Jasmijn Verlinden
Jasmijn Verlinden is the first woman to introduce our new series of testimonials. True customers of ours who share a bit more about themselves, their skin and their experience with Maiwe. We got to spend a lovely morning with Jasmijn in her beautiful home in Antwerp. This is what we talked about, besides our shared interests in cooking, Anna Jones, books, fashion and Hannelore Knuts while exchanging laughs over stories on our young kids.
Hi Jasmijn, how would you introduce yourself?
“My name is Jasmijn Verlinden, I live in Antwerp with my partner and our two sons of 6 and 3 years old. I am a brand architect, mostly in the creative sector and particularly in fashion, which is my passion. I support brands in building a strong foundation and definition of their brand identity, and in how to keep that identity while they develop their activities along the way. I do this out of my love for craftmanship, creativity and the beautiful stories behind those brands. I feel those stories do not always get transmitted in the right way to the end customer, and lots of opportunities are potentially being missed. That is where I can play my role.”
Can you tell us a bit more about your skin? Do you have any skin concerns? How is your relationship to skincare?
“I have always loved skincare, ever since I was a teenager. I enjoyed experimenting with different beauty products, but not by spending hours and hours on it. For me, things need to be pragmatic and efficient, in everything I do. But I did always enjoy trying out new products. That is how, a few years ago, I started writing about Belgian brands, and I was sent a lot of products to write reviews about them. For years, I was switching between brands, every time a product was finished, I would hop over to another one. It went well for a long time, and I found it great, until a while ago I felt that my skin could not take that anymore. I’m not sure if it were the products, or me, but I would easily get redness, an itchy feeling, or dry, rather flaky skin. That’s when I got a lot pickier on what I would put on my skin. In that very moment, Maiwe came my way. Actually, it was love at first sight.”
“When Maiwe came my way, it was love at first sight.”
What’s your experience with the Maiwe line?
“I started with the Rosehip Oil Serum. I immediately felt it had a calming effect on my skin. That feeling of itchiness or redness simply didn’t occur. Normally I quickly ‘chuck’ skincare products on my face, but here I felt that I enjoyed spending some time to really massage it in, as a moment of ‘me-time’. I immediately loved it. Then I started using the other products, and I felt the same. They really are my favourites. Occasionally, I will try out something new because I have to, but I’ll always come back to Maiwe. I also particularly enjoy the smell of the products, which is important to me as most beauty products have a very sweet, flowery scent that doesn’t match my taste at all.”
“Besides the fact that I love the products, the story of the brand is at least as important to me. I met Maayke when she personally came to deliver the first product at my doorstep, and I felt a kind of instant connection. I really admire how she, as a young woman, created this product from scratch. I know how demanding and competitive the beauty industry is, and how complicated it is to start a small, independent brand in a saturated industry ruled by huge concerns. It’s also out of an admiration and appreciation for her guts and commitment, that I value the brand even more.”
“There is a complete match between who I am and the values of the brand, and that is something you feel. It just makes sense.”
“That is something that I always consider. On one hand, you love a product, but the story is as important to me. The whole universe that is created around it, the aesthetics, women such as Charlotte Pérriand and Marina Abramovic that are being portrayed. I also find these women very inspiring. Knowing that they also make part of the universe of that brand, makes it all fit. There is a complete match between who I am and the values of the brand, and that is something you feel. It just makes sense.”
SHOP JASMIJN'S FAVOURITE
Rosehip Oil Serum
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