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Can't Leave Without — How Designer Simone Brewster's Travel Bag Masters the Art of Style and Self-Care
By Gilda Bruno,
23 hours ago
Ever wondered what's in the travel bags of your ultimate artistic inspirations? Curious to know what are the items shaping their lives while taking a break from the dayjob, how they plan for weather swings, or stay inspired in their downtime? Can't Leave Without is the Livingetc column bringing you packing advice courtesy of our favorite names from the contemporary interior design and creative scene.
It has been a busy, rewarding couple of years for the London-based artist and designer Simone Brewster. Between last spring and today, her multiform creations — straddling furniture, painting, and jewelry — have been the focus of acclaimed solo presentations at London Design Festival, where she unveiled her monumental, fantastical public art installation Spirit of Place as the event's Special Commission; at Greenwich Peninsula's NOW Gallery, to which Brewster brought a fascinating exploration of color and form; and at Portobello Road's J/M Gallery, where Changing Tides , her most recent exhibition, examined "the emotional sentiment, value, and comfort" embodied by organic shapes across canvas and wooden sculpture. With acquisitions from the V&A and Washington's Smithsonian Museum, it is fair to say Brewster is enjoying some momentum.
Identity, ritual, and storytelling all play a crucial role in the work of the British-Caribbean talent. Her skillfully crafted, sinuous objects, accessories, and paintings are not only visually stunning but also imbued with profound meaning. Brewster's ability to infuse functional and aesthetically pleasing designs with deeper conversations — from the societal pressure forced onto women and the nuances of Black womanhood to the unresolved legacy of colonialism — extends beyond her practice into her personal life, beginning with her travel routine. "Travel has become a larger part of my life over the last few years," the designer tells me. Yet, rather than leaving her self-nourishing habits behind when away from home, Brewster's frequent journeys have taught her to nurture a sense of style, comfort, and care wherever she goes. How? With these eight essential items.
1. Manketti Hair Oil
(Image credit: Charlotte Mensah )
It all starts with the right hair product. "Whenever I travel, and especially if I am going on a holiday, I need to take care of my hair," Brewster explains. Sun exposure and airplanes can leave hair feeling extremely dry and uncared for — especially if, like both Brewster and myself, you fall in the coils and waves department.
That's nothing to worry about as long as you know the correct remedy for it. "Charlotte Mensah's Manketti Hair Oil is absolutely amazing," the artist continues. "It smells great and picks up my natural curls, making a good hair day much more of a possibility."
Conceived by Nigerian-British designer Yvonne Modupe Telford, founder of fashion label Kemi Telford, Brewster's sleepwear choice is not a simple nighttime wardrobe update, but a transformation of its very definition. It only takes a quick glance at it to fall in love with its bold print design, which I could easily see styled even outside of the bedroom. And that's for a reason: now that she is more often on the move, "sleeping in new and strange locations can leave me feeling restless," Brewster says. "Some comfortable and beautiful sleepwear makes the transition to new spaces much smoother."
With varying air and water conditions, hair isn't the only thing to suffer during our globe-trotting journeys. "Travel also takes its toll on skin," Brewster warns.
While time-consuming, extensive skin routines don't seem to work for her, especially considering her busy schedule, "this face cream is a simple, quick, and effective fix for my skin when I am moving around," the artist says. "It smells amazing, too." Now that you know that Aesop has made it this easy to look after your skin, you'll have no excuse left not to.
Finding a pair of sunglasses that not only fits you, but that you also never get tired of, can be a real challenge, especially if, like me, you find pleasure in swapping things around — styling specific pairs based on your mood, outfit, or season. In this, Brewster and I couldn't be more different: "I have had my pair of Celine sunglasses for about ten years now," she says. "I don't mix it up — if it works, it works."
With their smoke lenses and sturdily iconic acetate frame, these sunglasses are the ultimate travel essential; protecting your eyes from UV rays, they allow you to soak in the beauty of your surroundings while looking straight out of a French noir movie. Need I say more?
Get a woman who can do both — the timeless, French-inspired eyewear and the Alps-ready climbing shoe. Much like her work, which incorporates multiple mediums and inspirations into a stylistically coherent, impressive oeuvre, Brewster's life is also characterized by seemingly diverging passions and worlds. Climbing is one of them.
"Before having my son, I would usually use any opportunity to go climbing, especially if I was on a break away from home," she explains. "If I was traveling to a location that had a beautiful outdoor landscape, I would pack a pair of climbing shoes and a bag of chalk and visit what the region had to offer." With these Scarpa Instinct VS-R ($217.79) on your feet, the possibilities are endless. And what better way to explore a new place than by taking a look at it from an unconventional perspective?
6. Zara Ballerinas With Metal Embellishment
(Image credit: Zara)
Called to juggle the commitments that come with an artistic career and family life, times might have changed for Brewster, leaving her fewer occasions to make her way up the mountains — but this doesn't mean that her trips should be any less enjoyable, nor less tasteful. Her pick of ballerinas, one of the big comebacks of this year's fashion, highlights her talent for choosing items that feel both functional and quirkily beautiful.
"A simple flat shoe is what's more likely to land in my bag nowadays," Brewster says. Still, she knows how to make every travel accessory count. With their chrome, light-reflecting jewel detail and mossy velvet finish, these shoes are not just made for walking , but to have you walk around in style.
Sometimes the success of an outfit comes down to the final — and finest — touches. That's definitely the case for those of us who enjoy styling jewelry. Brewster is part of the team. "I don't do polished nails as it is a bit of a waste of time as a maker and someone who climbs," she explains. Instead, the artist finds that "a statement ring goes a long way when having to do a public-facing event".
When it comes to landing on the right items, "I like to keep it simple with a few bold pieces," Brewster says. "If I am not wearing something from my own jewelry line , I would usually have something in gold by Emefa Cole or MUTTER — two brands I love."
"One of the gifts of travel is being immersed in a totally new environment's color story," Brewster says. "I love sketching and using a small set of oil pastels to capture the ways the locals pair color and paint the facades of their homes and towns."
And she knows what she is doing: to make sure nothing from her trip goes overlooked, but that every suggestion is documented extensively, "I usually bring a small cotton rag booklet with me, and that acts as an active diary — as a place to store memories and any ideas that spring to mind during my times away," the designer concludes.
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