Louisa Canham (La Eva)

Growing up in Greece, Louisa’s early memories are imprinted with a lack of detail but vivid associations. Yellow and blue horizons. The sound of crickets. Hot sand and rocks underfoot. And a beautiful array of scents: wild mountain herbs, jasmine, chamomile, citrus blossom. A sensory soundtrack to formative years; one which continues to be a source of reference and inspiration to this day. Although making things with her hands and appreciating objects of beauty has been a long standing thread, coming to create an edgy, ethical luxury beauty brand has involved an unlikely set of circumstances and choices. At the age of 22 Louisa trained as a clinical psychologist, completing her doctorate at Oxford University. With a specialist interest in children and adolescents, for over 10 years she helped traumatised unaccompanied children seeking asylum, young people on the autistic spectrum, adolescents with eating disorders, and young offenders in prison. Whilst on a personal level it was an interesting and rewarding time, working with human vulnerability and risk is inherently emotionally straining, and there came a point — particularly after she had her own children — where Louisa found herself seeking something gentle and therapeutic to mediate the impact. The summer of 2011, and a tray of gently scented soap, cut into rough creamy chunks, was to offer the seed of what has become LA-EVA. Featured in #TheCollective 2nd Edition (2019)