Material Girl

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Ines came to Bahrain just two and a half years ago with her engineer husband, and having some spare time gave her the opportunity to pursue a long-held passion.

She explains: “When I left university, after studying fashion design, I travelled with my husband to different countries such as the US and Germany – but all the time this was in my blood. At that time though, I was busy raising my kids and I never felt stable enough to work.”

Arriving in Bahrain, she began making pieces for herself – interesting over jackets, flowing and beautiful, which soon gained friends’ envious attention. “I started by designing a couple of pieces for myself and every time I wore them at parties or events, many ladies loved them and asked where I got them from. So, I finally got the idea to start my own brand while at the same time showing the special and unique work of the Tunisian artisans.”

That work is very apparent in the range of woven materials she uses, all created in her Tunisian homeland to her own orders. Ines explains: “I was at an exhibition in Tunis and fell in love with the texture and the colours; from the beginning I have always loved anything that looks natural and organic. When I found this fabric, I started to take all the addresses of the producers, then I got in my car and drove for four hours by myself and went to meet the makers. I would give them designs to see the results and decided to go with the ones who could create my designs the best.

“Some could do good work but this involved making modern designs – not what they were used to. It involved visiting many different families and areas. In Tunisia, each town or area has different weavers working in different materials, from linen to silk mixes and wool. I made the choices that would work best with the different designs. The embroidered piece on this jacket [pictured] is hand-stitched by a woman on a small island off the coast.”

The brand LeBonTon was born in 2015 and Ines has produced a summer collection, including beach dresses, a Ramadan collection featuring kaftans, abayas and jalabiyas and she is now working on her next collection with her pieces being available online through her Instagram @lebonton_by_ines and at various pop-ups around the island.

Asked who is the LeBonTon woman? She responds: “She is elegant but very selective! She wants to wear unique designs fashioned out of 100 per cent natural fabric with special textures and wonderful colours.”

And of the brand’s future, she has big plans, saying: “I am planning to show my work in other countries in the Gulf and Europe. Very soon I will display my designs in a shop! My dream is to spread my models all around the world and have my own factory.”

When not busy designing, she loves painting and even uses her fabrics and silver pieces within her artworks, rendering each piece unique. She’s also an avid photographer, kitchen enthusiast and gym addict, which helps her stay in shape for modelling her own creations.