#MCCOTInterview {9}
Sylvie Quartara, the French- Brazilian Artisan, New Ambassador of the Nature-à-Porter
Nature is beautiful. It deserves to be preserved and praised. That is exactly what Sylvie Quartara, the French and Brazilian Artisan and Founder of the sustainable brand Sy&Vie (Yes to Life), does every day, since 2014, together with her team: she celebrates the beauty of Mother Earth through the creation of unique and arty handcrafted clutches, real pieces of Art. As it sometimes happens in life, Sylvie didn't plan this new entrepreneurial journey at all. It was totally unexpected for her. It all started as a therapy in a delicate personal moment. From a daily hobby, it soon became a business. A slow business. No need to rush. Let's meet a sensitive, creative and talented artisan woman and artist who, back home in Brazil after spending many years in Europe for work, has reconnected with herself and her roots and found her true creative happiness.
By Hélène Battaglia
Who are you?
I am French and Brazilian; I can’t stay a minute without inventing something new for my house, for my office or for my business. My mind is busy 24/7 thinking of a new combination of materials, a new way to remodel something or a new design for a bag. The passion for creation, in every sense of the word, is just part of who I am. Creating to bring beauty, happiness and joy is part of my nature.
How did you train to become the talented artisan you are today?
Since I was a little girl I have always drawn and painted. When I was young I never thought of being able to earn from my creations because this was primarily my hobby. I remembered while I was studying Advertising & Marketing that I did many courses in painting, drawing, photography, ceramics and artisanal techniques. This was my passion and, at that time, I never thought this would become my work. So, I can say that my training is more related to my passion and to all these years involved with the process of creating than to an academic background itself.
What brought you to the decision of founding your own brand in 2014 after having created home and fashion accessories for 20 years?
I was going through a delicate personal moment in my life and my way of relaxing was to go to my office and put my ideas on paper. Slowly I started producing some pieces and I noticed people liked what I was doing. It all started from there...
There is always a story behind. What is the exact meaning of Sy&Vie?
When I decided it was time to formalize what literally had started by chance, I was looking for a name that would somehow relate to mine, to happiness and joy (Because creating was my happiness and joyful moment). I didn’t want to use my own name but, at the same time, I wanted something close to me without exposing myself. “Vie “means life in French and “Sy “ means yes in Latin, so Sy&Vie means Yes to Life and it is also similar to my name Sylvie.
Everybody knows Prêt-à-Porter. Could you tell us more about your own innovative concept of Nature-à-porter?
On my walks through São Paulo’s parks and tree-lined streets, I became aware of nature’s intense beauty. How is it possible that so much beauty is wasted in such a cosmopolitan city? Leaves, branches, fragments, beetles, butterflies and a huge range of other small elements of nature go mostly unnoticed by people, on the ground. I began to think how we could transform those forgotten fragments into something beautiful and interesting. In April 2017, I started developing ways to value and highlight that
discarded part of nature. After a year and a half of hard work, I realized that the foundations of creation, i.e., curiosity, perseverance, determination and dare, resulted in my Nature-à-Porter bags. True nature in your hands! Nature-à-Porter bags stir emotions, not only because of the beauty of nature and the combination of the materials, but also because of the message they convey. Every bag is a reminder we carry with us that says: “Nature is beautiful and I want it by my side all the time!”
How do your clutches definitively stand out of the crowd?
The bags stand out because they are a joyful combination of different textures and due to the use of ancient artisanal techniques with a contemporary look.
Regarding the production, which is entirely sustainable, slow and inspired by nature, is every single bag handcrafted by yourself or you have a team which helps?
Nature-à-Porter bags are produced with real discarded pieces of nature and all Sy&Vie bags are slow fashion; I would even say that they are the “ haute couture “ of bags. We are very concerned about sustainability and we have some models that are animal free and are 99% sustainable. But having said this, I believe that saying we are 100% sustainable is difficult because some elements of the bags like the metal fixtures are not 100% sustainable yet, unfortunately. We are still a small company but we have a team of artisans working very closely to me to create these beautiful pieces of art.
How many hours does it take to consider a creation ready to be sold?
This is such a difficult question to answer. The first Nature-à-Porter took more than one year to be approved so it depends a lot on the complexity of the whole process. The prototype can take months to be ready and approved but once the prototype has been approved the production of a bag can take anywhere between 50 and 180 hours to be ready.
Which is the bag you are most proud of and why?
It is almost impossible to answer this question. Each prototype is like a new born baby for me and sits on my desk for some time just to admire it. I love all of them!
More than a simple brand, is Sy&Vie a way for you to pay a tribute to Nature you want to preserve?
I think the point is that I live in a country with gorgeous nature all around and I simply love it. So I would say it is more related to my background than a real tribute to Nature.
You worked and lived in big International Cities as Milan, Paris and London before moving back to your home country, Brazil. How did you made it living far away from Nature you love so much?
I was born and lived in Brazil until I was 23 and to be honest I only perceived how the sunlight and nature were important to me when I spent the first whole winter in Milan. It was the first time I noticed
how Brazil, my birth place, is colorful, joyful and surrounded by Nature. I have always travelled to Europe on holidays since I was a child but when you go for holiday, you don’t really feel the real atmosphere of the place as when you live the everyday life. Even if I missed the natural beauty and colors of Brazil while I was living abroad, I was young and happy to be living new experiences and getting to know my European side culture and lifestyle, better. And I really believe Sy&Vie has a lot to do with my background and these international experiences. The love for nature and colors comes from
my Brazilian side and the love for ancestral craftsmanship comes from my European side.
Sy&Vie in three words…
ART TO CARRY
All the pictures are Courtesy of Sy&Vie
IG
#SylvieQuartara
#Sy&Vie
#Femaleentrepreneur
#Braziliantouch
#HandcraftedbagsmadeinBrazil
#slowfashion
#arttocarry
#Natureàporter
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