Happy Friday at Louella Odié!
Here we are being seriously uncool in our excitement at seeing our collection beautifully displayed at the Four Seasons Hotel Hong Kong spa gift shop, our newest stockist!
Karen & Lauren
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Since launching Louella Odié last year, Mum and I have said over and over how lucky we are to have wonderful friends who have supported us and believed in our little company as much as we do. So for our six-month anniversary in business, we decided that we should celebrate some of the key people who have flown the flag for us.
First up is my very good friend, yoga mentor and kite surfing partner-in-crime, Lois, who is based in sunny Antigua. It was her birthday very recently as well, so there couldn’t be a better time post this 🙂
I met Lois when we were both involved in a round the world yacht race in 2009. I was racing from the UK down to Brazil, and she went even further, clocking up 15,000 nautical miles by racing from the UK – Brazil – South Africa – Australia. Our joint love of the ocean, whether on it or in it, sealed our friendship beyond the race.
After the big voyage was over our lives went in very different directions as I ended up working in Hong Kong, and Lois joined the glamorous super-yachting world, working on super yachts everywhere from the Mediterranean to the Caribbean. We have made it a yearly tradition to meet up somewhere exotic around the world, and so we have found ourselves on yoga retreats in Bali, on month-long, all-girl surf trips and kiting off glorious, remote and empty beaches in Antigua last year.
Lois has become our Louella ambassador in the Caribbean whilst she has been based in Antigua for the past few months, and here are a few of my favourite photos she has sent back. Happy birthday Lo!
Lauren x
One of our earliest resolutions when it came to deciding what images to use on our products was that it had to be led by our genuine interests. It takes hours to cut a detailed lino-plate so I focus on the aesthetics of that and worry about what to do with it later!
Above is a compilation of images of me working on the shark print. I am strongly pro-shark and anti-fining and I was thinking about an image which I could use in that context, perhaps as a poster.Instead, after printing I dramatically shrank the image on the computer, and it became a pattern on our best selling pocket-square. What I love about working this way is that it doesn’t preclude using the image in all sorts of different ways – look out for a shark sarong coming soon.
Here is the original print in a poster format, with it’s working title (The Possibility of Soup in the Minds of the Ignorant)
In other news, our Shark Print Silk Pocket square is now back in stock. Snap them up whilst you can! (sorry, bad punning) I’m still playing around with this design at the moment. Couldn’t resist putting a banker in with the sharks! Wonder if we should order a batch of these?
We’ve teamed up with BaoBae and Choice Cooperative – Hong Kong’s first gluten-free bakery, to take part in their Spring Bazaar in Wong Chuk Hang (Hong Kong) this coming Saturday.
Join us from 10am-5pm to see the collection, explore other local brands and taste the best gluten-free cooking you will find anywhere in Hong Kong!
For more details please see the event invite on Facebook, which can be found here.
Calling all South Siders on Hong Kong island!
Some of the best shopping destinations in town are popping up in Wong Chuk Hang at the moment, so we are delighted to announce that we are coming over to your side of town as we are now stocked at wonderful lifestyle store Mirth Hong Kong!
Address: The Mezzanine Floor, Yip Kan St, 23 Wong Chuk Hang Road (黃竹坑黃竹坑道23號標達中心M樓)
Open daily from 10am-6pm
For those of you who prefer to look and feel a product before buying, we have some exciting news!
We are thrilled to announce that as of today we are now stocked at Fang Fong Projects boutiques in Hong Kong.
Please pop by and see our collection, alongside the fantastic clothing designs that owner Wu Laifan designs and makes herself.
Shop 1: 69A Peel Street, Central (crossing with Elgin Street in Soho)
Phone: (+852) 3105 5557
Shop 2: G/F, B3, 160 Electric Road, North Point
Phone: (+852) 2857 2057
Open everyday from 11:30am – 8pm
This is your last chance for beautiful and original Christmas presents from Louella Odié for international customers. Order by the end of today (Friday 6th December) to get FREE shipping direct to your Christmas Tree.
Hong Kongers, you have a little more time, as we will be doing free local delivery right up until Christmas Eve!
Lauren: We need to write a press release for our business launch on Thursday 21st November 2013.
Karen: Eeeek!
Lauren: we need to give them the facts. It’s a mother daughter business. It’s a start up. It’s about Hong Kong…
Karen: It sounds such a cliché! What can we say that shows we are not just another start up in Hong Kong?
Lauren: Well, it’s based on your artwork and no one has artwork like yours. And your artwork is all based on your childhood and growing up in Hong Kong; that’s unique.
Karen: Actually, it’s a brand about having fun. It’s not for everybody, and not everybody will get it.
Lauren: How do we describe ourselves then?
Karen: If you’re carrying a Louella Odié bag, it will be obvious. We’re not calling it a fashion brand, because we want to follow our own path and produce beautiful products that resonate with strong women who want to stand apart from the crowd.
Lauren: So, you’re saying we’re a lifestyle brand?
Karen: No, I would say we’re not just a lifestyle, we’re an attitude.
Lauren: What are we going to say specifically about this first collection?
Karen: Well, all of the Skyline designs, which come from drawings of Central in my sketch book, capture our urban landscape. They have been turned in to bags which are made from high quality leather (US$250). They are perfect for taking either to the office or out on trips around town.
All of the Island Life collection comes from lino prints hand made here in my studio. They are all about markets, flowers and nature in Hong Kong. They are large, practical weekend bags (faux leather, US$160) with roomy pockets, which can carry everything you need for a junk trip or a day at the beach.
Lauren: What about silk? We haven’t mentioned that at all.
Karen: Oh yes! Tell them about our gorgeous Skyline scarf (100% silk, US$160) which matches the bags and the silk pocket squares (US$38) – which is supposed to be for men, but which all of your girlfriends wear as wristlets or wrap in their hair. Do we need to tell people where they can buy Louella Odié? Because that’s your department!
Lauren: Yes, I’ll tell them about our website www.louellaodie.com, and that we are also actively seeking retail opportunities in Hong Kong.
Karen: Don’t forget to mention that we will be at The Pawn in Wan Chai on Sunday 24th November with all our stuff for their first ever Rooftop Market. 20% of everything we sell that day will be donated to their chosen charity, St James’ Settlement.
Lauren: Yes, those are all the important bits. I guess I’ll write this press release now then.