FAMILY HEIRLOOMS
We think of clothes as wearable pieces of history – something to be treasured, borrowed and passed down. We shot Teresita, Maria Theresa, and Emma --- grandmother, mother, and granddaughter --- in some of our most loved pieces and spoke to them about how style can be shared and cultivated across three generations.
‘When you marry Italian and filipino culture together it’s a big fashion show!
I feel like we dress up for each other’
— Emma
‘When you marry Italian and Filipino cultures together, it’s a big show! It’s an extravaganza. Everyone gets dressed up to the nines.’
It’s always a family affair, Emma tells us. ‘Both cultures are very family oriented.’ Big family dinners are frequent and come with an unspoken dress code. These are moments to be celebrated. What’s being celebrated? Well, one another. ‘We get dressed up for each other,’ Emma explains. The feeling of familial pride is palpable, and the energy is almost giddy with joy as they tell us about this tradition. The room seems to fill with love just listening to them talk. It feels like style is almost a love language, a way of honouring and preserving culture – a form of connection, to each other and the self.
The magnetism of these women radiates from them throughout this interview as they take our hands and lead us into their memories, animatedly recalling different outfits that each other wore and pieces borrowed. Emma tells us about how she remembers being a child and seeing her mum heading out to celebrate her 30th birthday, ‘You wore these amazing low-rise jeans and a tank top…’
‘Leopard!’, Maria chimes in. The tank was leopard print – a RIXO girl after our own heart. Clothes hold a special link to memory and family for these women. A beautiful thread between the seams of where self-expression and unconditional love meet.
‘They would always stay in my room watching me get ready’
MADE FOR EVERY SEASON OF LIFE
Our trio of muses each had their portrait taken in our Milly Leopard Coat, a RIXO icon that’s most loved by our #humansofrixo community, season after season. A true heirloom piece, the Milly is inspired by the classic styles of the ‘70s. The long and enveloping shape is elegant and effortlessly versatile – it’s a staple made to transcend generations.
‘Now I’m getting old, I’m shining!’
We learn quickly that there’s no such thing as an off-limits item of clothing in this family. New characters enter the story as we’re told about a younger sister helping herself to a dress for a wedding from Emma’s wardrobe, and grandmother, Teresita, being gifted clothes from her granddaughters. ‘I think the beauty of being in such a matriarchal family is that style evolves,’ Emma tells us. For this family, style is an ever-changing journey of growth and experimentation, influenced by age, family and environment – much like life itself. Also, like life, style is best when shared and, with Teresita as their shining example, the best is still yet to come.
