Thirty years ago, Irish-born twin brothers Garech and Declan Stone landed in Amsterdam. They are The Stone Twins, an award-winning, multidisciplinary creative brand consultancy known for their clever, culturally layered design. Recently, I had an opportunity to discuss their work with them over email. Sit back, grab a Guinness, and enjoy this interview in stereo.

What is your background, and how did you end up where you are today as professionals?

We’re from Ireland—a land of storytellers. We were always drawing and visiting museums for some reason. As kids, we were obsessed with cereal boxes, stamps, comics, logos at the start of films, album sleeves (especially the cover art of ZTT), and the visual language of pop culture. That fascination led to design studies at the National College of Art & Design (NCAD) in Dublin and eventually was the draw for us to go to the Netherlands.

We’re especially drawn to brand-building for new businesses: It feels like creative problem-solving at its finest. We enjoy distilling complex ideas into something clear, visual, and engaging. Most of our work tends to involve brand identity, both the visual and the verbal.

When (and how) did you fall in love with letterforms?

Probably before we even realised it. Newspapers, the Church (bibles, headstones, the frocks on priests), beer and whiskey labels, old books (the Book of Kells), TV idents (Channel 4) and opening title sequences (James Bond films)—they all left a mark (pun intended).

One project, Logo RIP, was even inspired by cemetery lettering; the reverence for the letterforms found on headstones stuck with us. Our appreciation for classical lettering has led us to work with Niels Shoe Meulman and Ramiro Espinoza. Back in 2008, we even won a prestigious Dutch Design Prize for the expressive typography we created for SoundCircus.

What role do you think typography plays in graphic design and branding, both generally and in your own work?

We always think holistically—visually and verbally—because design and writing are inseparable in shaping a brand’s voice. We don’t see logos, typefaces, messages, or colours in isolation; every element contributes to the overall identity. 

A brand, to us, is like a person—not just how they look, but how they speak, move, even how they smell. Typography is central to this expression: It sets the “style.” If a logo is a brand’s signature, typography is its handwriting, and the words are the message. Sometimes, typography alone can be the brand (think The Economist, Heineken, Audi). 

When do you choose custom lettering over off-the-shelf fonts?

It depends on the project’s specific needs. We’ve used existing typefaces in projects like A’DAM, MassiveMusic, and Songtradr—especially when a potent symbol or icon led the identity.

But for brands like G&S& and Het Muntgebouw, a custom wordmark was essential. Het Muntgebouw’s heritage and history demanded a bespoke approach. With G&S&, the ampersand was conceptually central, a symbol of collaboration. It needed its own typographic voice.

How do you collaborate with a custom letterer? What does a typical brief look like, and how much freedom do they have?

Ask Ramiro! 🙂 But seriously—we do our research, establish the concept, and set some parameters. Then we get out of the way (mostly) and let the expert take the lead on the work.

What was the inspiration for the Muntgebouw logo?

We developed the idea of basing the logo on the coins historically minted there. The challenge was that the letters had to follow a circular baseline rather than a horizontal one—not an easy task, as it affects the shape of every character. Ramiro chose to base the design on the Juliana Guilder coin series by Ludwig Oswald Wenckebach and built upon it. His knowledge and sensitivity brought real beauty to the resulting logo.

And G&S&?

We introduced an additional ampersand—the company was previously just G&S—to represent collaboration in the new logo for G&S&. Ramiro refined our concept with a beautiful flow to the letterforms and refined flourishes. He created a sophisticated G& ligature and added variation to the terminal strokes in each ampersand. But he didn’t stop there: Ramiro even offered motion advice for how we could animate the logo. We trusted his intuition and loved the human touch he brought to both.

How do you see the future of custom lettering in branding, especially with the rise of AI?

AI will likely excel at producing mechanical, functional, and historically accurate type—and do so quickly. But we still believe there’s a place for originality and personality. No one wants a world of ready-made meals—the fresh stuff still wins hearts. The same principles apply to music, design, poetry, and typography. We hope to keep making a case for human beauty.

Your studio is located in Amsterdam, a city with a rich and diverse typographic landscape. Have the local graphic traditions influenced you?

Amsterdam has been our home for more than two decades, and it’s impossible not to absorb the city’s design DNA. We’ve always admired the functionality of modernists like Total Design and Paul Mijksenaar, but we were drawn to the expressive typography of Studio Dumbar and Koeweiden Postma in the 1990s. Those studios have definitely influenced us, as have Heineken’s smiling es and the beautiful curly script (or krulletter) found on the windows of Amsterdam’s traditional Bruin Cafés.

At the same time, being Irish, we’ve always carried a certain sense of storytelling and lyricism into our work. So our approach is a kind of hybrid: We draw on Amsterdam’s precision and discipline while infusing it with a more emotional, narrative layer.

We’ve learned from the Dutch design tradition—its rigor and honesty—but we’ve also brought our own cultural sensibilities to the table. So it’s a mix of both: being shaped by Amsterdam while contributing our own voice to its creative landscape.

Are there other areas that influence your work? For example, you seem to have a keen interest in music.

Yes, growing up in the ’80s, we were big fans of Frankie Goes to Hollywood. Their label, ZTT, with its in-house designers and writer Paul Morley, produced such a strong mix of visual and verbal creativity. We even created an homage to their album Welcome to the Pleasuredome at A’DAM Toren. 

We’ve also always loved the original morphing MTV logo—it showed how typography could be dynamic and playful.

Besides working for clients, you also founded Est., your Sparkling Tea company. How does it feel to be your own client?

Yes, as cofounders, we were involved from the very start: creating the name and brand, Est. (Established Sparkling Tea); conducting competitor analysis; and shaping all communication. For the packaging design, we drew inspiration from classic wine and champagne labels, then reimagined them through a modern lens, guided by the strategic line we developed: “Established, but new.”

As partners, we’re responsible for brand and communications, so we’re not deeply involved in the day-to-day operations. Overall, it’s enormously satisfying to see the drink featured and enjoyed in top restaurants.

We recently launched a new flavour, Est. Honeybush, so let’s see where it goes! Proost! Sláinte!

Santé! And thank you for the interview.

Interview: Yves Peters
Edition: Caren Litherland