24 Jun, 2019 | Adriana L. Murillo A.

The Arts and Reviews

Images: Courtesy of Tania Fabiani 

Einn brings the tangible back to our lives

When was the last time that you wrote a letter by hand? Or wrote a note to a friend? In today’s digitised age, where we mostly write with our thumbs on our computers and cell phones, Einn Textiles and Crafts is reviving this almost-forgotten art by bringing back old-fashioned diaries. Made from old photographs, lace, ornaments and even dried leaves, Einn’s handmade diaries have a uniquely vintage look.

Tania Fabiani opened Einn in May 2017. After studying in England and graduating from La Paz’s Catholic University with a degree in graphic design, she had a realisation. ‘The design market is saturated, and since my years in university, I realised that digital design was not my thing,’ she says. As a child, she liked to collect papers of all kinds, gathering them from family and friends. So she combined her two passions, and that’s how Einn – which means ‘unique’ in Icelandic – was born.

The textures, colours and details that Fabiani uses when making her diaries are harmoniously irregular, with different types of fabrics and aged paper that makes each journal different from the other. These unique combinations give personality to each piece. ‘I can say that I am self-taught, my way is trial and error,’ Fabiani says. ‘I make dyes with plants, flowers and vegetables. Some go well, others do not and end up discarded.’ Through her artisanal work, Fabiani promotes the idea of forgetting for a moment about smartphones, computers and other electronic devices, and instead slowing down and writing in a diary, or sending a handwritten note.

Fabiani focuses on upcycling materials of different types with her creations, everything from fabrics and papers to repurposed accessories that add a vintage touch. Each object tells a story and follows a harmonic line depending on the season or the motif. ‘Each [seasonal] collection has its own style – I try to choose a trend for that collection and give it specific details,’ she says. ‘I like the idea that it is not perfect but harmonic. I play a lot with the texture of different materials, colours and accessories.’

Fabiani personally makes each diary by hand at her workshop in Cochabamba, a process that can take up to three days depending on the complexity of the project, and each is unique and one-of-a-kind – just like her business, which is slowly picking up steam. ‘This is an unpredictable rhythm, sometimes I sell one [diary], sometimes six or sometimes nothing,’ she says. ‘It’s a bit unpredictable until the brand is really known.’

Einn is still a small enterprise with a long way to go, but the Fabiani’s project reminds us that writing a note or a letter by hand to a friend is a personal way to connect, allowing us to unplug for a moment from the digital age and bringing us back to the basics.

Look for Einn Textiles and Crafts on Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram