SANDRA CORREIA: Consciously Corked

Fiona McCoss catches up with Portuguese designer Sandra Correia on the eve of her MoMa debut

Portuguese designer of Pelcor, Sandra Correia, will be showcasing her innovative creations in the MoMa this May as one of the lucky few whose brand will now be associated with one of the biggest and most impressive modern art galleries in the world.

Her range of accessories are not your everyday run of the mill. On the one hand, yes they are practical, fashionable and when necessary, impermeable – on the other, more interesting level, it is the use of medium that she has chosen which plays a pivotal role in her creativity and inovation.

Correia specialises in a rarely used material for the industry she is part of, uncommon to the regular art enthusiast, nonchalant passerby or fashionista: cork. Yes, like the cork used to stop wine.

The idea to incorporate cork into her designs is a family tradition. “My Grandfather worked on cork fields, my father is a cork based businessman and I am following the family path...but innovating with irreverence," she explains. "Expanding our family business to other areas like fashion accessories was a true challenge to designers, partners and other stake holders. But Cork is such a strong, flexible and surprisingly sophisticated material, that what was once an experience, became a successful business, and thus Pelcor was born.”

Its exclusivity is what makes the material so valuable in terms of the endless possibilities for creative license. “Cork is a very unique material – no piece is similar to the other. This makes cork a fascinating and very luxurious material. We also use other materials to mix with cork, all of them of the highest quality – leather, organic cotton, etc.”

Pelcor is also proud for its sustainability, being an eco-friendly brand.

With pieces already available to buy now in the MoMa store, Correia explains that there is more in the pipeline for her designs. “We might have other surprises coming up... but if I were to reveal them, they wouldn’t be surprises. To feature Pelcor Accessories in the MoMA is a very big deal. None of us at Pelcor, especially myself, would have imagined that we would be chosen to be part of their exhibition. But dreaming is one of my favorite qualities. So dreams I have plenty, and all of them worth fighting for.”

Consciously corked, Pelcor and their range of accessories are not to be missed.