CULVER CITY, Calif., Oct. 9, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Los Angeles has long been on the leading edge of the chic lifestyle, and a southern California couple is now launching a website dedicated to bringing the chic sensibility to a worldwide multicultural audience. While offering contemporary, high-quality products is the site's primary function, its true intention is to introduce multicultural consumers to a global assortment of unique goods as an alternative to the bland, commercialized, mass-produced products available in shopping malls and mail-order catalogs.
The site -- www.chic-life.com -- is being launched by design duo Damian and Denise LeMons, a professional architect and footwear designer, respectively. Their idea was to create a shopping environment that brings culture and conscious living into the lives of people who want to be socially responsible consumers while maintaining their commitment to design and quality.
Co-founder Denise LeMons says, "We liken the CHIC-life experience to shopping at an international bazaar. The sights and sounds of the web pages and the products themselves invite the viewer into a stimulating, colorful world where a global assortment of unique treasures can be found. We're offering a cross-cultural element while creating an opportunity for emerging designers and fair trade artisans to reach a broader market segment."
The products, which are hand-picked by Denise and Damian, include eco-friendly and innovative home decor items, personal accessories, books, music, stationery, natural beauty & wellness products, interactive games, and unique products for kids and pets. The diverse product mix includes established names such as industrial designer Tord Boontje, International brands, Atelier Lzc from France and Sobral from Brazil among others.
"Our intention is to offer products that aren't just going to take up space in someone's home," LeMons explains. "These products have been chosen for their ability to unite, inspire, inform, entertain and excite the senses."
Examples of the imaginative multi-cultural products selected for CHIC-Life include:
-- Putumayo World Music -- Introduces people to global rhythms
from the world's many cultures
-- Mid-century modern mobiles from Denmark
-- Unique and cheeky Yoga accessories from Plank
-- Natural health and beauty products from Sundari Ayurveda,
Weleda Wellness and Nyakio Beauty
-- Eco-friendly bamboo handbags and recycled newspaper carry-alls
-- Handcrafted leather journals, stationary and soapstone
decor items from Africa
-- Wood vases and picture frames inspired by the works of
Calder, Miro and the Bauhaus style
CHIC-Life also invites visitors to join its blog community, CHIC-Voices, a weekly posting of articles, interviews, ideas and observations. The blog showcases ethnic diversity and raises awareness of lifestyle options, health & well-being, political and cultural issues and earth-friendly practices.
For more information or to arrange an interview with CHIC-Life principals, contact Denise LeMons by phone at: (323) 397-9817, or via email at: denisel@CHIC-life.com.
About Denise and Damian LeMons
As design professionals working in fashion and architecture, Denise and Damian LeMons are aligned perfectly with their primary passions: art, social responsibility and a multicultural world view. As global travelers and conscious consumers, the couple wanted to educate people about the aesthetics, mysticism and ecological values they'd absorbed from the world around them. They created CHIC-Life.com as a global forum through which to express these values.
The idea sprang from the themes inherent in their July 2006 wedding. Uninterested in an over-the-top, extravagant, overpriced affair, they incorporated small, yet meaningful earth-friendly practices into the ceremony. They chose a natural outdoor setting, used local vendors, organized car pools for guests, poured organic wines and used reclaimed glass centerpieces. Along with the eco-friendly theme, they also wanted to honor their unique cultural backgrounds. Denise is from Belize, Central America, and Damian's ancestry is from Southern Louisiana. Their two families represent a wide range of ethnicities, religions and cultures.
It is this multicultural perspective that forms the foundation of CHIC-Life. The site and its blog community speaks to the modern, global family by offering products that celebrate diversity.