Hi all, Finally I can share some pretty exciting news with you. The first one is, Anthony and I have moved down to Newquay, Cornwall (South West England) last weekend. Even though we never thought we’d ever move back to Europe and especially not the UK - let’s face it, it rains a lot - here we are, loving it. After living in such uncertainty and stress for all these weeks, there couldn’t be a better place for us to stop, unpack and feel a bit more ‘settled’ for once. We found a great place to live, sharing a house with our friend, we found a little car that’ll take us on new adventures, a beautiful new surfboard crossed my path and we were welcomed with open arms. We are surrounded by stunning beaches, forests, trails, cliffs and other natural landscapes which I cannot wait to explore. There are new people to meet, waves to surf and opportunities to discover. It feels like things are aligning again. A fresh start. Now before I ramble on and on, this is the exciting project I have been working on...
A couple of months ago I received a comment on one of my posts from a Dutch girlboss / surfer / yoga lover. She asked me if I’d be interested in a collaboration. Monique Rotteveel spends most of her time living the life in Costa Rica. She started her own activewear brand after travelling the world because she realised that packing light is essential when you have limited space in your backpack. She wanted to create durable, high quality clothing that is suitable for sports in and out of the water. Her designs are fair, functional and feminine. Monique studied graphic design so she can fully incorporate her skills and talent in her designs for the brand. She loves using illustrations of leaves, feathers, flowers, waves and moon phases, all inspired by Mother Nature and her "Pura Vida life" in Costa Rica. By Monique Rotteveel® wants to leave a positive impact on people and the planet. Their entire collection is produced in Europe in good working conditions, with fair wages and lots of love. These factors reflect in the look and feel of their products. Another epic factor of the brand which made me even more excited to work with Monique, is that they only use fabric made of recycled plastic bottles! Recycled polyester is made from plastic bottles – which have been collected, sorted by colour, and then melted down and formed into chips (sometimes called flakes). These chips or flakes are then sent to the yarn spinning mills, where they’re melted down and turned into yarn to create new fabric. They only print what they need, so there is no unnecessary waste. By recycling bottles into clothes, they are offsetting the need to produce new raw materials. Plus, their new packaging is made of biodegradable materials. By Monique Rotteveel® is a member of 1% For The Planet®, so from each purchase, they choose to donate 1% to a good cause; projects that help clean up the plastic out of our oceans, and prevent plastic from ending up there in the first place. Good for you, good for the planet. What more do you want in a fashion brand?!
My resin artwork Sea Lovers (see slideshow below) will be turned into a high quality eco surf bikini! It will be released around March 2019 so please be patient... I just couldn't wait to share the news! I'm super stoked and grateful to be part of this brand and the idea that other women will be wearing my artwork is next level awesome! For more information about By Monique Rotteveel, head to www.moniquerotteveel.com and follow on @bymoniquerotteveel.
