RUBYLEA
Art and handcrafts has been an integral part of my life for as long as I can remember. I have had the good fortune of having been surrounded by professional handicrafters within my own family my entire life.
I remember when I was young, my family members used to make unique clothes and accessories for me and when I got older, I started to make them myself with the machine my grand mother gifted to me.
I believe that the freedom and support to express my myself and my creativity as a child has given me the courage to be the kind of person that I want to be, dress as I want to and helped me choose this career for myself.
I established Rubylea right after I graduated from millinery school in 2016, since I knew that I wanted to put my whole creativity and heart in to the products and make them my own way. I also want to change peoples way of thinking on how to dress and bring more amazing and brave personas out in to the streets.
Hats are probably the hardest accessories to wear and I often hear people saying that “ I don’t look good in hats” or “ I don’t know how to wear hats”. I have to admit that I was like that too before I went to millinery school. And actually I started that school to learn how to make bags and gloves, but when I got to make the first hat, I realised that a headwear is like a jewelry, that completes the outfits to the perfetion. Nowadays I don’t go out without a hat.
I think the most important thing when choosing a hat is that the hat feels like it is a part of you. If you don’t get that feeling, you probably wont wear it or feel a bit uncomfortable while wearing it and that is something that shows. This is one of the reason why I like to design items together with my customers and create pieces that describes the persons character perfectly, because there is a hat for everyone!
My own style is inspired by vintage style and fashion that I “spice up” with modern fabrics, bright colours and funky patterns. You can find lots of similarities from my headwear collection; the shapes has gotten their inspiration from old days, but the materials that I use are modern, like e.g. stretchy jerseys. I also try to make the items so that they are easier to wear and fits better for modern life style.
To make the items, I use very traditional milliner techniques, like hand sewing and -shaping. This way all the items are unique pieces, even if the material are the same.
I make most of the items by order, so I can provide wider colour , material and model range and I think it is more ecological approach to avoid unnecessary waste. Making items by order, also makes them more easy to modify to the customers wishes.
Welcome to pop by at the studio in Aleksis Kiven katu 38, Helsinki and try out the collection or design your dream headwear with me!
♥ Eini
