The Islander Exploring Mauritius
I met my dear friend Emma during our first European exhibition at Paris fashion week many years ago. It was total fate that our paths crossed and I can still remember what she was wearing the day that a mutual friend introduced us. In true Parisian style she was confident, beautiful and totally french, but most of all she had the type of presence that drew you in. Her kind nature and quirky sense of humour stuck and so did our friendship.
EMMA DENAIVE
Although we have never lived in the same country nor shared the same first language, our friendship has never faltered. I believe that great friends remain a constant despite distance and life's evolution. The people we meet in the most unexpected places or circumstances are usually the ones that make the biggest impressions.
Emma is both an Entrepreneur and mother to her beautiful son Noah who came into their life's not quite to plan "shall we say", but then again this is what life is all about and the unexpected twists and turns that end up defining who we are. Emma and her Husband Alex made the brave decision to move out of their small apartment in central Paris and move across the world to Mauritius. They have had ties to Mauritius for many years due to her Families hugely successful Jewellery brand, her fathers sole vision and creation for almost 30 years.
DOMINIQUE DENAIVE
Emma's father Dominique Denaive specialises in resin jewellery and his use of colour, tone and shape is second to none. He creates the most beautiful, harmonious collections. Timeless jewellery that lifts the spirit and brings a unique sense of style to any outfit day or night. Denaive jewellery is so different from our delicate jewellery yet the two seem work so well alongside one another. Perhaps its because both our brands are founded from true passion and artistic interpretation.
I believe that Emma's wonderful family background most certainly helped to shape her into the woman that she is today, along with her inspiring and fiercely driven husband who is also a wonderful friend of ours. Both highly skilled they specialise as consultants in lifestyle, business, personal and brand development. They have many years experience in this diverse field traveling across the globe for presentations and conferences, offering vibrant advice that would keep the shrewdest of businessmen on their toes.
Their decision to leave city life was of course highly considered yet still felt like a leap of faith, to go for their dreams and bet on themselves... which I can say has truly paid off. They have a wonderful lifestyle and environment to raise their family and develop their businesses together.
We traveled to Mauritius last month to visit them and also to discuss the exciting opportunity to collaborate together and create an exciting capsule collection. Spending time discussing ideas, style and an exciting concept for the creation. It will be a mix of both our styles, a collection that is versatile, wearable and detailed.
While we were on the island we organised a beautiful early morning photo shoot with creative director and photographer minimauritius. I have shared a little edit of our images and styles that we will be drawing inspiration from to create our collection. We will be looking to nature, texture and natural materials and will be inspired by some of the beautiful places that Emma and her Family shared with us on our adventure to visit her tropical paradise.
MAURITIUS AND ITS FUSION OF CULTURES
Just 20 degrees south of the equator, the island itself was once a haunt for pirates and explorers. These days its best known for its pristine coastline and outstanding water, diverse landscape and volcanic mountain backdrops along with its luxury hotels that sit tastefully upon the shoreline. Mauritius is a fusion of French, Indian, Creole and Chinese. We visited sugar plantations, explored uninhabited offshore islands, we walked through one of the oldest botanical gardens in the world and stood in awe of the soaring palms and ebony trees. We threw ourselves into the wild rivers in the South West and explored the exotic and wildly beautiful coastline of the quieter South. We hiked up mountains and visited waterfalls, UNESCO heritage sites, Indian temples and dined under the stars at a colonial house that felt as if it had been perfectly preserved in its past with every detail exactly in place. This is an island that still feels like its steeped in history, a place to behold where nature is still at the forefront and care is taken to preserve the look and feel of the landscape, and I truly hope that it remains this way.
SHOP THE COLLECTION
