The Elf Behind Laümpshkin

Hi, I'm Hrysoula, the dorky person you see before you! I'm a software engineer by training but chronic illness and disability has led me on this new path of designing cute sustainable things for you!

Above you can see me in my office where I spend my days usually working on my laptop but sometimes also making physical art depending on what my body allows at the time. Here I am falling over because I'm unable to balance.

My symptoms include constant double vision and very weak and shaky hands, which affect my work significantly. You can see this in my work which consists of bright and simple designs, always with a focus on fun and expressing my inner child (I refuse to grow up).

The biggest influences on my work are my lived experiences in my magical childhood which I spent torn between two worlds (in the best possible way)--the village in Crete where my dad grew up and I spent many summers, and my home in Utah where my siblings and I were (and still are, really) our own little clan. We were voracious readers and embarked on neverending creative adventures in our living room and yard, united against the world. They, together with the best mom ever, are my biggest fans and supporters. If my dad were still living, I know he would be my biggest supporter of all. They are who I have in mind for everything I make.

Thank you for being on this journey with me--my biggest wish is to design things that will make you happy every time you wear them and keep the magic of childhood alive for you like it is for me.

Photo descriptions:

Four photos of Hrysoula, a disabled white woman. In the first two she is posing in her messy office. I'm the last two she is standing next to a stand with Laümpshkin tote bags displayed in it and her wheelchair and walker underneath. She is wearing lavender jeans and crocs and an off-white tank top with a light blue duck embroidered on the top left. Underneath it is the word "laümpshkin" in bright green. In the final photo she's catching herself in a fall.