This handmade porcelain and crystal tiara is inspired by the original 1860-1870 coral tiara from ®Phillips Brothers London. It simulates the natural shape of endangered red coral.
For Carmen María Mayz, embroidery is a way of marking her creative signature as an artist would an artwork. She perceives a garment as a canvas on which she envisions a design and embroiders as if she were painting in 3D. Her technique was born from her apprenticeship to María Sarsaneda de Brunet, Cristobal Balenciaga’s chief embroiderer. Carmen María learned to master the technique to produce three-dimensional, textured garments with various types of crystals, sequins and beads, and now handcrafts her own freestyle designs without the help of a frame. She has won the recognition of local haute couture designers, bringing her craft to celebrity and royal house venues. As an independent artisan, she has developed a bridal grooming line of embroidered appliqués and head dresses, restoring the antique technique of flower and pistil modelling.
Read the full interviewPhoto: ©Chus Recio
This handmade porcelain and crystal tiara is inspired by the original 1860-1870 coral tiara from ®Phillips Brothers London. It simulates the natural shape of endangered red coral.
Photo: ©Chus Recio
Inspired by the French decorative arts of the 19th and 20th centuries, this headdress is a beautiful handmade recreation of pistils, leaves, flowers, and other elements in porcelain of pastel and citrus tones. It is embroidered with Austrian crystals and beads and complemented by three hand-embroidered central hedgehogs that blend into its foliage.
Photo: ©Chus Recio
This tiara is inspired by ®Cartier’s Laurel Tiara of 1930 and designed with a special pattern to adapt it to today's wearer. Its daisy flowers are embroidered with silver, smoke and aquamarine-coloured crystals. It was made with overlapping elements to create a relief effect.
Photo: ©Chus Recio
This is a freehand sketched appliqué, embroidered with gemstones and old cotton and linen thread. It is inspired by the Richelieu. Its aged appearance is created with applied acrylics.
Photo: ©Chus Recio
Inspired by the sun, this three-hedgehog tiara is handcrafted with various shapes of mini porcelain pistils in white, gold and champagne colours. It is embroidered with Austrian and ®Swarovski crystals.