Ah, the gypsy soul. She’s a free-spirited woman who loves to travel, gets inspired by other cultures, and dresses to please no one but herself.
It’s also the concept behind Gypsy Souls, a line of fashion accessories founded by three friends: investment banker Rikka Soriano-Cervantes, businesswoman Belen Co, and yoga and tai chi enthusiast Cristina Valles-Barretto.
The trio met through a shared love of flamenco, the fiery Spanish dance whose passionate rhythms were first stamped out by real gypsies in the south of Spain.
In 2011 the three friends went to the birthplace of flamenco, Granada, to learn more about the art form, and were captivated by, not only the dance, but also the Spanish artisans who create the colorful costumes and accessories flamenco dancers flaunt proudly.
“That’s how it started, because we fell in love with Granada,” Tina says.
The seed for Gypsy Souls was sown during that trip, but it was during another friendly get-together that it really began to flower.
Rikka wore a silky green caftan to the baptism of a friend’s baby, and the other two found it so nice they started thinking about building a business around it.
“Since the cut was very simple, we thought we could have something like it made, and we’ll sell it na lang,” recalls Rikka. “It was easy to wear.”
“Because when you wear a caftan, you really accessorize it, di ba?” adds Belen, “because it’s so nice, and we love the relaxed look.”
In their search for someone to sew the caftans for them they traveled to Cebu, but there, “among all the stops we made, we encountered all of these guys who make these beautiful accessories,” Rikka says. “So we discovered, grabe pala yung talent in Cebu.”
Inspired by what they’d discovered, they started buying up accessories, and the caftans took a back seat: “We eventually found someone who could sew the caftans, but we fell in love with the accessories, so we said, ‘Let’s just sell accessories,’” Rikka explains.
In the beginning they also sold printed bags made in the US and bracelets made by a Chinese friend, but Gypsy Souls say that ultimately they want all their accessories to be Philippine-made.
“We want handmade, local, and of course, bold and bright,” Rikka says. “The Gypsy Souls woman is bold in design, vibrant in color…”
“Free-spirited,” Tina chimes in. “They’re their own person. Like me, if I like something, I don’t care what my siblings think, because I feel it’s really for me.”
“It’s not really following the trend,” adds Belen. “You dress as you please.”
Their favorite pieces right now are necklaces and earrings with dangling wooden charms in parrot, leaf and fruit designs that are hand-painted and surprisingly light when worn. They’re fun, playful, and of course, so colorful even Carmen Miranda would approve.
“This one is so us, because we’re in the Philippines and it’s tropical,” Belen says.
Gypsy Souls makes it a point to sell only one piece of each design, so rest assured that your purchase would be exclusive and one-of-a-kind. “Because they’re bold and statement pieces, we don’t want too many people to have them,” Rikka explains.
Prices are extremely reasonable, ranging from P375 for earrings to P2,000 for necklaces made with Kamagong and Robles wood. Evening clutches that feature mother-of-pearl and coco beads average around P800 — truly bang-for-your-buck buys that would make excellent gifts for yourself and your friends.
And if the ability of a great fashion accessory to transport you to a better place isn’t enough, Tina names each piece after streets in Granada and other locales, like Valparaiso for the parrot pieces and Magdalena for glass-bead necklaces that drape prettily over your collarbone.
So many of us are gypsy souls at heart. I know I certainly am, but now I can advertise that fact with pride.
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Contact Gypsy Souls via their Facebook page or Instagram: @gypsysoulsmanila.
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