THE JOY OF THE SEASON, PERFECTLY CAPTURED IN PEN AND INK
The luggage was safely stowed, passport control cleared, and Head of Design Kit deBretton Gordon was waiting for her flight to take off. It was a searingly hot day in July, and Kit along with her husband Paul – Design Director at Robert Welch – were stuck for two hours as the pilot and crew waited patiently on the runway to be cleared for take-off. In the back of her mind was a design brief she’d yet to start.
Before her holiday, Kit had been tasked with creating a new trio of stainless steel, collectable Christmas decorations for Robert Welch. The brief hung on the success of her 12 Days of Christmas decorations – the final, magical set of three of which were unveiled in December 2023. As they waited for take-off, Kit pulled out a well-worn sketchbook from her hand luggage. That moment seemed the perfect time to start.
“I take this old notebook with me on every trip,” says Kit, holding a black, leather-bound sketchbook, the pages of which are filled with myriad lightbulb design moments.
“I don’t always sketch anything when I’m away, but I felt really felt creative on this holiday. I sketched everything from pebbles to foliage.”
An angular fir tree was ‘too stylised’, she noted. ‘Scalloped edging’ and ‘foliage types’ headline her beautifully fluid sketches of mistletoe, holly garlands, ivy and perfectly tied ribbons. Hearts decorate folky stockings, perfectly spherical baubles are resplendent with wrap-around ribbons, and a sumptuous bow hugs an exquisitely decorated pile of presents.
It’s Christmas in sketch form: the joy of the season perfectly captured in pen and ink.
A RICH LEGACY OF DESIGN
Kit designed the first of her 12 Days of Christmas decorations in 2020 to bring much-needed festive cheer during the pandemic. Three were released for each of the following years until the set of 12 was completed in 2023, complete with presentation box. The designs, each focused on the verses of the popular song, were naturally prescriptive – partridges and pears, gold rings, laying geese and leaping lords all featured.
For 2025, Kit wanted to create something different: instantly recognisable decorative motifs, full of festive nostalgia.
“The 12 Days of Christmas were all encased in a circle – a round template decorated with the holly, ivy and mistletoe we know our collectors love,” says Kit. “This year, I wanted to design something different for people to collect. Shapes that immediately said ‘Christmas’ – folk motifs with a broad appeal.”
A carefully sketched, lavishly decorated Christmas tree was the natural starting point for Kit on her five-hour flight to the sunshine. Four different trees filled her pages, some with scalloped edges, some with mistletoe garlands, some with sprigs of holly, all surrounded by spruce branches and bows.
Next was a stocking – the initial folksy sampler morphed into a plumper design, resplendent with mistletoe and spruce and three hearts adorning its fluffy top. Third was a present, generously wrapped in ribbon and decorated with spruce and ivy.
“They’re all quite whimsical,” says Kit. “I love the slight naivety of them. They’re a bit quirky, and I wanted them to be fun, to be homely. I love how the stocking hangs by its ribbon on the tree, just as a real stocking would hang on the mantelpiece. And how the ribbon on the present is negative space. It’s like a stencil.”
KEEP US HANGING
Kit says her new designs are as versatile as they are beautiful – the heirlooms of tomorrow, treasures to buy now and keep forever.
“They’re wonderful hanging on the tree and are beautiful woven into a wreath or a garland,” she says. “Placed down the centre of a Christmas table, they shimmer and catch the light.
And like our 12 Days of Christmas decorations, they also make gorgeous tags for presents and you can easily slip them inside Christmas cards to post to loved ones.”
Each design is hung with a red ribbon, packaged individually in red envelopes to keep, or gift. While Robert Welch collectors and Christmas-lovers alike are eagerly snapping up her new designs ahead of the holidays, Kit is already thinking about next year’s creations.
The luggage was safely stowed, passport control cleared, and Head of Design Kit deBretton Gordon was waiting for her flight to take off. It was a searingly hot day in July, and Kit along with her husband Paul – Design Director at Robert Welch – were stuck for two hours as the pilot and crew waited patiently on the runway to be cleared for take-off. In the back of her mind was a design brief she’d yet to start.
Before her holiday, Kit had been tasked with creating a new trio of stainless steel, collectable Christmas decorations for Robert Welch. The brief hung on the success of her 12 Days of Christmas decorations – the final, magical set of three of which were unveiled in December 2023. As they waited for take-off, Kit pulled out a well-worn sketchbook from her hand luggage. That moment seemed the perfect time to start.
“I take this old notebook with me on every trip,” says Kit, holding a black, leather-bound sketchbook, the pages of which are filled with myriad lightbulb design moments.
“I don’t always sketch anything when I’m away, but I felt really felt creative on this holiday. I sketched everything from pebbles to foliage.”
An angular fir tree was ‘too stylised’, she noted. ‘Scalloped edging’ and ‘foliage types’ headline her beautifully fluid sketches of mistletoe, holly garlands, ivy and perfectly tied ribbons. Hearts decorate folky stockings, perfectly spherical baubles are resplendent with wrap-around ribbons, and a sumptuous bow hugs an exquisitely decorated pile of presents.
It’s Christmas in sketch form: the joy of the season perfectly captured in pen and ink.
A RICH LEGACY OF DESIGN
Kit designed the first of her 12 Days of Christmas decorations in 2020 to bring much-needed festive cheer during the pandemic. Three were released for each of the following years until the set of 12 was completed in 2023, complete with presentation box. The designs, each focused on the verses of the popular song, were naturally prescriptive – partridges and pears, gold rings, laying geese and leaping lords all featured.
For 2025, Kit wanted to create something different: instantly recognisable decorative motifs, full of festive nostalgia.
“The 12 Days of Christmas were all encased in a circle – a round template decorated with the holly, ivy and mistletoe we know our collectors love,” says Kit. “This year, I wanted to design something different for people to collect. Shapes that immediately said ‘Christmas’ – folk motifs with a broad appeal.”
A carefully sketched, lavishly decorated Christmas tree was the natural starting point for Kit on her five-hour flight to the sunshine. Four different trees filled her pages, some with scalloped edges, some with mistletoe garlands, some with sprigs of holly, all surrounded by spruce branches and bows.
Next was a stocking – the initial folksy sampler morphed into a plumper design, resplendent with mistletoe and spruce and three hearts adorning its fluffy top. Third was a present, generously wrapped in ribbon and decorated with spruce and ivy.
“They’re all quite whimsical,” says Kit. “I love the slight naivety of them. They’re a bit quirky, and I wanted them to be fun, to be homely. I love how the stocking hangs by its ribbon on the tree, just as a real stocking would hang on the mantelpiece. And how the ribbon on the present is negative space. It’s like a stencil.”
KEEP US HANGING
Kit says her new designs are as versatile as they are beautiful – the heirlooms of tomorrow, treasures to buy now and keep forever.
“They’re wonderful hanging on the tree and are beautiful woven into a wreath or a garland,” she says. “Placed down the centre of a Christmas table, they shimmer and catch the light.
And like our 12 Days of Christmas decorations, they also make gorgeous tags for presents and you can easily slip them inside Christmas cards to post to loved ones.”
Each design is hung with a red ribbon, packaged individually in red envelopes to keep, or gift. While Robert Welch collectors and Christmas-lovers alike are eagerly snapping up her new designs ahead of the holidays, Kit is already thinking about next year’s creations.