IN THE RAW — NATALIE NELSON & NALIA

While this past wild year has presented endless opportunities for illumination and reflection for us, this Mother's Day has us thinking deeply and a little differently about mothering and the value of care. As a tight-knit, women-led team of mamas and daughters, we have always loved and honored the mothers and mother-figures in all of our lives, but over this latest season of upheaval, we have also been deeply humbled and awe-struck by the intense strength and resilient beauty manifested by the mothers in our OZMA universe.


Mothers, by their very nature, are the ultimate world-builders and, with time and hope, the visions they dream and make real for their children become the reality for us all. At a time when uncertainty has ruled, hurts needing to be soothed have multiplied, and joy must be tenderly nourished, we see the mothers stepping up. We sat down to talk with one of our favorite OZMA mamas (AND style maven, dear friend, excellent human, and total BOSS...mothers contain multitudes), Natalie Nelson—who lives and works in Vancouver with her partner and fiercely smart and luminous daughter Nalia—about the beautiful and aching contradictions of motherhood, the value of lightness, and what promises the future holds.


And to all of the OZMA daughters and mamas on Mother's Day—wherever you may be on your journey in, towards, or away from motherhood—we are sending the biggest love!



Natalie wears the Layne Jumpsuit, and Nalia wears the Lou Tee and Dot Hankie in Oak.

  

  

  

  





What is the most unexpectedly beautiful thing about motherhood for you? The most shockingly difficult?

The kindness I receive from my daughter. Navigating the unbound emotional landscape of a little one. 

 

 

You and Heidi used to work and travel the world together. She has said you have the best "outlook on life" of anyone she knows. If you had to define or describe your point of view, how would you?

Life is constantly throwing us curveballs, and I'm determined to face them with a smile and a lot of laughs. Working on the thing that I love has been great, and keeping things light and enjoyable for those around me is a purpose I hold dear.

Since becoming a mother, my outlook on life has remained the same, but my perspective and joy in the world that surrounds me has grown. The conversations that I have with my daughter as I'm putting her to bed every evening gives me that "dawn of the morning" feeling of freshness and opportunity.



The past year—in work, in parenting, and in life—has highlighted some central themes of mothering: the requirements of strength and need for flexibility. How have you managed the tension between toughness (fortitude) and gentleness (resilience)?

Edibles. Wine. Microdosing. I joke. The reality is that motherhood in any circumstance is never short of that tension. From breakfast to bedtime, I have to straddle the line of a firm parent and loving mama bear. I'm getting better at setting the boundaries that give me the mental space to manage the tension.




  

  

 

Natalie wears the Maggie Crop and Aquarius Pant, and Nalia wears the Lou Tee and Dot Hankie in Oak.





 

 

Natalie wears the Marta Dress. 

  

  

  

  

 

  





How has motherhood shifted your person style?

I was fortunate to have Nalia in my late 30s and so I got to enter my 40s and motherhood with a healthy shift in lifestyle that pairs my casual denim vibes with pieces that capture my love for sustainability and laid-back lifestyle.

 

 

Motherhood (and Mother's Day specifically) always makes us feel connected to the lineage of mothers that came before and, obviously, the endless sense of possibility inherent in those who made us mothers. In the interest of that interconnectivity: What is your connection to the past?

I surround myself with the strong and iconic women of the past; they inform my creative pursuits, and I channel their spirit in how I approach my life as a mother.

 

 

What is your hope for the present?

Long evenings outside with family and friends.

 

 

What is your dream for the future?

I look forward to the trips I will go on with my daughter, sharing my favorite places around the world with her.

 



 

 

Follow Natalie on Instagram here. Photography by Gillian Stevens.

 

  

 

 

 

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