Simone van Trojen of LaDress

Simone van Trojen (53) founded her fashion label LaDress sixteen years ago. Unable to find the right dress for her work as an independent entrepreneur, she simply designed one herself. After that first dress, available in four different colours, many more followed. Today LaDress is known as the online store where you can find the perfect outfit for any occasion, and Simone no longer runs the business alone but with a dedicated team and two business partners, Esther and Pieter. The collection comprises around 250 pieces, made from a set range of fabrics in a varied palette of colours. The pieces work beautifully tone on tone, with the fabrics combined together too. Because everything from LaDress is crease-free, Simone wears it outside working hours as well. Just before she boards her flight to Thailand in her own Palermo black and Farrah black, we catch her for a quick chat.

Off on holiday somewhere nice?

“Beau (19) and Lise (18) finished school last summer and Lise is taking a gap year. She worked at LaDress, but in the middle of January she set off for Asia with a friend to go backpacking there for six months. We are flying to Bangkok now, meeting them at the airport and then travelling as a family of four to Koh Samui and Koh Phangan. I cannot wait to see her.”

Do you often take time off?

“I love to travel, so we try to go away together as often as we can. But when you run your own business you are never really off the clock. Whether I have time off or I am on holiday, my mind is always on it and I am constantly being inspired. You always see things you love. That is what I find wonderful about what I do.”

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Babassu X LaDress Special Event

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So where do you find your relaxation?

“I take great pleasure in the gestures of life. Early this morning I was walking Tommie and everything was still deserted. I really enjoy that moment when the city slowly wakes up. I love being with my family, but I also relax with films and documentaries. I am a real friends person too and love going out to eat with my girlfriends. My favourite restaurant is Café Parlotte in Amsterdam. I also take great pleasure in a good book. At the moment I am reading Captain Corelli’s Mandolin by Louis de Bernières, and last week I read a truly beautiful book, The Most Secret Memory of Men. Reading is how I find my calm. Real relaxation matters a great deal to me. But I also find cleansing my face relaxing, for instance. I am a huge fan of the brand Santa Maria Novella and love soapy scents.”

Which beauty ritual makes you happy?

“Every single morning I roll my day cream into the skin of my face and neck with a jade roller. I also dry brush. I have the dry brush by The Organic Pharmacy and brush my dry skin before I step into the shower. After showering I massage in the body oil by Santa Maria Novella. I love scent, so much. In the home as well. I always buy flowers and often light the Delhi incense sticks by Astier de Villatte. They make me intensely happy.”

Does looking after your appearance matter to you?

“It matters to me to look well groomed. With make-up, I try to look as natural as possible. I use Secret Camouflage and the Loose Setting Powder by Laura Mercier. I also always wear the Caviar Stick in Cacao by Laura Mercier on my eyes. For my hair I often go to Mogeen, for my facials to Babassu and for my nails to Lacque Boutique. All in Amsterdam, where I live.”

Do you have a beauty secret?

“I believe in drinking huge, huge, huge amounts of water and I take plenty of vitamin C as a supplement. Since I started (touch wood), the flu passes me by.”

Which product or treatment is sacred to you?

“The connective tissue massage. I book it regularly. A good night’s sleep matters to me too. To drift off nicely I always spray the Deep Relax Sleep Mist by Aromaterapy Associates onto my pillows. It has a lovely soft scent of chamomile and wood. During the day I like to wear Molecule 01 by Escentric Molecules, because it is so subtle.”