La Isla Couture Swimwear
_California

La Isla Couture is a swimwear company that has
a focus on quality and craft, hand finishing most of
their garments.

I initially spoke to them about designing a garment
tag which eventually led to talks about what the
brand stood for and what was at its heart.

After a few meetings, it was clear that the owners knew
intuitively that their current identity didn't communicate
what was unique about the brand. And after a further
round of questioning over a few plates of Sushi, it
became clear that the main element that was missing
was the owners' Latin heritage, in particular the city of
Cartagena in Columbia.

From here it was very clear that this would be the main
inspiration to the direction of the design. I set out to
research Cartagena and find as much visual reference
as I could. This became a labour of love but also very
interesting and educational.

I presented 2 very extensive design routes. The first
inspired by a mosaic, and the second which was the
chosen route, inspired by the symbol on an old coin.