Colour At Work: Olga Joan – Mustard Made Australia

The Skinny lockers in Poppy red and Butter yellow beside rainbow-sorted garment racks in the Olga Joan fashion studio, founder seated on a floral sofa

Office storage has never looked better.

Inside the Newcastle headquarters of fashion label Olga Joan, colour reigns supreme. The walls may be white, but it’s not just Mustard Made’s bold lockers that fill the airy loft space with joyful pops of colour. This workspace is home to racks upon racks of founder Rebecca Pastro’s bright, vibrant designs. Like a curated rainbow, they hang (on signature Mustard hangers, of course) around the room, arranged according to hue.

“I just love colour,” Rebecca tells us of the extensive range, “so I find it hard to limit myself. We’ve found ourselves with quite a large collection, because there’s so many beautiful colours and shapes, and I want to be able to offer that in a large range so there’s something for everyone.”

The Hangers coat hangers in clip and top styles in mixed brights, holding pastel garments on a rack in the Olga Joan studio

The Hangers Poppy red top hanger held by the Olga Joan founder lifting a pink cami from a rack of bright studio garments

Family business

In a nod to Rebecca’s heritage, the colours are named in Italian – Limone, Pomodoro, Rossa – a little detail that speaks to Olga Joan’s origin story. “Olga Joan is named for my Nonna and Nanna, Olga and Joan” says Rebecca. “My two grandmothers are the ongoing inspiration in my life when it comes to longevity in fashion. They had a lot of their pieces for decades, and some they actually made themselves.”

The Skinny lockers in Poppy red and Butter yellow, one open with garments and Baskets inside, plus two Storyboard memo boards in Butter and Poppy pinned with fabric swatches

Vintage designs, reimagined

That sense of timelessness is now part of the Olga Joan ethos. The brand’s colour range may be extensive, but their approach to design is thoughtful and considered. OJ, as Rebecca likes to call it, consciously features clean silhouettes, and shapes that transcend trends. Collections are produced in small runs, using responsible materials and prioritising transparency throughout the process.

“I really like to hero designs from the past,” Rebecca says. “I’m a big vintage shopper. I feel like it’s a strength of mine to find something that might be poor fitting, it might be made of polyester, or it might have a very overpowering print, and seeing through that to develop it into something that’s a bit more modern. I think of it as giving it a second life.”

The result is a collection of pieces that, just like Mustard, strikes a balance between retro nostalgia and clean modernity. Rebecca says that while her taste is constantly evolving, lately she’s leaning into the feminine shapes of the 1950s. “But then I do love the nineties,” she adds. “As a baby of the nineties, that will always be my core.”

The Midi lockers in Berry and Poppy red in the studio kitchen, one open with mugs and glassware, and a Butter yellow Ledge shelf above the coffee station

Work and play

Step inside the Olga Joan studio space, and you’re likely to find the team listening to Kylie Minogue while they work. “Our space is very feminine and playful,” Rebecca says. When it comes to selecting pieces for her studio, she tells us, “I really love cute things that are intentional and are practical – I want things to earn their place but still be beautiful, and spark joy. But they need to have a purpose.” That explains why Mustard pieces are such a perfect fit for this light-filled, open workspace. Lockers help keep each zone organised, with Skinnys and Baskets holding essential supplies at the packing station, Midis stocking the kitchen, and The Storyboard acting as a moodboard.

“We use our lockers for so many different things, but I think my favourite Mustard product is actually The Ledge,” Rebecca says. “It’s very subtle. The Butter Ledge in our kitchen is such a beautiful yellow and it just ties everything in really beautifully.”

Four Storyboard magnetic memo boards in Butter, Poppy, Ocean and Blush on the studio wall, pinned with fabric swatches, sketches and Buttons magnets

Four Storyboards in Butter, Poppy, Ocean and Blush sit above the studio’s desk space, showcasing inspiration and ideas from colour swatches to fabric samples, sketches and trims. When it comes to colour, right now she says she’s all about one: “I’m very into Vino (wine) at the moment – I can’t believe I’m saying it but it’s surpassed Ciocco (Chocolate) for me, which has been a favourite for a long time. And blues like aqua and turquoise have really taken me by surprise.”

The Skinny lockers in Blush pink and Sage green at the Olga Joan packing station, with a Berry Ledge shelf and wire Baskets holding branded mailers

The test of time

Whether she’s designing for Olga Joan or selecting pieces for the studio, there’s one quality that’s always at the top of Rebecca’s list. “I’m all about pieces with character.”

It’s no surprise, then, that Mustard is just the right fit for this beautiful space. Just like the vintage designs finding a second life through Rebecca’s eyes, the Olga Joan studio proves that attention to detail, a commitment to character and a considered approach can make everything old feel new again.