KidStyleFile

Written by Angela

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On the occasion of iconic Australian baby to teens kids fashion label eenimeenimiinimoh – www.eenimeeni.com – celebrating their 10th anniversary I was privileged to spend some time with founder and designer Elizabeth O’Connor-Cowley. It was a thrill to meet Elizabeth and to hear the story behind the eeni brand; to meet the very ‘real’ person – her partner is Philip Cowley and together they have two beautiful boys, Anselm and Emrys (who love cricket); her favourite dish is Ilcentro Sandcrab Lasagne and she paints for leisure – and discover where she draws her inspiration from (nature and Paris).

On behalf of eeni lovers everywhere we wish eeni meeni miini moh a very Happy 10th Birthday.

eeni meeni miini moh  and e3-M Autumn/Winter 2012 collections for boys and girls ages 0 to 14 years will be released on 1 February 2012. Check back then for KidStyleFile’s full coverage of the new ranges.

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Tell us a little about your background

I spent my childhood growing up in country QLD.  My father was a banker and my mother dedicated her life to staying at home to ensure the family’s needs were all satisfied.  Each day my brothers and I arrived home from school to home-cooked cakes and biscuits – something I always ensure my own children are treated to in the afternoon. I bake on the weekends and freeze so I feel like our boys can enjoy one small part of the same ‘stay at home Mummy’ attention I did.  Secretly I think it helps me get through the ‘working mother guilt’ thingy!

As a child I was always in the water.  I loved swimming in particular, as well as tennis and riding my bicycle around the streets.  Those days were so fantastic.  Small country towns and growing up in the 70’s/80’s allowed you a tremendous amount of freedom.  Throughout my childhood I moved schools quite a bit due to my father’s work – although I didn’t like it at the time, it did contribute to making me a more adaptable person.  I attended boarding school in Brisbane, which I absolutely loved and have made life-long friends from. After school I completed a BA Visual Arts at QUT majoring in painting.  I love, love, love being creative.  As not many emerging artists actually succeed in working primarily in their discipline, reality hit and I was forced to find a job.

I worked for German firm ‘Wilkhahn’ for 10 years starting in sales before becoming their Asia Pacific Marketing Manager.  The Germans taught me a lot which I’ve applied to eeni meeni miini moh, including the importance of instilling corporate culture and consistency into the workplace along with branding.  Whilst working in the commercial furniture industry my passion for contemporary furniture was born and in particular, my chair fetish.  I love collecting 20^th Classic pieces  from Eames, Gehry, Arne Jacobsen, etc

Creating constitutes my existence. From day dot I have always enjoyed working in a multiple of creative disciplines including drawing, painting, graphics and textiles.  I come from a family of sewers. My Mother and Grandmother both sewed and my dearest Great Aunty Nora made a living out of being a seamstress. Together these inspiring women in my life have all contributed to my existence and I thank them for not only the skills I possess, but for the person I am today.

Your label, eeni meeni miini moh, is celebrating its 10^th birthday this year. How did it all start?

The start of a new millennium was fast approaching and so was the big three zero. From an early age I had entrepreneurial characteristics and dreamt of designing a product of my own and marketing it to the world.  The most frustrating aspect initially was that I had no idea what the “product” would be.  Obviously my art would form an integral part of the process, however in what capacity was anyone’s guess.

It came to that stage in life where many of our friends began families and we were searching for special newborn baby gifts.  We honestly couldn’t find much around that we would consider buying and were heading overseas at the time, so decided that we’d pick something up over there. Subsequently we found ourselves in many baby/children’s boutiques and it was whilst travelling throughout Europe in 1999, I became inspired by the range and quality of children’s clothing.

It all started with our PURE newborn collection – a unisex product for babies aged 0-3 months.  Many of our PURE newborn signature pieces, including our knotted eared Jumpsuit, Hoodie and Beanie along with our iconic Signature Bib, all in our first-ever collection and are still as popular now.  Our initial plan was to design a seasonal collection for children up to 5 years but as the children we have dressed have grown, so has our size offering.  We now cater for children from 0-14 years across our brands.

What, or who, inspires you?

Everything and anything!  I draw inspiration from my surrounding environment.  Everything I am in contact with, whether it be an everyday object around the house such as a container, one of my son’s artworks, an article of clothing or the cover of a book, I like to assess it for its design and functionality.  Painting is my ultimate release of expression. I can spend hours in my studio at home producing works on canvas and paper, which in turn lead to inspiration and the evolution of additional ideas for my designs.  I love the naivety of children’s art.

As a mother my children constantly inspire me.  I am in love with my family and our gorgeous and very energetic boys Emrys (10) and Anselm (7) are a source of inspiration and our chief road testers!

Paris always inspires me! Pastries in patisserie windows – particularly macarons, children’s voices in the school yard, carousels, gardens, Centre Georges Pompidou, La Tour Eiffel, random people in the street, the fashion!

Which other designers do you admire, and why?

Coco Chanel – a determined woman so ahead of her time who changed the face of fashion in the early 20^th century.  I admire her for her passion, focus and independence and of course her simplistic, unique design genre.

Karl Lagerfeld – for his hands-on, multi-tasking, perfectionist, non-compromising approach to design.  You are a legend!

Giorgio Armani – for his reinterpretation each season of timeless classics, his manipulation of fabric and use of soft, sensual hues.

Charles and Ray Eames – for their contribution to fine art, modern architecture and iconic furniture design of the 20^th century.

What is your favourite way to spend time with your children?

Time at the beach at our holiday home on the Sunshine Coast…ideally with no phones or laptops but the later part is rather unrealistic. Laughing around the dinner table together – usually after cracking a joke about one of us…the boys (Anselm and Emrys) are approaching the age where they are really developing a sense of humour which Philip (Cowley, Elizabeth’s husband) and I just love! Visiting GoMA – in fact that is what we did today!  The artist Matisse is another great source of inspiration!

What are you passionate about?

Art and all things creative. Children and their instinctive naivety. Perfectionism – I’m obsessed! Superior quality and design.

What are you listening to/reading right now?

I don’t enjoy reading – I never have.  I much prefer to look at the pictures. Art and design books in general are my addiction.

If you could see eeni meeni miini moh on any child in the world, who would it be, and why?

Oscar and Ava Jackman.  Fortunately, they have been photographed wearing our clothing on numerous occasions.  Deborra-lee is such an inspirational woman, especially through her work with children and of course Hugh Jackman is one of the most gorgeous men alive!

What’s next for eeni meeni miini moh?

Well, my dream of having own own concept store (in Brisbane, Australia) was realised last year, so now I would love to see eeni meeni miini moh + e3-M boutiques all over the world. Well, you never know!