Let's meet.. JOYCE & JADE

Joyce & Jade dress; Zara heels

Apart from discovering just about the most delicious gelato (and intriguing flavour combinations) I've had in my life while trooping around Sydney a few months ago, I had come across a cute little set-up at the 100 Squared emerging designer pop-up at Westfield - Joyce & Jade, they were called. A particular black leather mini with suede pockets caught my eye, and I found myself drawn to much of their collection. Before long I found myself chatting to Kiah, one-half of the brains and beauty behind the label, and found out that the talented duo had in fact started out with a leather handbag collection!

This dress, I feel, captures wonderfully what Joyce & Jade is all about - fun and feminine with a little bit of a bold edge. I love how the light floral print, structured leather shoulder caps (no doubt an influence from working on leather bags) and back detail comes together so well in one piece. It certainly speaks for itself, and gets me so excited about summer - garden parties and fruity cocktails galore!

I now leave you with the Joyce and Jade girls..

Tell us about yourselves - Kiah and Nicol.

Kiah: We met on the first day of year four at my new primary school. We were in the same class and the first person I noticed was this beautiful, exotic looking girl with the shiniest, longest hair I had ever seen and thought instantly “I want to be friends with her”. Lucky for me she was first with her hand up when the teacher asked who wanted to look after me on my first day and we have been besties ever since! We went all through primary and high school together and for the first time in our friendship were separated when we started working and studying at different uni’s. Thankfully we only live around the corner from each other!

Nicol: We've been inseparable since the day we met, basically doing everything together. Our bond is definitely built on a love of fashion and shopping! As kids we were always revamping and customising our old clothes and although we've always had a strong interest in fashion we never set out to start a label it was just something that happened organically. 

What motivated you both to start your own label?

N: Funnily enough it happened one day over coffee at our favourite coffee shop in Cronulla. We were just discussing the lack of functional handbags on the market and decided to start our own label. A week later we were on a plane to Bali to source some leather and manufacturers and Joyce & Jade was born with the combination of our middle names!

K: We always loved fashion – I had plans to run fashion events or be an editor of a magazine or a stylist; while Nicol was considering studying fashion design, so the passion was always there but we never had any formal training

You girls have also recently released a clothing collection – where did you draw inspiration for this?

Launching in to apparel was a natural progression for us, we always wanted a brand that supplies a whole outfit (we’ve just introduced shoes) and want our customers to have access to a whole Joyce & Jade wardrobe, from casual basics to evening wear. We base our designs on practicality and love adding a twist to classic styles. It’s really important to us that we have a variety of designs and styles. We don’t do set collections and love bringing in new pieces regularly to keep it fresh. It’s hard to compete with all the latest craze of cheap fast fashion. As for our inspiration, it comes from everywhere, travel, books, photos, architecture, interiors, everything!

Where can we find your designs? 

Currently at our shop on Level 1, Sydney Westfield. Early December we will also be stocking to a new online boutique that supports emerging designers called LoVu. We are aiming to have more stockists by next year.

Who is the Joyce and Jade girl?

We actually have such a variety of customers, we love the diversity and the fact that our designs appeal to young and more mature women. A big focus for us is providing quality pieces at an affordable price point. The Joyce & Jade girl doesn't necessarily have a champagne budget but still wants to look good in quality investment pieces. 

What can we expect to see from Joyce and Jade in the near future?

 A whole lot more! We aim to have a very expansive collection full of all things that we love. We won’t draw the line anywhere. At the moment we're both very committed to building a solid fan base here in Australia and when the time comes, launching Joyce & Jade at an international level.

Photos by Thomas Lo

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