head to DSD and have a look…go for the Retroviral Mugs and stay for the cake!

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Drink, Shop & Do

9 Caledonian Road,
Kings Cross,
London,
N1 9DX

New Portfolio & Blog

Hello! I’ve been posting on this blog since 2009 (Argh! Six years!) and although I do NOT plan to stop, I’d like to change things up a bit.

Until now, all my creative news has been posted here, whether it be Thefty news, or my personal freelance work. The time has come to separate the two streams. My personal illustration and photography work will now move over  to www.HelenaMaratheftis.com, my shiny new portfolio website and blog. You can follow me there on Bloglovin’ if you like, and I hope you come and say hello!

All Thefty-related news will remain right here, so don’t run away! 

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That’s all from me now, but I’ll be back soon with come exciting news…stay tuned!

Weekly Inspiration: Springtime & Succulents.

Hello! This is a weekly(ish) feature where I share my photos with you. I carry my camera everywhere, and I constantly take pictures of things that excite me. Prepare to see lots of colours and patterns through my lens.

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Spring is the season where my camera gets the most action. It’s as though my creative brain comes out of hibernation as soon as the days start getting longer (hallelujah!). Last week I went to my favourite plant nursery and perved on all the beautiful plants. Along with everyone on Instagram and their dog, I do like a succulent or two…but I’m also partial to sherbet-orange petals and rainbow coloured leaves (the last two came home with me, and posed with me for a selfie). #YAYPLANTS