A few years ago, when I used to do some extra work on movies, I met the lovely Rachel Holland.

I was immediately struck by her ethereal and striking beauty, but what remained in my memory foremost was how kind and down to earth she was.

Sometimes movie sets can be very intimidating but she made me feel very comfortable and took the time to have some chats with me.  Something quite rare for the lowly extras on set!

It has been wonderful to see how Rachel has developed La Luminata into something successful that is growing more each day.

I feel  that she is on a similar journey to me, to help spread the word about the Eco World and encourage others to do the same.

But she specialises in  a fairly unknown to me part of the Green world, Eco design and styling!

I am fascinated about Eco design and had a chat to Rachel about how she started La Luminata and to find out a bit more about her past.

What is the inspiration behind La Luminata?

At the risk of sounding completely abstract…it came to me in a dream!

I have long noted that there is not enough coverage, of the great work that people have been doing for many years behind the scenes creating a new ‘eco movement’. While feeling terribly unfulfilled as a designer for many years and helpless in my concerns for the environment I spent many years wondering how I could combine the two somehow. I looked into setting up an eco furniture company about 5 years ago, but I didn’t really have the drive and the passion to see this through. It was only once I had moved to Brighton and accepted some of my more fluffy personality traits that I decided that an ‘eco stylist and designer’ really could actually work as a job.

I was struggling to find a name that sounded interesting, feminine, personal, forward-thinking, design-led and unusual. Then the name ‘La Luminata’ came to me as I was asleep and thinking about my  various ideas. I liked it so much that I wrote it down and the next morning that was it. La Luminata was born!

When did you first star La Luminata?

It feels like all my life as everything that I’m doing now is a culmination of things that I have learnt along the way. On paper, La Luminata started as a blog on Blogspot in January 2008, so that’s 1 year and 7 months to date. I started the blog as an experiment and it’s since grown to become it’s own entity.

How many readers do you get approximately per month?

At first it seemed as if I was mostly talking to myself, but it felt great to get all of these ideas recorded and logged, even if no one else really noticed what I was doing. For about 3 months I had about 10 readers and I honestly didn’t have any commercial interest at that point to make my idea work, it was purely self-indulgent.

I then noticed that my readership was going up an up and I started to take La Luminata more seriously, plus I was getting amazing feedback from the readers. Now I get about 200 hits a day and increasing, have had some amazing people contact me through it and I’m so so grateful for that inkling of an idea that I got back in January 2008.

what else have you done in your career?  What did you like about it (the movie stuff etc) and what didn’t you like about it? Did anything in this industry make you want to leave to do something better for environment etc?

I have always been one of those people who is good at lots of different things and my career so far reflects this diversity. I’ve worked in TV and Film as a designer and artist, in retail doing window displays, as a freelance illustrator, as a writer, model and now a stylist. I think that I found quite a lot of my work unchallenging and shallow and I have consistently felt frustrated that I wasn’t doing more about the problems on our planet. Eventually I left a freelance role at the BBC to pursue a more worthy route in my life and I haven’t looked back. There has always been an element of ‘going it alone’ in my career, as I often think that my wild ideas and imagination reflect that of an artist. That and I’m constantly striving to excel in each project that I complete.

When did your interest in Eco Lifestyle begin?

It’s always been with me… I’ve always cared about animals, the environment, people, causes and issues. I have always been very sensitive and aware of others. I remember every weekend that my Dad would take me to town, I would get him to leave £20 next to the sleeping homeless man where we parked because I felt so responsible for everything. Imagine at 9 feeling like that?! I considered the obvious route of activism, but I’m just too soft and gentle to get involved in that way. I’m very admirable of people though who will go and put themselves in danger and maybe get imprisoned for their beliefs, I have great respect for them.

It’s now that people are embracing these eco ideas that I feel that I can be more vocal about my own beliefs, challenge the current ideals within the design industry and hopefully inspire some other people to do the same.

Do you read alot and meet people who have  helped you discover more eco ways of living?

Yes, I think eco-awareness & spirituality can go hand in hand – an idea of something greater than oneself. I’m a great reader of Paulo Coehlo books and I often absorb many other philosophies and ideas that feel in synergy to my own beliefs.

Most importantly though are the people who have spent time with me nurturing my awareness, passion and creativity. In this order…

My Dad, a very talented product designer who has always supported my creativity.
Warren Orchard, a photographer who taught me to follow my instincts completely.
Sophia Le Rendu, an amazing spiritual healer & teacher who has challenged many of my ideas about life.
Vale Bruck, for finally giving me the kick up the arse that I needed!
Siobhan Wilson, who has recently been teaching me so much about the Fairtrade movement.
and last but not least my current partner who inspires me every day.

Apart from regular blogging about new eco things that are just out, what services do you offer people? (your styling for shoots and shops etc)

Photoshoot Styling
Personal Image Styling Consultant
Conceptual design
Eco Consultancy
Branding
Sustainability Advisor
Set Design
Interior Design
Retail Design
Event Design

How do you source your props and materials?

From my list of handpicked suppliers which I research and check before use to ensure their green credentials.

Where do you get your ideas when styling a shop?

It’s based on the clients requirements then we go from there. I may find inspiration from the products being sold, a film, a building that I’ve seen or something from the images which I collect as inspiration.

What are your main styling achievements (please list)

Goodone for London Fashion Week
Ophelia Fancy with Sean Collymore
Kate Tailyour with Natalie Dybisz

and a few more which I can’t mention yet!

Your based in Brighton which seems perfect for Eco living – did you grow up there also?

This is precisely why I moved here, but no I spent my childhood up in Derbyshire and then in Wales. I moved away to Nottingham for university, went off to Canada for a bit and then back to Wales. I often think that Brighton or anywhere in Sussex must be so great to grow up though. Such amazing food, beaches and countryside plus a short train ride to London! I wish I had come here sooner.

You do some modeling as well, do you only model vintage/eco clothes etc?

I tend to lean towards vintage, natural and eco items but I have modelled items in the past which could not be classed as this.

Are you quite strict with what you wear, no leather/fur etc?

Yes, very. I won’t shop on the high street generally, preferring to buy eco or ethical labels or items made by small-name designers. I am also a massive charity shop buyer and love vintage clothing of good quality such as Natasha Bailie’s vintage store. I will never wear fur, the thought revolts me. I have a PU bag, avoiding leather and I save up to buy gorgeous shoes from companies such as Terra Plana or Beyond Skin which are made from recycled leather offcuts and eco fabrics. I generally prefer buying one beautiful item that I will get maximum wear out of, than several items which I will tire of. I spend ages researching items before I part with any cash. One of my best ever buys has been a dress that cost me an arm and a leg when I bought it at 19 and I am still wearing it 10 years later. Now that’s good quality for money!

Do you have anything exciting coming up?

Yes, I’m currently in the process of finishing designing a new fairtrade shop, preparing for a photoshoot with a celebrity hair stylist and launching a new online network for designers.

To take a look at Rachel’s blog please visit http://laluminata.wordpress.com If I were you, I would sign up as I have, that way you can keep up to date with all the interesting things Rachel reviews!