Hello! I’m the Designer and Yoga Teacher behind Serenity & Solace—Maria L’Warren (BA (Hons), RYT-200)
Why I do what I do
I create products and experiences to help busy people feel well, peaceful and balanced, through my background as a Graphic Designer and Yoga Teacher. I believe that having the right tools, knowledge, and community can transform your wellness.
When I entered full time work, I quickly found myself struggling to balance my wellness alongside my busy career. I’ve also spent the majority of my life coping with anxiety, and I found Mindfulness, Yoga and Meditation extremely beneficial to helping me feel my best self. My products and classes are all designed to help others busy people balance their wellness. I absolutely love teaching the Serenity & Solace community Vinyasa Flow Yoga classes every Monday on Zoom, which has been a place of solace for so many, including myself!
My background
I studied Graphic Communication Design at Central St Martins in London. During this time I spent close to 4 years talking to the general public about Impressionist and Mid-century art at the Courtauld Gallery in Somerset House. I witnessed firsthand the calming and healing effects art had on the general public, which inspired me to ask, “in what ways do people access deeper levels of peace?”. Ready to start a new adventure, I worked for 4 years as a Designer and Art Director at the UK’s largest lifestyle publishers Ryland Peters and Small. After attending a Vipassana meditation retreat in India (after 4 years of regular yoga practice), I went on to study her 200hrs Yoga teacher training at Yoga London and began teaching in Camden in 2017. This training informs my products and designs, which aim to bring peace and wellness into the lives of others.
Fun facts
Yoga teachers from the UK, USA, and even Australia use Serenity and Solace cards in their teaching.
In 2021 I taught a Yoga workshop for Microsoft in the USA and the University of Madras in Chennai!
I lived for 3 years in an abandoned carpark above Chalk Farm tube station. Through living in this chaotic (and often challenging) environment, I began to create calming artworks to bring a sense of tranquility to this makeshift home - and practiced yoga on the roof!
Books and printed products which I designed have been stocked in Anthropologie, Joy, and Waterstones, published by RPS.
I like to sell the majority of the small print runs from my website, but you can find my products at a few carefully selected retailers and Yoga studios:
Grace and Gravity Yoga Studio
Howbery Business Park,
Innovation Annexe,
W-13, Wallingford
OX10 8BA
Phat Feathers
47 Picton St,
Montpelier,
Bristol
BS6 5PZ
TEGS
78 Broadmead,
Bristol
BS1 3DS