After several times of re-booking and moving dates (for the most obvious reasons that have faced many of us during the past two years), we finally made it to Croatia last month. We holidayed in a lovely little seaside town called Nerezine that is located on the beautiful island of Losinj.

We had the opportunity to stay at a cute little house ten minutes away from the town centre. It never took us long to reach the beach, restaurants and shops - which was ideal, especially given that we were travelling with a toddler. Today I’d like to share my heiter “Nerezine” spots with you here, hoping that they might be useful for you one day.

SOHO shop

A cute little boutique that offers fun gifts, cards, lifestyle products and clothing. Many items in their range are from sustainable brands.

Restaurant Konoba Promenada

Probably our favourite local restaurant for us as a family. The staff is friendly and considerate, the (traditional) food brilliant: we really enjoyed their seafood platter. They also offer “half portions” for kids.

Porto

The little bistro/bar right by the sea offers (stone oven baked) Napolean pizzas and burgers. We loved their laid back and more international atmosphere.

Bistro Rio

The bistro next to the marina seems to be a secret meeting point for locals too. It is small but stands out with freshly cooked seafood. We can highly recommend it to everyone who is on the hunt for great fish and chips for their lunch.

Hotel Televrin

Many tourists not just eat but also stay at the beautiful hotel that’s situated right next to the marina. Their menu consists of traditional and more cosmopolitan dishes (note: you even find vegan options) and you’re also expected to pay a little more than in other restaurants in town. J particularly loved the playground next door.

Pekara (Bakery) Martina

The best spot to get traditional Croation bread (which tends to be a white loaf) but also treats such as crossaints and little cakes. We stopped there at least once a day.

Day trips:

If you’re up for a day trip or two, we can recommned the old town of Osor and Mali Losinj, home of the Apoxsyomenos museum. You could also go on one of the organised dolphin watching trips from Mali or Veli Losinj. J is a bit too young for those so we didn’t do any this time round but might give them a go on a future trip.

Good to know:

the network on the island is not the best so we would not recommend going to Losinj for a workcation. We also had no wifi where we stayed but kept in touch with family when going for dinner in the evening: pretty much every restaurant and/or bar offers wifi.
it is great that you can return plastic bottles (and get your deposit back) at the local supermarket. You do need to bring in the original receipt (as proof that you got your water/milk etc there) though so make sure you don’t lose it.
if you don’t stay right next to the beach, make sure you bring a mosquito spray along. There are quite a few of them.
Croatia is famous for their pebbled beaches. If you are not used to running barefoot on stones, consider bringing jellies or other swimming shoes along.
the local post office is only open on weekday mornings (Mo-Fr, 8am-12pm). Make sure you get there before the weekend so that you’re in time to post postcards to your loved ones.
the people of Nerezine are used to tourists from Austria, Germany and Italy. So used, that they might ask you to speak German or Italian (instead of English) at some of the restaurants and shops.

Words & images: Katharina Geissler-Evans, heiter

Please introduce yourself:

Hello! I'm Lisa, founder and creator of Indigowares. I live in Hertfordshire and I’m a 47-year-old mother of two.

When did you start Indigowares and what inspired you to do so?

I started Indigowares in 2016 after working in fast fashion for 20 years. At the time I had taken a break from the industry to have children, but when I went through a divorce I had to find a way to make a living and be there for my children at the same time. Since then, Indigowares has become the perfect intersection of following my dream to start an independent ethical brand, and a way of working from home and being able to bring up my kids.

The idea for Indigowares initially came because I had taken up indigo dying as a hobby. I fell completely in love as I learned about its magical dyeing processes, as well as the cultures that did and still do use it. I grew really disillusioned with the fast fashion industry after working in it for so long, and this brought the focus back to making pattern – which was always my passion – and the traditional processes and history behind it.

This evolved into a business through Etsy first. Then I learned to build a website and slowly started adding products there. And as I grew my knowledge of how to run an online business, Indigowares grew alongside that. The goal is always to create something that is timeless, seasonless, and keeps traditional processes alive with a contemporary twist.

What steps go into creating your pieces?

It starts with the design, which has to be tested in order to come to life. We create sample garments, I indigo dye on different fabric contents to see how they take, test different patterns and natural dye techniques – everything needed to land on the perfect combination of things for production.

Production is split between my home studio here in Hertfordshire and our collaborators in India, so the process of creating pieces also looks different depending on where the resources are coming from. For garments like our Kantha Jackets, the process starts by working with our collaborators to source kantha quilts to be repurposed, then created in our classic styles.

Are you in charge of all the steps or do you have a team that supports you?

I design and oversee all the steps, but I have a number of people who collaborate, input, and help throughout production and running the business. So here in England, I work with a seamstress called Caroline, who helps with sewing and general day to day running. Then I have Kay, my virtual assistant who puts together our blogs, newsletters, and different bits of content.

Then we have a number of really close relationships with our collaborators in India. There’s Kiran Sandhu, who owns and runs the farm where our Indigo is grown. Kiran is a fantastic indigo artist and samples pieces for us as well as collaborates on our Seed to Closet designs, which are made on her farm and are 100% traceable straight from the earth.

Our kantha quilts are also sourced from vintage bedding and materials in India – I work closely with a few suppliers in Jaipur to select these for each design.

What is special about choosing these techniques over chemical dying?

Water consumption is lower, for one. Natural dyes prevent the pollution that chemical dyes cause. Chemicals dyes are also harsh against your skin – they can cause allergies and irritation that you may not even think about when buying something chemically dyed. Our indigo dye is certified and tests at over 50% pure, which is an amazing amount for natural indigo. You can even see pictures of where our indigo was grown and the process of harvesting on our website. This models the cyclical process fashion can take - materials that come from the earth and can be returned to the earth.

But aside from all the environmental and person benefits, natural dyeing keeps alive traditional techniques. It allows us to celebrate history, culture, and artistry.

What is your favourite Indigowares piece and why?

I fall in love with each one at the beginning when I’m making them. Then stay in love until the next piece comes to mind, and the process starts all over again!

I think with designing something, it's like having children in some ways. You develop it and grow it and love it and nurture it. And then you set it free into the world and hopefully it does well. You're always there to support it – to share it and keep trying to sell it. Then to enjoy when customer reviews come in and other people fall just in love as I did!

I think a lot of artists, at the beginning, you put all that time into your creation. And that’s why you love what you do, but nobody can love one thing forever. We’re always evolving, finding new fibres, new processes, more sustainable methods. That’s what I'd love more than anything – the evolution.

You worked in the fashion industry for about 20 years. What is different now that you work for your own brand?

So many things. We don't work into seasons. We don't work under pressure. We don't have to follow trends. We can be flexible and more human with suppliers, flexible with timelines and the creative process.

The biggest thing is that when you run your own brand, you are in control of your own destiny. Which hopefully means that we can help shape the future of the fashion industry, if we’re the change we want to see.

Indigowares is only a little brand, but if the bigger brands see what we’re doing and the huge positive impact on the environment it can have, then maybe they’ll also start doing what we were doing. Maybe we wouldn't be in this situation, and maybe we can really reduce the pollution of the fashion industry. At the end of the day, the biggest thing I can do through Indigowares is take care of the earth, and help others do the same.

How can people find your beautiful designs?

On our website and on Instagram.

Images: Indigowares

Croatia: the heiter Nerezine list

Indigowares: founder Lisa Reddings introduces her slow fashion brand