I passed this small boutique so many times, and it was always closed. Either I was too early, or it was siesta time. I remember standing outside, peering through the windows, thinking: god, I want to see what’s inside. Through the glass I could already see colorful clothes, small home decor pieces. It stayed on my list.
Finally the day came. I was coming back from the gym, not really put together, and the store was open. I went in, and it was love at first sight. A charming boutique with soul. Beautiful decor, colors, furniture, colorful clothes laid out on a rug. Exactly what I love in small Spanish boutiques.
I asked about the clothes, and the shop assistant turned out to be the designer and owner herself. We ended up talking for a while, about the store, the concept, the collection. I mentioned I have clients who are always looking for Spanish design, clients I keep trying to introduce to color, since a lot of them are quite reserved with their looks. Carmen, the designer behind Lorna Earth, told me about her own clients too, how she helps them find the right clothes and colors for their body types. Refreshing, honestly, to see that kind of individual approach. It doesn’t happen so often these days.
I knew right away I wanted to bring this to my readers. Clothes made in Spain, with sustainable fabrics, carrying that whole made in Spain feeling. So I sat down with Carmen, and our conversation follows.
What made you want to open a physical boutique in Madrid after building the brand online first?
Since I launched the brand, I’ve always sought in-person connections. Given the fact that my brand is a very personal brand, where I’m involved in all the details about it, since the very beginning I’ve tried to have the chance to show and explain all of that to potential clients.
Lorna Earth was launched with a small collection of clothes and a few accessories, and with that first collection, I took part in pop-ups and showrooms in Amsterdam, London and Paris. I even organised showrooms in my own apartment back in Seville during Christmas for family and friends.
At those events, I realised the importance of presenting my brand in person. Honestly, nothing can beat physical connections. Getting the chance to talk about materials, explain the concept of the collection and give clients the chance to try on the garments was a unique experience that soon made me want to build a permanent home for the brand, and Madrid was the perfect spot to do so.
Your boutique has very creative design — tell me more about the inspirations behind it.
Thank you! My focal point when designing the space was to let the clothing do the talking. So I wanted to create a warm and welcoming space for everyone who came in — no strident lights, colours or textures. As Lorna Earth collections are made of natural, honest materials, the shop should be the same. I thrifted objects, added some of my grandma’s furniture pieces, and combined those with more contemporary new pieces. I believe they created the perfect house for our designs.
Is there a detail in the store most people miss on their first visit?
I feel many of the accessories are overlooked. Being mainly a clothing boutique, many people come in, browse the racks and forget about the rest on display. But if I had to choose one, our Luachanna handbag might be that one thing people miss on their first visit. At the same time, it’s the most desired item for those who are regular customers.
Your prints are a mix of hand-painted and digital techniques — can you tell me a bit more about the process?
I’ve always loved painting with watercolours and pencils, so that’s where I start from.
I create in three collection lines — “The Art of Living,” “The Art of Loving,” and “Cities” — or following the inspiration of the collection I’m working on. At the same time, graphic design is something I’ve been very passionate about since I was a student. I reckon combining lifelong techniques such as watercolours with graphic motifs adds a genuine and unique touch to a design.
That way, I first hand-paint the watercolour, then I upload it to my laptop, where I process it using various design programs to add the background colours, stripe prints, or any other graphics. After that, I adapt the design to our various formats: mini scarf, maxi scarf, and three paper sizes for our prints.
You’ve said each collection continues the last, so pieces can be worn together. How intentional is that from the start?
Yes, that’s something I do very intentionally. I believe we need to have some transitional pieces in our wardrobe — pieces you can wear all year round depending on how you style them. For me, it’s also a way to ease the clients who trust Lorna Earth designs at every season.
I can’t conceive designing a new collection from scratch. Before starting every collection, I always sit down and look at what worked best in the last ones. This summer, our Palmas barrel trousers were a best seller, so when designing autumn/winter, I bear in mind those clients that have two or three pairs in different colours. How can they style them through autumn? How can I make them more of a statement piece rather than just some summer pants? That way, in every season, you find pieces that sound familiar — a re-imagined design from previous collections.
A lot of women I style are scared of prints and default to plain colours. What would you say to someone who owns one Lorna Earth piece but doesn’t know what to pair it with?
It may sound not so helpful, but I’d tell them to just wear it. Sometimes you have to put yourself out of your comfort zone and not think so much about it. So just wear it, and as you wear it day by day, you’ll find your favourite way to style it. Also, from a psychological point of view, I’d explain how much colours affect our mood, confidence and personality. I’d highly recommend reading about it!
Sustainability and “quality over quantity” are core to the brand — how does that shape how you think about versatility in a single piece?
I have my own rule: every time a client buys something, I don’t just let her buy it — I always give her styling tips and suggest colours she might already have in her wardrobe. Someone comes in looking for a scarf to wear as a headscarf, and leaves knowing multiple ways to wear it — around the neck, as a sunglasses attachment, or as a handbag charm.
If someone could only own three Lorna Earth pieces, which three would build the most outfits?
I believe our Palmas trousers are a best seller for a reason, so probably the ones in charcoal black are a wardrobe staple. You can easily wear them almost all year round, and they look so cool with anything you add on. Same for our Awen skirt — I love that you can feel so feminine in it whether you wear heels or sneakers with it. The contrasting binding in the hemline gives a little something to the shape that makes it so special.
My third choice would definitely be a jacket, and if I had to choose one from our new collection, that would be the Sade jacket. There’s something about the cut and weight of a jacket that can give you so much confidence when wearing it. Having good-quality garments made from sustainable fabrics is something I believe makes you want to wear a garment over and over.
What’s a combination you see people get wrong, and what would you tell them instead?
Everything that makes you feel insecure is a wrong combination for sure, even if it fits you. The same the other way around — sometimes a client surprises me by combining a top that already has a lot of information (colour, textures, shape) with a super maximalist necklace, and she looks amazing because it fits her personality and she knows how to defend it. Other than that, I think it’s all about balance and, above all, feeling like yourself. There are no real rules when it comes to personal style.
You mentioned you loved the Mix & Match concept when we met — what made it click for you?
Since I was a fashion student, I’ve been searching for my own style, both personally and as a designer. I feel many people try to force us into one style that already exists — preppy, posh, bohemian, punk, grunge or whatsoever. I never truly felt like I belonged to any of them; I’m quite eclectic, I believe. That’s why mixing and matching makes so much sense to me: taking something from here and something from there and making it your own.
What pieces, colors, and fabrics can we expect for this Autumn/Winter season in your boutique?
Being a small, responsible, sustainable brand comes with challenges, and designing fall/winter might be one of the hardest — mainly because of fabric sourcing and production. For summer it’s relatively easy to find fresh cotton or linen, but for winter you need to keep people warm. That means weeks of sourcing; it’s honestly a never-ending story. You find a beautiful coat fabric and realise it’s more than 30% plastic. You find wool and alpaca with an amazing touch, and then the pricing is impossible, because production costs rise too — winter garments take longer to sew, need more skilled work, more fabric.
Fortunately, after loads of research, I sourced amazing 100% wool fabrics for this season — 100% made in Italy, from the thread to the manufacturing, with CO2 emissions and water footprint certificates. You’ll also find cotton knits, cardigans and sweaters. I still like to work with colour, so this season brings deep blues, chocolate browns, burgundy and greens, alongside timeless neutrals — grey, beige, black. Not all in plain colours; colour is explored in prints too. All in fabrics essential to us: cotton, Cupro or Tencel.
What I really love about this boutique is that Carmen is always helping her clients with styling, showing them how to combine the pieces and giving them advice. And this is the point: a boutique like this, with handmade pieces, should always offer styling advice by default. It’s not that common in Madrid, though. During the interview, and when we hung out in the store, Carmen showed me pieces that would suit me, added accessories like bags and scarves, and showed me how to pair them. This is the kind of service I wish every boutique like this offered its clients.
If you’re looking for true Spanish design and prints, and want clothes that are actually sustainable, you should check out Lorna Earth. You can visit the boutique in Madrid in person (C. de San Mateo, 9), or find the collection online.
And the part that really got me: these clothes are genuinely made in Spain, in social workshops that help reinsert women at risk of exclusion. That’s the kind of detail that makes a garment mean something.
