Bobo Choses
Known for their effortless and playful children’s wear, Barcelona based label Bobo Choses is celebrating its tenth anniversary this year. A nice opportunity to congratulate Adriana Esperalba, founder and creative director of Bobo Choses, and to take a look behind the curtains of the much loved and highly coveted Spanish brand.
KINDA: Thinking about your own childhood ... Where did you grow up? With whom? Which feelings do you remember most? Do you think you would have loved Bobo Choses clothes?
............ Adriana: »I grew up in a town on the Catalan coast. I am the oldest of three siblings. I have many cousins because my mother has eight brothers. My childhood is full of memories with my family both on the beach and in the mountains. Many days with my grandmother who taught me to knit woollen sweaters and to cook traditional delicacies. I also remember that I did not like pink, or skirts, and that I played football at recess. My aunts had a clothing store that, if still open today, would surely sell Bobo Choses.«
KINDA: What about your own children? Do they wear Bobo Choses? Do they influence the design process? If so, in which way?
............ Adriana: »My children wear Bobo Choses and second-hand clothes. I love hearing their opinion and they are always the first try on the prototypes.«
» For me it’s important to know what my children think about my new collection.«
Adriana Esperalba
KINDA: How do you choose the topics for your books? And what comes first, book or collection?
............ Adriana: »Sometimes they are memories of my childhood; other times they are current issues with a surreal point. We like to make the imagination fly. We always start with the story and then create a collection.«
KINDA: As our second focus – beside children’s fashion – is travelling and being abroad, do you have a favourite place where you have been or where you would still love to go and what did/does attract you most (especially if you think of going as a family)?
............ Adriana: »As a child I spent some summers in Fornells (Menorca) with my family and I have very good memories, hours and hours playing on the beach. Family holidays in the last three years have been spent combining a few days in Ibiza and Formentera and others camping in the French Pyrenees, at the foot of Lac des Bouillouses.«
ADRIANA ESPERALBA
Bobo Choses
KINDA: Do you have any advice for families travelling to Barcelona? Anything parents and/or children should not miss?
............ Adriana: »Increasingly I have the feeling that big cities are unattractive to children. Although Barcelona always has a special attraction. With children, I would not miss Tibidabo, Fundació Miró, the Mercat de la Boqueria, the Barceloneta platter, Plom Gallery and – depending on the dates – the Spring Sound kids music festival as well as the Big draw art event.«
KINDA: Our second issue is named »Look beyond«. Do you remember a situation where you looked beyond the horizon and discovered something new or surprising? Are there still borders you would like to look beyond?
............ Adriana: »Whenever we do an activity with children, they surprise me; they help us look beyond the horizon and remind us that there is no limit to the imagination.«
KINDA: If we could look beyond your thoughts and dreams (or even plans) for the future, what would we see?
............ Adriana: »I often change my personal plans. Sometimes I imagine having my own garden, others learn how to make pottery, or travel through more traditional Japan ...« (what a nice transition to our travel report from Japan).
written by
KIRSTEN LENZ
photography by
BOBO CHOSES