Colour with Care: Marlena Taylor on creativity, craft and Ruco Paints

Looking for a delightful way to add some colour to your creativity? From vegan, artist-grade paints to refillable ceramic paint pots made to last, Ruco Paints is a beautiful example of sustainability meeting artistry. Founded by Marlena Taylor and handcrafted on the NSW North Coast using slow, traditional methods, Ruco grew from a desire to live creatively, raise a family with intention, and offer an alternative to fast, disposable art supplies. Think reusable ceramic pots, limited-edition colour runs, vegan paint binders and the prettiest ceramic mixing palettes. (We’re just a little bit in love with the Lucky Star and Aurora Shimmer Set!) We chatted with Marlena about the journey so far, the magic of small batches, and why ‘living a making’ (as per her favourite quote from poet and philosopher Mark Nepo) matters.

For those discovering Ruco Paints for the first time, how do you describe what you make? 

I handcraft sustainable watercolour paints (and ceramics) from scratch. I use traditional artisanal methods to combine high-quality pigments with a 100% natural binder, which I also prepare in-house. Every element is made with so much love and intention, and each small batch is hand-mulled. 

Everything about Ruco feels so intentional, right down to the smallest details. Can you share a little about how the idea first came to life, and what was happening for you personally at that time?

I was freshly postpartum with my first baby, still illustrating and selling my art, but realising it wasn’t sustainable given all the changes in my life. I actually completed my biggest painting commission just two weeks after my son was born! It was also then that I knew I needed to pivot. My priorities had been completely reorganised, and painting wasn’t filling my cup the way it used to. I kind of felt it ‘die’ overnight, which was hard. I’d been building my art practice for years on the side, and I felt a lot of grief just letting it go – even though I knew it was necessary for whatever came next to be born. 

I knew I wanted to stay in the watercolour world, though, and as someone who’d spent a lot of time painting with (and purchasing) watercolours, I had such a clear vision for what Ruco needed to be: plastic-free and sustainable in every way possible, using high-quality, non-toxic  artist pigments. And it had to be inspiring in its beauty! Something you always wanted to reach for, something that made the process of creating art just that much more beautiful. 

It’s easy to focus only on the outcome of a piece, but I wanted the journey to be celebrated too. With all this floating in my head, a friend invited me to her ‘clay play’ birthday party. I took my baby along (he was six months old at the time), and while there, I decided to make the very first Ruco prototypes. Once those little ceramic pots and palettes were physically in the world I just knew it was time. Everything unfolded from there – I launched three months later with six wooden box sets. It’s all just evolved since! 

How do the identities of ‘professional watercolour artist’ and ‘mum’ shape Ruco?

It gives me clarity in different ways. As a watercolour artist, I know exactly where my paints fit in the market and what I’m offering: bespoke, handmade, and beautiful, yes – but also incredible quality and functionality. I always knew I wanted my products to be plastic-free, really selectively sourced, easy to activate, and filled with unique colour blends you can’t get anywhere else. 

As a mother, Ruco is shaped with love. Everything is done with intention because I want it to be impactful in all the right ways: with concern for the planet my kids will inherit, and for how they view creativity and ‘work’, and what they believe is possible and real. 

Why does it matter that Ruco is about more than just ‘paint’? 

I really believe that every single one of us has creativity within us. Even those who claim they aren’t creative, or that they ‘can’t paint’ or whatever narrative they hold – I truly believe it’s there if we only reach out and grab it. Of course, it expresses itself in a multitude of ways: some of us are creative with words, or images, or sculpting. Some in the way we tend our homes, engage with our children or create our gardens. But the basis is the same creativity, and my mission with Ruco is to inspire it. I aim to create colours and sets that will themselves ignite that creative spark and give people permission to play freely and enjoy the process. 

Ruco is unique in that we craft everything in-house. We are completely plastic-free, crafting hundreds of paint pots every week for our watercolours to be poured into. I use artist-grade, ethically sourced pigments, with a focus on supporting other small (and woman-led) businesses as much as possible throughout production. The blends and colours exclusive to Ruco are something I’m really proud of. They all have their own funky characteristics which I haven’t seen elsewhere. I love to craft super granulating, separating and shimmery blends alongside all our core colours.  

I really believe that every single one of us has creativity within us. Even those who claim they aren’t creative, or that they ‘can’t paint’ or whatever narrative they hold – I truly believe it’s there if we only reach out and grab it.

How do you weave sustainability into making at Ruco? Were there any non-negotiables for you when you set out to develop the paints?

I hope I weave it everywhere honestly – though I’m always looking for ways to improve. I’m proud that we produce very little waste; we’ve really honed our processes. Anything left over or with minor aesthetic imperfections is sold at a vastly reduced price as lucky dip bundles. 

I don’t use any plastic pans or containers. I’d literally made about three things with clay before deciding to base an entire business on ceramic paint pots – that’s how important it was to me! Thankfully, I thrive on leaps of faith and learning on the go. I also source all-recyclable packaging, including compostable cellulose, which I use to wrap paints for shipping. 

Non-toxic was the next big hurdle. I don’t use any cobalt, cadmium or lead pigments, and I refuse to use chemical agents, additives or pigment fillers in the paints. That means our paints are incredibly pigmented compared to every other watercolour paint I’ve tried. There’s nothing in them that shouldn’t be there. Just pure pigment and a 100% natural binder. 

Do you have a favourite set of colours, or product, that you’ve created for Ruco?

That’s so hard, because four years in I’ve made so many! At the moment I have a soft spot for the ‘Golden Glow’ set and the ‘Earth Compendium’. Earth pigments and golds are my favourite to paint with, so I’m always reaching for them. Typical Taurus – drawn to the earth and the luxury/elevation of golds I guess? 

How do you navigate creativity, business, and motherhood? What has the journey taught you?

I’ve stopped looking for balance, honestly. I take it one day at a time: family first, then self-care, then Ruco and everything else. I do thrive in chaos, which I used to think was a bad thing, something I should work on. Now I embrace it as my superpower! 

I don’t manage everything every day of course, but every day is another chance to do the things that you need the most that day. My short answer: be gentle with all the parts, and just be ok with what can get done. 

You’ve spoken about wanting to ‘live a making’, rather than simply make a living. What do you hope Ruco inspires in others?

I talk about ‘living a making’ because it really resonated with me when I was dreaming up Ruco. I think [philosopher and poet] Mark Nepo said it originally. I want to model that for my kids, rather than just ‘making a living’. 

Every time my son describes my work as “making colours” to his friends I just melt a little more. That this is his concept of work in these formative years is my greatest achievement to date. I hope Ruco inspires people to embrace their innate creativity. We all have to start somewhere – most people just never do. Creativity has so many benefits to your physical, emotional and mental health and so I just want people to have this tool in their resource belt. We only get one life, so let’s live the best one we can even if it’s a little scary to begin.