A collection born out of a new, yet familiar, artistic space I have been sitting in over the past 12 months. I wasn't the sporty girl at school, in fact I despised PE class & did anything I could to get out sports carnivals, not to mention the dreaded cross country days. They were the worst. My Mum grew accustomed to me persuading her to write notes, containing a myriad of reasons as to why I could not partake in that day's sports class.

At school, you could find me in the music room at lunch time playing piano. I studied art in high school but then decided to omit it for an extra music extension class during my senior years. I was always fascinated with art though. My Mum saw this spark inside of me at a young age so she took me to a Picasso exhibition showing in Brisbane when I was around 10 years old. She bought me a small Picasso book that I meticulously studied. Even at such a tender age, I was bemused by the shapes Picasso created, especially within his womanly figures. I referred to this book over the years but it wasn't until I hit around 24 years of age that this passion within me began to expand.

I saw parallels between art & the work I created within YCL & I felt a strong calling to explore this deeper. I started painting more. I love water colour but my painting style does vary greatly. One day I could be drawing line drawings in charcoal, then it could be flowers in a vase with oil paints to the vibrant french country side in water colour. My working days began to become vastly different & for a while it was hard for me to accept that some days my work involved painting, drawing & reading 'Impressionism' books. I believe very strongly in creating a safe space for growth, learning & expansion, not only within one's work but within one's life.

I feel this is where our latest collection Illustrate was born from, not only from my passion of art but our capacity to illustrate our life through every choice we make. We can choose the canvas, the colours, the brush sizes & when we become aware of this, life is even more of an incredible space, full of miracles. I also love reading about the relationship artists in the 1900's & 20th century deveolped. This is where the concept for our Monet & Pissarro Necklace came from, that intertwining of a relationship born out of the love of art.

Our hope is that this collection inspires our YCL Women to listen to that innate calling inside of them, asking them to follow their wildest dreams. Our life is what we create, what we illustrate. May it be filled with miracles & falling down so we learn how to rise up again. And when you wear pieces from this collection, may you be inspired to create in whatever form you feel called to.