Wednesday, September 27, 2017

Matine

Vintage Shirt and Pants, Matine Smith Large Clutch in Sienna, Nisolo Mariella Mule in Black

MY STORY: I returned from my work trip to New York last week. As I mentioned in a previous post, I went for a trade show called Coterie. For those of you who don't know (this was me a few weeks ago), a trade show is where brands set up a booth with their spring or fall collection (depending on when the trade show takes place) and buyers from department stores to boutiques go see the collection, place orders, and/or discover new brands. Many large, well-known brands attend Coterie but there are also smaller ones as well.

Coterie started on Sunday so we arrived in New York on Saturday to prepare the booth. The next three days we saw returning and new faces (they were all new for me since it was my first time) of buyers who wanted to see the spring '18 collection. Many of them put in their orders which made us happy to see since we put a lot of time into creating it. For me, it was interesting to see how each buyer knew exactly what their customer would or wouldn't wear. I also had the chance to walk around the show to see all the booths. It was exciting to see many brands I recognized and how they chose to display their booth and collection. Overall, I am grateful to have had the chance to experience a trade show, learn more about the industry, and explore New York in my time off.

MATINE'S STORY: Carolyn Misterek is the founder and designer of Matine, a minimal leather goods brand which embraces imperfections. This may sound contradictory but Matine strives to eliminate excess by hand crafting natural leather hides, including ones with scars, into products that are simple. This mirrors reality by exuding simplicity yet embracing the messiness of life. Carolyn started Matine in 2012 with a few pieces of leather and her home sewing machine. She was working as a full-time digital designer but felt the urge to create something with all the ideas going through her mind. She created her first pieces, recruited her friends as models, took photos for a lookbook and Matine was born. As Matine has grown over the years, they continue to stay committed to hand-crafted products responsibly made in their Washington, D.C. studio or manufactured in small batches in Portland, OR.

2 comments:

  1. Ohh Matine was directly across from our Drifter Organics booth at West Coast Craft! So fun you collaborated with her. <3

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    1. Oh nice! The quality of their bag is amazing!

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