Nature Hedonist is a brand we’ve been seeing popping up on our social media feeds – and for good reason! The brainchild of co-founders, Julia Sukhanova and Gulnar Tyndybaeva, is a linen-wear label that transcends seasons and trends when it comes to fashion. The label prides itself in being sustainable – as well as practical as the collections are purely made from Oeko-Tex certified and European flax standard linen and ensures that each item is machine washable and will remain soft and elegant throughout its usage, without shrinking or changing shape. In a world where fast fashion seems to reign, Nature Hedonist calls for consumers to take a mindful, yet slow and stylish approach to dressing.
The brand’s aesthetic is modest, minimal and effortless, and an ode to Mother Nature.
The ethical, slow fashion brand is built upon an unwavering ethical and environmental consciousness to help contribute to a more mindful way of living. A love letter to the natural environment, each piece is attentively designed with sustainability and longevity at its core. Embracing a slow fashion philosophy and offering seasonless collections with a modern twist, the Nature Hedonist brand not only produces designs that come from nature itself but helps continue to maintain their beauty in future years to come.
Founders Julia and Gulnar are driven by their dream to not only create clothes but leave this world more beautiful than they found it, but to also use their journey to bring more honesty to fashion and revolutionize the process of getting dressed – making it easier and care free without losing the style factor. AboutHer.com caught up with the founders of Nature Hedonist to talk slow fashion, inspirations, and nature…
Tell us a little bit about the concept of Nature Hedonist...
The story behind every Nature Hedonist linen piece is the one nature tells, of earth, water, fire, and air. We are all the embodiment of nature’s elements and our brand believes in bringing the poetry that we’re surrounded by into the wardrobe.
You are two women in business who ditched your careers and decided to launch a business - what was the turning point for you and why?|
Before launching Nature Hedonist, we were both part of the same ashtanga yoga community and coincidentally, we were at the same life stages: broken hearts after a divorce, and the beginning of a self-healing journey. Through tough life events and experiences, we both were forced to pause and think about what was really important to us and how could we pivot our energy into something that felt truly fulfilling.
We both have a huge love for nature, the environment we live in, and fashion, so we wanted to create a brand that enthused all of these elements together and create a wardrobe for any occasion, with no restriction of freedom, of movement yet no compromise for elegance. We are driven by the dream to not only create clothes but leave this world more beautiful than we found it, to use our journey to bring more honesty to fashion and shake the whole process of getting dressed.
Your minimal approach to fashion and effortless style is refreshing and you launched your label in a highly saturated marketplace - what sets Nature Hedonist aside from other labels?
For us Nature Hedonist is more than a fashion brand, it’s a lifestyle. Born from the belief that dressing up should feel effortless, our brand upon an unwavering ethical and environmental consciousness to help contribute to a more mindful way of living. Each piece is attentively designed with sustainability and longevity at its core and embraces a slow fashion philosophy and offering seasonless collections with a modern twist.
Nature is our driving inspiration. The colors are in so much harmony that when you mix and match, they go effortlessly well together. This is also a reminder that despite living in a harsh climate like UAE, it is still important to be out in nature. And the indirect relation is for people to be reminded of their inner nature. This is our hope that every single piece has vibrant and unique energy of love. We want you to feel the essence of yourself when you wear your clothes.
What have you found most challenging along your journey within the fashion industry so far?
We think the biggest challenge we have found so far is to change the mindset of the bigger collective of people to make deals ethically that will impact our planet. But we are positive that with time and the right education that everyone can live more mindfully.
As a brand that is sustainable and inspired by nature, what more can you tell us about your practices when it comes to production and processes?
We are driven by the dream to not only create clothes but leave this world more beautiful than we found it, to use our journey to bring more honesty to fashion and shake the whole process of getting dressed. Sustainability is a very important part of our brand. We use the natural fabric linen as it grows naturally in the wild and doesn’t need much water and doesn’t need much cleaning. It absorbs sweat and it can be air dry. It doesn’t need to be washed after every use which reduces our water and electricity consumption. But sustainability goes beyond just using sustainable materials, it’s about how you operate your business as a whole and the life cycle of your products, for example:
- Reduce carbon footprint: Sustainable companies devote themselves to reducing their carbon footprint. They use organic and natural materials, sustainable materials, reduce waste and even minimize packaging.
- Fair Trade companies offer fair wages to the people who do the work to bring products to their shelves.
- Transparency: to share all of the materials used to design the collection, and the process of how you produce your garments.
- Advocacy: Sustainable and ethical brands also advocate for communities. They work closely with professional organizations, charitable organizations and policymakers, to understand the needs of communities and to help to meet those needs.
Mindfulness is a term that has been connected to your brand - what does mindfulness mean to you?
As a brand we want to inspire other people to firstly practise self-love, notice the feelings, sensations in the body, awareness of thoughts and only when we are more conscious about ourselves we can move forward and treat the world around us, care about it, notice the positive changes and get ideas and inspiration from it. For us mindfulness is this positive collaboration between ourselves and the environment.
Your collections are always in linen - what is it about the fabric that is so integral to your brand?
We use the natural Oeko-Tex certified and European flax standard linen as it grows naturally in the wild and doesn’t need much water. The beauty lies in the durability of the fabric and it ages so gracefully. Do not be scared of the clothes aging. It is part of the process. We are human beings, we sweat, and we move. So linen moves together with us. Plus, linen doesn’t need much cleaning. It absorbs sweat and it can be air dry. It doesn’t need to be washed after every use which reduces our water and electricity consumption. Our brand focuses on slow fashion, clothes that not only come from nature but help maintain their beauty.
Why do you think it’s important for people to take a conscious approach to fashion today?
We have already seen a huge shift in customer preferences to buying sustainable and seasonless fashion – and it would be great to see that continue. Sustainable fashion wouldn’t have become so popular if it hasn’t been for the shift towards sustainability in our society. It wasn’t just fast fashion – we began to discover the environmental impact of other industries too. We realised how much they were adding to our carbon footprint, waste production, and other environmental issues. We’d love to continue to see the shift in people’s mindsets of seeing that there is attraction and authenticity in imperfection, and nothing is more perfect than imperfection itself – this is what makes us all unique. Understanding the value of how special imperfection is, and how we are so lucky to be living in such a beautiful world will change the way people shop and will opt for longevity over fast-fashion trends.
Running a business can be extremely tough - what do you do to stay motivated?
We have our own routines that help us to maintain a live work balance. It might be dancing classes, reading a book or spending time with loved ones and we are trying to have those moments every day. Although it is also very motivating to talk to the clients and have the feedback. It is always nice to hear appreciative words about the work.
As women in business, who have been the women that have inspired you?
We are inspired by our sisters, friends, clients, neighbours. When we observe their growth and thrive to grow.
Who is the Nature Hedonist customer?
The Nature Hedonist customer is someone who shares our desire of contributing to a more mindful way of living. They see the attraction and authenticity in imperfection and values longevity and durability over trend-led pieces in their wardrobe. The NH customers use their freedom to stay true to themselves and are confident to challenge the way things are if they aren’t working for them.
Whats next for the brand?
The next step for the brand is to inspire people to fall in love with linen in general and abaya in particular, presenting this traditional Middle East element of the wardrobe to the European mentality. We also would like to expand the product line with things for home and selfcare, experiment with different types of linen blends.
Lastly, where can we buy Nature Hedonist pieces from?
Customers can buy either via our website at www.naturedhedonist.com , at our beautiful villa in Jumeirah or at our corner in Zero6mall Sharjah.
