Two years ago after winning the Jewelry Design Award
Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer? My background is in Fashion. As soon as I finished university in Florence I got into Prada and that’s where I found out my passion for product creation and design. Then I moved to London for four years working for an old British leather goods brand called Tanner Krolle owned by the Chanel group at the time. I was head of product development for accessories and I got involved more and more in design and its development.
Can you tell us more about your company / design studio? After the London experience I moved to France and then to Italy always working for companies in the Fashion biz until I decided to go my own way and founded Lalla’s , a small emerging brand of modern no-gender jewelry. My studio is based in Arezzo, Tuscany and is a messy Creative Lab where ideas turn into life. You are welcome at any time.
What is “design” for you? Is the way one looks at things, it’s a state of mind, if you have the sensibility to catch it and the vision to translate it into reality.
What kinds of works do you like designing most? Objects that walk with you, as jewelry, handbags, belts, accessories in general.
What is your most favorite design, could you please tell more about it? My favorite is a no-gender necklace that can be either for men or women . It’s a simple design consisting of three small silver pearls that slide along a leather thread . The necklace has an adjustable length in order to wear it according to the outfit. It belongs to the Metallica range by Lalla’s of course.
Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?It depends on what I’m creating, sometimes I focus on how much comfortable are going to be my creations, other times I just focus on the materials and play with them until the idea turns into something real.
What makes a design successful?A design object is successful when people likes it, wants it, buys it, therefore I imagine communication and good marketing are important for success, it doesn’t make sense to have a great design if no one knows about it.
From your point of view, what are the responsibilities of a designer for society and environment? A designer should be able of making the world a better place to live in. Research and recycling are the first steps towards a better environment.
How do you think the “design field” is evolving? What is the future of design? I don’t know how it evolves what’s sure is that design will stay while humans go.
Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations? I study the past and I am an observer of anything that surrounds me, materials, people, trends.
Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country? I live in Tuscany , I create in Tuscany . Living in Tuscany has only pros.
How do you work with companies?I don’t work with companies any longer, since three years ago I have created my own Brand of Design Jewels: Lalla’s. I might consider collaborating with fashion companies in the future.
What are your suggestions to companies for working with a designer? How can companies select a good designer?Looking at the experience designers have on product development and not only their ability in choosing colors and sketching nice objects.
What are 5 of your favorite design items at home? Le Corbusier chaise longue – 2 cinema armchairs of the 50’s – Tolomeo standing lamp from Artemide – Architect Fabio Ghignoli’s plexiglass chairs and Cube Orange Lamp.
Can you describe a day in your life? How much time do we have? I am a creative woman mother of three kids, owner of an emerging Design Jewels Brand and married to an architect. When I am not travelling researching materials or meeting clients, my day is non-stop from 7 to midnight, mornings at the Lab, afternoons with the kids as much as possible and nights creating/working.
From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer? positive : being ahead of times negative : being so ahead that people don’t always follow you.
What skills are most important for a designer? Intuition first of all and being able of listening others’ needs and solving them.
Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time? I don’t manage my time because I cant, designing has little to do with time management, one just follows that strange inside feeling that makes you forget about time.
What was your most important job experience? All my past experience has been important in order to get me where I am today.
Do you have any works-in-progress being designed that you would like to talk about? Yes I do, but I never talk about a new design until it’s completed.
How can people contact you? Contacts are on website www.lallasdesign.com Mail : mll@lallasdesign.com Instagram: @lallasdesign
Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions? Yes, everyone should invest in good design, just makes you feel good. One last important thing, please buy real 100% made in Italy. Thank you very much. Ciao.
