Taya Starling

I discovered Miss Careaux through a friend & was immediately smitten with her work. Her images are modern, balancing masculine & feminine; she creates a beautiful spin on familiar things.  I finally caught a moment with her to rack her brain about where she finds inspiration & how she balances her time between Sydney & Amsterdam, designing sneakers & creating her art. 

Name
Caroll Lynn van den Brom

Location

Currently I’m back in Amsterdam for work, but my home sweet home is since last year Sydney.

Occupation

I’m the womens footwear designer for Filling Pieces Amsterdam and I own “Careaux” as a freelance graphic designer.

   
What did you study in school?

I studied graphic design but I never graduated due to family issues which I found more important than a signed paper.

Have you always had a love for kicks?

Always has been kicks. Not because I don’t like heels; sometimes I love heels to look at. I just don’t find them comfortable. Sneakers are colorful. You can always make it to the train when there is only one minute left on the clock- no way you can do that with heels. I’m pretty sure Beyonce can though…

  
What’s behind the hashtag #SHECOZY?

SHECOZY was created by TEAMCOZY and I used it ever since I felt the vibe of the coziness. Anyway, how I see and feel about SHECOZY is that no matter how busy you are in life and how much is going on, stay comfortable in what you do. This can be the way you dress, the way you decorate your house, or how you do your hair.

  
What inspires your work?

Life. Everything in life is art. Sometimes it’s so surreal that I wonder if life is actually real. When my best friend told me she was pregnant, I worked even harder so in the next year I could give her everything she needed to take care of life. It’s not that she asked for it, I wanted it. I choose to because I think life has so much more to give and getting all that, you need to work.

What are your upcoming goals?

Travel this year, see all the miracles of the world. And I found the love of my life who is willing to do that with me

  
What has been, in your opinion, your biggest accomplishment to date?

Becoming a part of Filling Pieces Amsterdam. I always said years ago: “One day, I want to work for them”. And I am blessed and grateful to say I am their womens footwear designer.

  
How do you deal with failure?

First I cry. Maybe for a day or a full week. Then I won’t occupy myself with work just to clear my head. I talk with friends, I leave the country to feel new vibes and find inspiration. I write a lot around that time. Then I find out why it happened, what I’ve learned from it and why it had to happen. Was it my fault? No? Okay don’t worry, this happened because something else is coming my way, you can’t change that so accept it and move on.. Was it my fault? Yes? Okay, what did I do wrong, what can I change and did I die? I didn’t die so don’t blame yourself too long for something that you can change.

What do you think is your ultimate goal?

My life goal is to grow old with the person I love, have a loving family, travel the world and see all miracles in life as long as I live. My parents divorced when I was 8 and nowadays you wake up so much more when you see happy families or something you never had. My goal is to have a loving and caring family of my own. Not to show my mom she was wrong with what she did, but to give myself what I never had.

  
What advice would you give your younger self?

It is okay to make mistakes. It is okay to take the risk and fail. But… make sure you don’t upset your loved ones with what you do… It is better to say “oops” than “what if”. 

Words to live by/ life motto:

Live your life like you can die tomorrow.

You can find amazing kicks designed by Caroll at www.FillingPieces.com or you can find her work at www.iamcareaux.com // on Instagram @Careaux