Paige Russell has always been enamored with textiles. Growing up in Detroit, the Los Angeles–based founder of Eloi (ee-loy) learned to knit and sew at a young age, and was making her own clothes and bedding by her teens. “I went to the Savannah College of Art and Design for graphic design, and have been self-educating and evolving my craft ever since,” she tells Business of Home. “I love digging into historical textile sourcebooks and finding patterns depicted in old paintings and photographs.”
In college, Russell developed a unique patternmaking method that would ultimately define her creative process for years to come. Instead of sketching an idea, she uses construction paper cutouts to fashion collage-style motifs. Once she has settled on a design, she secures the pattern to a wood panel with an acrylic matte medium. Then she photographs it before uploading and editing it in Adobe Illustrator. “It started as a way to get away from a computer screen,” she says. “Then I fell in love with being a graphic designer that did most of their work by hand—it feels nostalgic and tactile, and humanizing in a way that [graphic design] can traditionally lack.”
She launched Eloi in 2014 with a line of small-batch bandanas adorned in her playful hand-forged patterns. At the time, she was living in Austin, working part-time service gigs while making large-scale collages and textiles on the side. “The idea to print my patterns on scarves was inspired by Kermit Oliver, an artist who painted scarves for Hermès,” says Russell. “My mom owned a couple and had them framed, and I thought it was a beautiful way to make a wearable object with the potential to be a fine art print.”
In 2018, she met Andrée Chalaron, an Austin-based interior designer and co-founder of textile brand Counterpart Studios, who approached Russell about one of her residential projects. “She collected my bandanas and wanted me to create custom curtains for one of her home redesigns,” she says. “We wound up using a mix of my original designs in fresh colorways, as well as brand-new patterns.”
More recently, those patterns have evolved into a full-fledged collaboration with Counterpart Studios, spanning two collections across dozens of sprightly handmade upholstery and wallcoverings, such as the kaleidoscopic floral Sugar Mountain fabric and the rhythmic, plaid-esque Squiggle Tartan Grand wallpaper. “We’re about to release the third installment, which includes a really lovely paisley-style print named Boteh; and Suzani, inspired by traditional Persian needlework,” she says.
In addition to scarves and bandanas, Eloi offers a selection of lightweight linen tablecloths—which Russell calls “gathering cloths”—and napkins featuring her vibrant prints. “The idea [of the table linens] started as kind of a sister product to the bandanas in the sense that they’re a beautiful, well-designed, multipurpose item,” she says. “The gathering cloths can transform a table or be folded and stashed in your bag or car for a quick towel or beach blanket.”
Currently hard at work on bespoke designs for two boutique hotels, The Chloe in New Orleans and the Bunkhouse Group’s new Hotel Saint Augustine in Houston, Russell looks forward to expanding Eloi’s commissionable offerings. “I’ve been doing more event branding—specifically weddings, where I’ll make a custom design that tells a couple’s story and design all of the invitations and paper goods, including guest favors and tablecloths,” she says. “All I really want is to make sure that I’m consistently making work that I’m proud of, with people I respect, while challenging myself and trying new things.”
For more information on Paige Russell, check out Eloi’s website or Instagram.
