Happy New Year! If you have been following the various word-of-the-year shortlists and design trends, you may have noticed that the Danish hygge has recently been dethroned by a new Scandinavian it-word – the Swedish lagom. Lagom is translated loosely into English as the Goldilocks principle of ‘not too little, not too much, just right’. While …
Scarves are among the most versatile gifts, suitable for anyone from a hard-working assistant to a hard-to-please mother-in-law. And what could be better than a scarf in which every stitch has a positive story to tell? Recently I have come across three brands, all founded by women with a connection to Switzerland, which offer chic …
Last weekend I was among the lucky visitors to the brand-new Louvre Abu Dhabi — a futuristic museum designed by French architect Jean Nouvel and the hottest new arrival on the global art scene. The museum’s concept is to show humanity in a new light, highlighting the commonalities across civilizations, cultures and religions. The crowd shuffling …
Recently a budding designer asked me about sustainable and luxurious packaging options, and it made me think about this important yet often overlooked part of the product offering. Packaging is an $11 billion elephant in the room, according to the Sustainable Packaging Association, and it is essential to communicating the brand’s sustainability commitment. Although brown …
When I first got into slow fashion six years ago, I noticed a huge gap in the market for sustainable and stylish business wear. There was a dearth of great looking, ethical clothes that fit into our increasingly busy lifestyles: ones that require no ironing, are machine washable and easily transportable in one’s hand luggage. …
Giving a talk at TEDxGeneva 2017 titled “Slow Fashion – Food for Thought?” was a dream come true! The experience was both nerve-racking and magical, and I am still under the event’s spell. It was a pleasure to work with the very talented and committed TEDxGeneva team and to bond with fellow speakers, each of whom had …
If, like many, you are left feeling disheartened by the recent decision of President Trump to pull the United States out of the Paris climate agreement, you might be also feeling powerless about what each of us can do about climate change. And yet surprisingly, your wardrobe might be a good place to start. Did …
Last week I had a great opportunity to visit DESIGNGUT, the annual Swiss sustainable design fair, in Winterthur — a charming town located a 20-minute train ride from Zurich. The event brought together Switzerland’s more established and up-and-coming designers in fashion, jewellery and furniture – all with a sustainable twist. Held in the city’s magnificent … Continue reading
Once a delicacy of choice of French kings, Russian tzars and Persian shahs alike, wild sturgeon caviar today has all but vanished from the world’s finest tables. The reason? Sturgeons from the Caspian Sea are today the most threatened group of animals in the world – all because of our insatiable appetite for their unfertilized … Continue reading
Last week I celebrated my 30-something birthday in Paris (hence the delay in updating the blog). Of course, no trip to the City of Lights would be complete without a stroll down Les Champs-Elysées and a visit to its numerous flagship stores. L’incontournable! Although there is no consensus as to the French version of this … Continue reading
This morning, I ticked off one of the items that are high up on my bucket list: to have breakfast at Tiffany’s. No, I didn’t fly all the way to New York to munch on a danish and sip a takeaway coffee in front of Tiffany’s flagship store. Instead, I went to Geneva’s very own … Continue reading
Among the momentous events that marked the month of September were the Big Four Fashion Weeks (New York, London, Milan and Paris) and the return of “Downton Abbey” for its fourth season. And both the catwalks and the TV series celebrated the Roaring Twenties and that decade’s forward-looking, frivolous fashion. “In the 1920s everything seemed … Continue reading
Walking down Geneva’s Rue du Rhône is like leafing through a glossy magazine: some of the world’s most coveted jewellery, watch and fashion brands are all present here, and outdoing each other by the splendour of their flagship stores and the elegance of multi-million dollar creations within. How did this Calvinist city, where obvious displays … Continue reading
As a working mum, I am a big fan of online shopping. I routinely make my purchases – from groceries to designer splurges – on the Internet. However up until now, I was rather dismayed at the paucity of sustainable fashion offerings by major e-tailers. With online sales booming, can green-and-glam fashion be just a … Continue reading
We know from the marketing gurus that women make the majority of purchasing decisions in their households, and tend to be more sustainable consumers than men, more influenced by ethical considerations. Indeed, as I learned at the recent SOURCE Summit, the ethical fashion market is predominately oriented towards female consumers, targeting medium- to high-income market share. … Continue reading
The first week of September is when children across the Northern hemisphere go back to school. As I was leafing through fashion magazines while sticking labels on my son’s school clothes, I noticed that the preppy style is also back on trend for the 2013-2014 AW season. As much as I love the tailored and … Continue reading
There are several things that Switzerland is synonymous with: chocolate, cheese, banks and, undoubtedly, watches. Earlier this week I had a unique opportunity to visit the Swiss capital of watchmaking, La Chaux-de-Fonds, where I had privileged access to the ateliers of some of the world’s most coveted watch brands. I was curious to find out more about the exclusive world of … Continue reading
green stilettos 