BTS: DESIGNING THE FEMME FATALE COLLECTION

We are SO excited to finally share with you our latest collection: the Femme Fatale collection! Believe it or not, this collection has been one year in the making, which sounds like a ridiculous long time but we wanted to get it absolutely right (and of course we stumbled on all sorts of challenges and delays along the way). Our founder, Nadine, gets often asked so many questions on how to start a collection and how the design process works. So we thought we would give you here a sneak peek behind the scenes, since we as a small business really want to share our journey with you!

LOELLA x SARAH EXLEY

Whilst we were building up our Loella brand we had connected with so many wonderful makeup artists who generously gave us their input and feedback and supported our brand from the start. One of those wonderfully talented MUAs was Sarah Exley, Head of Makeup at X-Factor and Love Island. As soon as she and Nadine met, they hit it off and after a few meets and coffees they decided to launch a collection together. The theme of the collection was to create an 'ideal backstage brush set' for professionals and makeup lovers. Having more than 10 years of experience in TV, Sarah knew better than anyone how hectic backstage life gets and how important it is to have tools that are precise and detailed, yet allow for quick and fast application. And of course, that is the type of brush set you also need for everyday life!

THE DESIGN PROCESS

We collaborated very closely with Sarah on each step of the design process to reflect both of our brands in the collection. It turned out that it was quite the challenge to ask a makeup artist to create a set with ONLY 12 brushes, but we felt focusing on the key 12 brushes would give our customers the very best tools in one collection. Furthermore, we were keen on incorporating some of the modern makeup trends by dedicating specific brushes to them for ease, such as the nose contouring brush, the tightligning brush and a highlighter brush that allows you to apply highlighter in one fell swoop. We measured and discussed, brought brushes in and out of the collection, changed our minds based on samples, and kept working until we reached the ideal brush shapes for the collection. 

Here at Loella, we are sticklers about the details in our designs, and there are so many little details incorporated that nobody might even notice! For example, we might not have Sarah's name on the brushes itself, but the labels of each brush start with a lightening bolt, a symbol that is very close to Sarah's heart and something that she felt represent her. Furthermore, we have a tradition at Loella to name our brushes and we let Sarah choose all the 12 names of her brushes... if you look closely you might be able to guess a few celebs that she is close with amongst the brushes! Everything from the chosen colours down to the packaging details has been thought through thoroughly to ensure it represented our shared vision of bringing quality professional brushes at an affordable price. 

LAUNCHING THE FEMME FATALE COLLECTION
In preparation for the launch we shot a campaign shoot for the brushes themselves as well as a makeup tutorial by Sarah Exley herself which you can view here. Campaign shoots are exactly what you imagine them to be, totally chaotic and hectic as you are always run out of time and so much FUN if you have the right team around you!

And here it finally is... after months of work we are so excited to reveal the Femme Fatale collection. It has been such an honour for us as a brand to work together with such a high profile makeup artist to create a set we are all genuinely proud of! And of course this collection has the usual Loella stamp all over it: the brushes are vegan and cruelty free and 10p of every brush we sell goes to our partner foundation #iamthecode!

Click here to check out the collection!