8/31/2015

The Beauty Of Return


There is no such thing like summer break but it is so beautiful to get back to work full of energy and super relaxed.
September is right next to us  - yey!!!! i love this month - and so is the new collection, most of it is almost ready! So once the designs and samples are ready we have to work on the photo shoot which this time is going to be big! September is the month for every new start, much better than January i believe. In cocoandsilk we are new kids on the block anyway, but as we walk along the fashion valley we try to learn from our mistakes and avoid previous, not so good choices :-), it is a painful process but unbelievably creative!
This winter is going to be big for us, a lot of things are going to happen and we feel much more confident after all the positive messages we got from our previous collection. So stay tuned, send us your thoughts and ideas we'll be glad to hear from you!

Enjoy the new week
Love, K.



main image via diorina, all others via cocoandsilk.tumblr.com

8/28/2015

Make My Friday - Some Thoughts About Our Winter '16 Collection


This time of year is all about hard work and a marathon of countless  to do lists. 
Working for our winter collection is like starting all over again cause we have so many new plans.
We are about to launch our bag collection and we are super excited. The bags are going to be ready around Christmas and are already crazy about them. Here in cocoandsilk  we work to create excellent quality products and we love to see our small brand making one step at a time!
Even though the business environment is not the best possible here in Greece, we do not aim to give up and strongly believe in what we do! 
So, after some free days to recharge the batteries, cocoandsilk can promise the most beautiful and female winter collection and a new line of leather bags that we hope you will love as much as we do!

Enjoy your day and weekend
Love, K.



images via tumblr/cocoandsilk

8/26/2015

Silver And Gold




Hello my darlings and have a great day!

Summer is still here but laid back days are off for me, not to complain, i had my share!
Since i came back to Athens i started working for my winter collection which is almost done, and also i was trying to imagine how i could still wear my summer collection pieces now that September is coming.
 I know naked legs is not my strong thing and i always like to match my dresses with soft loose pants, i feel much more confident this way and it is better when i have to work and run all the way up and down the city center. Muted colors are also a favorite thing so i decided to try this silk dress and pair it with these silk pants (here in grey but  i'll show you how i'm wearing the blue also) for a cool and comfy look.

C. took the pics and it was great fun to work together during the weekend. Today we are flying to Thessaloniki for work and pleasure and we'll spend the whole week there! See you!

Love, K.




images by C. for cococandsilk

8/24/2015

A Taste Of Amorgos (video)


Hi there beautiful people,
it feels nice now that i am back into work again to share with you a small video of our days in Amorgos island and pretend this summer will never end!
Sorry winter people, i am a summer addict :)

Enjoy your day
Love, K.


Video by C.

8/21/2015

Make My Friday - Tribute To Donousa

                

This video is made with love from my daughter C. and it is dedicated to this small island and to its wonderful people, that really stole our heart.

Enjoy the weekend

Love, K.

8/19/2015

Summer Holiday Unexpected


Wandering around the Greek islands is always a wonderful experience during summer. I mean there are no many places in the world that you can enjoy such a wonderful coast line and friendly beaches, simple local food and amazing views. Yet sometimes, unexpected situations can drive us crazy when they happen the moment we start to relax and feel we found our small piece of heaven on earth. Small annoying things, better look at them from the funny side.

Annoying thing one: Lack of water - yep, you come home after a day in the sun, burned like the holy turkey and saltier than a sardine in a tin. You need to bath, you need to feel the water run onto your poor body...but...surprise...either there is no water at all or it's so poor in pressure it's like someone is spiting on to your face! It's not often but it happens, better take a bottle of water and let the salt leave, you can enjoy a nice bath after 1am when the rest of the island people are outside eating and drinking :-)

Annoying thing two: Local festive nights - panigiria. Unless you are the kind of person who likes to dance under the same tune for 10 or more hours, this can be your hell after a while! I am Greek and still, the max i can handle is two - three hours of listening, after this i get pretty nervous. The other night we had to listen to the local 'panigiri' music till 5am and it was not fun...then again it might be only me, most of the people really seem to enjoy this or at least they look like doing so... Try to stay to a village away from the big August celebrations so you can leave when you like to, otherwise         :-(

Annoying thing three: Breakfast, unless you are staying in a very good hotel or pension or you choose to eat breakfast by your own, it is the worst meal of the day in the island! I am sooooo fed up with the bad quality bread, small plastic - a big hate -  tins of  marmalade and Lurpak butter, ready made -  more sugary than sugar itself - orange juice and the owner of the hotel counting our bites... so bad mannered, so unprofessional! There is no way to get me smile here, i just can't stand it, especially when i pay 120-150 euro per night for a room! To be honest this is not a Greek phenomenon, the worst breakfast memory i have comes from a London hotel, years ago, the manager was so stressed for the amount of bread the guests wished to eat, we stopped getting down for breakfast day two, afraid he might have had a heart attack! :-)

On the other hand, i know there is nothing better than taking a distance from everything once in a while so, no matter what happens, summer breaks and every kind of escaping are always a great fun, the best way to recharge and detox ourselves from the year's pressure. Long live summer!!!

Love, K.




 images by cocoandsilk



8/17/2015

Still In Amorgos


These are our last days in the island and we are trying to enjoy everything!
One of the most challenging things we did was to climb, yes climb to Hozoviotissa Monastery, 300m up with no shadow and high temperature, it made the whole thing an extreme sport action!!! The building is literally built into the rock, structured by emperor Alexios Komninos during 11th century and it is dedicated to Virgin Mary. It is so hard to go up and down - the steps are very slippery - the place, the only thing you can think the moment you are back is to put your head into the coolest water, to the nearest beach.
The small beach of Mouros, called Mouraki - a small path left from the main beach -  was the best choice, just us and ten more people, the most beautiful sea bottom and deep blue waters!
Amorgos is a winner when it comes to Mediterranean food, we tasted amazing dishes in the smallest villages, not easy to believe..

Amorgos has managed to keep a good balance between simple and stylish, relaxed and sophisticated, pure or tourist style, depends on what everyone is looking for. This is not the place where the locals will remember your name from day two, they are far too busy to do so, but it is certainly the island with the witter white of day light and one of the best sunsets you will ever see!

Enjoy the rest of summer whatever you do
Love, K.









images by cocoandsilk, last image final touch Fotis Karapiperis


8/14/2015

Make My Friday - Welcome To Amorgos


So, here we are in Amorgos island!
We left Donousa a few days ago (with the biggest grief, my God i loved this island!) and sailed to Amorgos which is only an hour away.
Amorgos is certainly a different place, boutique hotels, one big resort hotel and high quality small pensions can be found  in every village. The island is also amazingly beautiful, with the strongest white light i have ever met! Chora, the capital, is the biggest village and it's so picturesque, it is a joy to wander between the small narrow roads where you can find a big number of coffee shops and restaurants serving local food.
Amorgos is also perfect for night life, especially in Aegiali where many young people choose to stay, the night lives long!
Amorgos has many beaches to the north and south side of the island, so there is always a place to enjoy the sea, no matter how strong the wind may be, and so many small hidden bays ("colpakia" is the Greek word) you can approach from a small path if you are willing to leave the car and walk for 10 to 20 min on foot, sounds easy but sometimes it's not...
Amorgos is the kind of place that can capture your heart forever, i met a lot of people who is visiting the island for the last ten or even more years. The French seem to be the majority of Europeans to visit the place, maybe because of the film . 
Life here is sweet and easy, i love to have a late breakfast , work a little - sad but true - and then have a small wander around a village to get photos before we end up to the beach where we usually stay till very late! It is one of the best things i can imagine , see the sun sinking into the blue waters while there is nobody else left and you can enjoy swimming in total peace and harmony with nature, this is a true gift!


Stay tuned for more island life!
Have a lovely weekend

Love, K.









images by cocoandsilkfilm

8/12/2015

Donousa You Stole My Heart


We are sailing to Amorgos island today but here is where i leave my heart. 
Our days here were calm and restful, i could not have enough of the strong blue that comes around every corner of the island. 
If you ever visit Donousa it is really worth to discover the island following the walking paths , up and down the hills, it might be a bit challenging to do so under the summer sun, but the beauty of the island is the best reward! And if you are a yoga lover it is hard to believe, but you will be able to have yoga classes with Giovanni and Zoe - ask for info - under an open tent brought to the island from Africa and all the place full of fabrics brought from India, to the west side of the island while the sun is sinking! My partner tried it and it was an amazing experience!
Donousa is a place to detox from everything today's century. Crystal clear waters, cold enough to make your skin feel the chill, wonderful organic food from the locals' gardens, fresh fish, the air smelling like rosemary - it's everywhere - and most of the island's areas with no access to mobile service! If a person like me, addicted to the Internet can fell in love with this place, this must tell you something.

See you in Amorgos

Love, K.












images by cocoandsilk - no photoshop

8/10/2015

Donousa Island - A Hidden Gem


Donousa is not Mykonos, it is not Santorini or even Paros. It is somewhere between south Italy and Corsica and Greece, fifteen to twenty years ago! No resort hotels, no beach bars and no fancy restaurants here. There is a small fish village together with one or two even smaller residential areas -5 to10 houses- and one main road that crosses the island from one edge to the other. The island is so pure with an untouched natural beauty it is hard to believe! I could never have imagined i could swim in a 'private' beach during August when the rest of the islands are literally sinking from the crowds of tourists!
Last night, after we had enjoyed the sea, we ended up in a tavern in the middle of nowhere, having a wonderful dinner (all the vegetables from the owner's organic garden) and i could not stop looking at the sky that was so amazingly light and clean, i could practically see the galaxy! I had a wonderful feeling that i was standing in a small piece of earth, a hidden gem, a small pearl that had not been destroyed yet, pure, raw and untouched and so, so beautiful!
Donousa is not the prettiest star, the village is poor, the small white houses are far away from the usual villas but we stayed in a very sweet room, clean and cool and so quite we really had the most restful sleep.
After working almost 12 hours a day this was the perfect break and a true discovery !

Enjoy your day
Love, K.








images by cocoandsilk - no photoshop

8/07/2015

Make My Friday - August I Love You


Some of the people i know love August, some others hate it!
August is officially the last month of summer, the heat is getting kinder, the days are getting smaller, grapes are sweeter, Athens is full of tourists spending their days wandering confused around the city center and 80% of the Athenians are traveling to the Aegean sea or to their pretty mountain villages. Ok, maybe you have already guessed....i love August! 
If i was a writer i would certainly had written a book about this cursed month. August is like a hopeless love affair, the more it tortures you the more addicted you get to it. Maybe that's because it wears the veil of separation, the days of summer innocence are about to end and a new battle is about to start. To my mind August is always connected with an end, a circle is closed and a new one is opening every September, but still we have this month to let our soul, body and spirit  fly away to the unlimited time of summer sloth, with no plans, no ugly thoughts, no anxiety, no stress, cause it's impossible to think in August, you can and you must  only  feel!

See you in Donoussa Island
Love, K.



images via tumblr.com