Peony Herrera Sy
We spoke over coffee and warm croissants at Starbucks on Paseo de Gracia and Rosello, one of the few non-smoking cafes in Barcelona, and close to both our homes.

In November of 1999, Peony Herrera Sy was finishing up a Masters Programme in Business at Dartmouth University in New Hampshire when she decided to treat herself to a trip to visit a friend.  Little did she know that she would fall in love with Barcelona. “It’s nothing tangible -- just really a feeling.” At the time of her visit, she was trying to figure out what she wanted to do with her life; she was bored with New York after having spent eight-years there, having moved from the San Francisco Bay Area where she studied Accounting at St. Mary’s University in Moraga. As her unusual name may suggest, Peony is not a typical American name, but one with roots in Asia. Her family came to the United States, to the California Bay Area, from a small town outside of Manila when she was only seven-years-old to pursue the typical “American dream.”

During her time in New York, she worked as a Financial Officer on Wall Street before attending Dartmouth. While there, she interned at Chanel in New York in their marketing division. She chose the fashion industry because it wasn’t like “marketing a bar of soap or a box of cereal.” The marketing campaigns had to be in tune with the market, engaging the public, and forever changing. The internship lasted only five months but it became the first impetus in her fashion career. From that experience, it became abundantly clear that she wanted to be involved in the fashion industry – but just not on the business side.

Getting back to the initial story, in November she booked a ticket and arrived in Barcelona. She enjoyed the city and saw many things, but on the last day of her vacation, while sitting on a bench on Paseo de Gracia, waiting for a friend to have lunch, she looked up and saw a sign for a fashion school – Escuela de Artes y Tecnicas de la Moda (EATM). She went in, asked some questions, and was promptly told that she could begin classes for the second quarter, in January 2000.

Within two short months, she was back on a plane heading towards Barcelona to begin her new fashion career. She completed only one quarter at the school and “spent lots of money of Amazon.com doing self-studies.” But all of her hard work and obvious talent paid off, she was awarded a scholarship based on her outstanding portfolio -- only three were given out for the entire school -- to the Domus Academy in Milan where she received her Masters in Fashion. Not only did her portfolio win her a scholarship, she was also asked to publish it online for a fair in Bologna.

Now it has been just over three years since she arrived in Barcelona and much has happened. When asked to describe a bit of her experience of working here, she quickly pointed out that for her “Type-A-Personality,” working in Barcelona has been a real challenge. She has had to adapt to stores and offices closing during the day, the continuous and unexpected closures of the “Dias de los Santos,” and the disadvantage of not speaking Catalan (even though she speaks Spanish fairly well).

As a new designer, however, she is thrilled that the Generalitat de Barcelona is encouraging young designers in the city’s bid to become “the Fashion Capital of Spain” while taking advantage of the fact that approximately 60% of all of the clothing for Spain is manufactured here in Catalunya. The drawback, however, of encouraging this younger generation of “designers” is that it leaves a shortage of qualified and experienced pattern makers and seamstresses, many of them being in their 60’s, 70’s, or even retired.

On a more personal note, her best experience without hesitation has been finding her partner, Jordi Llobet Serra, whom she considers her “marido” and with whom she shares a flat and her new life. When asked whether it has been easy or difficult to integrate into Barcelona culture, she quickly responded with an air of someone who has lived on three different continents. She clearly has had little problems with integration. She considers it a “state of mind” -- something that just happens if you don’t force it and has felt comfortable from that very first day in November of 1999.

She finished her first full collection in the summer of 2002; it took her about a year to complete, from the initial design process to the finished product. It contains twenty pieces: an assortment of blouses, pants, skirts, dresses, and jackets. She wanted to contrast the dark and depressing moods in New York after the events of September 11th so she chose “happy and lively” colors for her collection. Her fashion line is geared towards professional women in their late 20’s, 30’s, and 40’s. She harmoniously blends the elegance of Europe, with the practicality of the United States, and a touch of Asian flare, drawing inspiration from her own background, translating it into her fashion line. Her style exudes “relaxed elegance” influenced predominantly from Chanel herself --- her clothes are easy to wear and elegant for many occasions. Her goal is that each piece stand on its own -- they certainly do.

I was able to view her Winter Collection, an assortment of coats made of Harris Tweed, the traditional hand-woven wool from Scotland, typically used in English style suits and coats, in conservative colors and cuts. She, however, has updated the styles and used vibrant colors such as hot fuchsia, blood red, and burnt orange. Although one may associate traditional wool as being stiff and heavy, her coats are relaxed and soft. She modeled a fuchsia cape with a tie in the back and front pockets, but when you cross your arms, it wraps around you like a warm blanket. She also modeled a red pea coat with inside pockets like men’s suits and an orange mandarin style jacket with stunning buttons which even has an inside pocket for a pen. She insists on excellent workmanship and believes that her garments should be both “beautiful on the inside and on the outside.” She uses only 100% natural fibers -- and I am sure that her clothes will transcend many seasons to come.

For more information:
PEONY de SY
Gran de Gracia 1
Barcelona
Email: peony@peonydesy.com