About - María Bouvier

Hi, I’m María Alejandra Bouvier, fashion designer and textile natural dyer from Uruguay.

ABOUT US

I’ve been a color lover since I can remember. In 2014, I decided to go deeper into that passion and so I went to New York to get a Color Specialist Certificate at FIT (Fashion Institute of Technology). It was then when one day, walking down the streets of my neighborhood in Brooklyn, I randomly bought a book that made me discover what it would later become my true passion: hand natural dyeing. This ancient technic allows me not only to work with color but also to create it with my own hands, without damaging our environment.

Three years later and back in Uruguay, my dream came true and I launched my own sustainable women’s fashion label: MARÍA BOUVIER. For our pieces, we only use certified organic cotton, which I dye myself with natural materials such as flowers, wood barks, spices, and organic wastes; and then, we work jointly with small local sewing studios to develop our garments fairly while supporting our community.

To me, the dyeing process is the soul and essence of our garments. I truly enjoy experimenting and transforming the natural elements that surround us into my own colors. It’s incredible the number of different colors we can get from just one dye; you only need to change the water PH with some lemon drops, modify the dye bath temperature, vary the dyeing time or just the amount of dyestuff you use. The natural dyeing process is pure magic to me. As a handcrafted technic, it is not perfect, but I believe that is exactly what gives each of our pieces a unique value, as there aren’t two exactly alike.

I believe what we chose to wear says a lot about who we are, our beliefs and values; therefore, I aim to create pieces that make women feel special and one of a kind; garments you can identify yourself with and feel proud of wearing.