Lazy Beaches - the perfect holiday companion

You love summer, don't you? Could it be that the idea for the linen towels came from this love of the beach and the sun?

Actually, I love the beach, the sun and relaxation more than summer as a season - after all, it's always summer somewhere. The idea for Lazy Beaches was born on a beach near Tarragona. I was between careers at the time and was really missing something tangible, real. Spain had been a great love of mine for many years, I already had the experience of studying architecture and being a graphic designer. As a child, I spent many months playing with fabrics in the house of my grandmother, who used to be a seamstress. It probably all came together in the product that is the linen towel.

Why linen?

The first idea was cotton. However, on my return from Spain, I came across a lecture on materials given by Wiktoria Podolec from Tartaruga. She talked about how linen is more eco-friendly than cotton - it requires less water to produce, it is hypoallergenic, anti-static, much slower for bacteria to grow, dries quickly, can be washed at any temperature and is very durable. At the time I thought that all the beach towels in the world should be made of linen, that it was just a better choice. Later I also came across the wonderful fun fact that sand does not adhere to linen. Seven years have passed since then and I still think linen is the best material for the beach.

When did you set up your business, in what mode do you run it?

I came up with the idea for Lazy Beaches in 2017, a year later I set up an Instagram account and some time later an online shop - at that point it was just ‘owning a business’ for me. I can certainly say I have a product and a brand, but I still wouldn't call it a business (apart from the tax formalities of course). Over the years, business knowledge started to intertwine with the product and creative direction of the brand for me. I started the brand out of a need to have something of my own and a need for creative realisation. After so many years and having explored the business side more and more, creating a company is a very exciting prospect. My greatest wish would be for Lazy Beaches to also have its own wellness centre. At the moment this is my personal project, ideally I would like to have a partner.

Who is responsible for the design of the towels and who sews them? Where do you get the linen from?

All the designs are my own. The first prototypes were sewn by my mother and all subsequent pieces by my aunt. We have a long tradition of working together. When I was a girl I used to order clothes for Barbie dolls from her. It was a beautiful collection. I order linen from Poland, depending on the colour it is 100% Polish, or it is a collaboration between Poland, France and Lithuania. Irish linen is also great, maybe one day I can make a collection out of it.

Lazy Beaches is not your only job. What else do you do?

Along with setting up the brand, I changed my career direction from the world of branding creative agencies to the creative direction department of fashion campaigns. I work on the creation of advertising campaigns, and for the last few seasons I have also been responsible for the art direction of „Unpolished” magazine.

What is your approach to relaxation? You give the impression of a person who could teach others about the work-rest balance.

There was a time when I thought I knew absolutely everything about the subject. This knowledge was a simple statement - you want to rest - go on holiday. Then came the pandemic and a lot of work and rest was no longer so simple. It would be easy to rest being constantly on the beautiful beaches of Menorca, but the art of resting during everyday life - and not in between - is more difficult. For the past four years I have been exploring this topic and the topic of happiness itself (I recommend Laurie Santos' Happiness Lab podcast and her online course from Yale). For years, I have believed that rest is very important and essential to life as much as eating and sleeping. Without rest there is no work, so if someone loves to work, they should love resting. Over the years, my approach has evolved from ‘holiday- escapism’ to ‘pleasure of a beautiful life’. I am also exploring the subject of travel and tourism as such, I am interested in the ‘slow travel’ approach and how to travel while avoiding crowded places.

For urban relaxation, I recommend a sauna, being where the trees are, cycling to your favourite cafe. Pilates and sound healing are great too. I can see the link here between the beach, sauna and pilates – that lying down is the best for relaxing!

How do you most like to spend your holidays and what are your upcoming holiday plans?

Holidays understood as July and August are often very busy in the world of advertising campaigns, so I mainly spend them working. At least once a year I have to lie on the beach. I love doing it, the combination of beach, azure water, Iberian pines is something that gives me real happiness. This year I was on my favourite beach in Menorca. I have no idea what the next trip will be. For me, travelling is also a time when I can do nothing, wander aimlessly sipping cortado. This undeveloped space is one of my favourite forms of feeling free.

Photos: Bartek Wieczorek, Michał Dąbrowski