Love Clementine: Perfection in Every Piece

The handmade, Asian-inspired label, known for its exquisite belts and original shawls, has that rare quality of feeling completely intentional, like every single detail has been thought about. Though the brand is newer on the scene than its neighbouring brands, such as Minka Dink, Moo Moda and Bijoux de Mimi, Clem has been experimenting with her pieces since the age of 18, when she founded ‘Clem Designs’, a brand with a similar direction that she eventually paused during her time at Cardiff University studying music and philosophy. She later went on to complete a masters in business and finance, anticipating a career in a typical London finance job. However, during this year she realised it wasn’t what she truly wanted and reignited her entrepreneurial ambitions in Love Clementine. Everything handmade. Everything made to order. Clem strives for complete perfection in each of her items, and she remains determined to hold complete responsibility for the quality of each of her items.

I had the pleasure of chatting to Clem recently and was met with a radiant, stylish girl, refreshingly unassuming, but completely sure of her vision. The business is becoming a great success and Love Clementine now supports her as a full-time job, with around 50 orders coming in each week, every single one made by Clem herself as it's placed. Each piece takes her roughly two hours, proving a real testament to her skill as a one-woman operation. She's resolute about keeping production in her own hands, because for Clem, quality is the whole point. She does admit, with characteristic humility, that social media isn't quite her strong suit and she's looking for someone to help take the brand's online presence up a notch – get on it girls!

Love Clementine has already started making a name for itself in London's independent scene. Clem has collaborated with Bella Christie and Moorelly London, and her pieces were worn at Bijoux de Mimi's launch, placing her firmly among the brands in every Durham-girl’s wardrobe, neighbouring brands such as Minka Dink and Moo Moda. However, Clem has bigger ambitions. Where many similar labels speak to a specific niche, she wants Love Clementine to reach further to a broader, more mature audience that reflects everything the brand is truly capable of. Her original Instagram bio says it best:

'Wear one in a million, not buy a million.'

In a world drowning in fast fashion and trends, Clem is building something with real longevity with pieces worth keeping, worth wearing, worth every penny.

However, the part of our conversation that stayed with me most, was when we got onto the personal inspiration behind the collections. Each piece is rooted in Clem's Chinese heritage, and that connection runs much deeper than aesthetics. Adopted as a baby, and unable to contact her biological family, Clem found her own way back to a culture she might otherwise have felt cut off from. Her designs are a form of expression, a bridge between her life in Oxfordshire and the roots she is still discovering. And it’s a story she wants to keep on telling. The platform her business has given her is something she takes seriously, and she hopes that by speaking openly she can connect with others who've had similar experiences. Alongside running Love Clementine, she sits on an adoption panel, impacting and representing an area she feels is too often quietly overlooked. If that wasn’t enough, this Christmas, she'll be donating a portion of her profits from Spirit of Christmas to the Brain Tumour Society, in memory of her adopted father, who sadly passed from cancer. Her philanthropic work and determination to have a positive impact beyond the brand itself attributes to her generous and genuine character, setting her and the brand apart from the today’s modern consumerist climate.

Go and catch Clem at her pop-ups this summer, and at Spirit of Christmas this November — my personal highlight of the year, and if you've never been, please just trust me that it’s an event you won’t want to miss. Love Clementine is a brand built on heart, heritage, and an unshakeable sense of self. Your wardrobe is waiting!