Papillon has always been an idea in my mind. As far as I could remember, the story of a vulnerable caterpillar morphing into a butterfly – one of the most magnificent creatures, always captivated me. The idea of being vulnerable, going through a journey, and morphing into something mesmerizing appealed to me. I believe this is the story of every woman I see around me.
This belief always led me to be very comfortable in my skin. Whoever I am, however, I am, I am me! I was never a trend follower. I’d always go with something that made me feel comfortable and in control, and I loved shoes. Shoes are the only thing that has the instant power to make you feel comfortable in yourself.
Probably this is where I got this idea to start a handcrafted products brand that will enable women, empower them and help them with their journey of morphing into something spectacular. When choosing a name for my brand, I only had one obvious choice – Papillon, French for butterfly. Whenever any woman is wearing a Papillon product, she is not only wearing an excellently handcrafted article, but she is wearing a product that represents her journey. A piece of excellent artisanship that symbolizes the journey we all women are on.
The journey to morph into something spectacular!
STORY OF CHANGE, HOPE AND STRUGGLE.
Papillon is a french word which means butterfly. Butterfly is a fascinating creature. We praise butterfly for its mesmerizing colours and intricate shape but often forget the changes it goes through to achieve that beauty. We believe that us humans resonate in our respective journey and its changes to that of a butterfly.
The journey which begins as larva/caterpillar has to go through great miles to reach its destiny. It has to change and go through a major transformation from an egg to caterpillar and then magnificent butterfly. A tiny caterpillar nourish itself through consuming enormous amount of food. The consumed food at this stage is stored and used later during its time in a cocoon .As the caterpillar grows it splits its skin and sheds it about 4 or 5 times. Caterpillars have a hard protective layer that does not grow. As the soft interior of the caterpillar grows, it becomes necessary for it to shed its old outer layer so that a new one may form. W hen the caterpillar reaches adulthood, it enters into its cocoon. This is where the magic happens.it may look like nothing is happening, but it’s quite the contrary. All the preparations that the caterpillar made for its transition are now coming to fruition. All the while, the stillness of the outside is masking the activity on the inside.
The caterpillar will literally break down entirely on a cellular level and then reorganize itself into a new form. The transformation is spell binding.Once it’s ready to re-enter the world ,it struggles to push and pull its way out, with its soft wings . Its emergence as something else entirely, is nothing short of a miracle. As there is no easy way for a butterfly to get around this, the same is true for us. We must be willing to follow the process of change to emerge from our caterpillar lives.
Change is inevitable and often painful. But it is necessary to move towards the next chapter. We need to let go of our comfort zones, shed old skin of fear and embrace the change to be the best version of ourselves. When a caterpillar enters into a cocoon it goes through a tremendous struggle to become a butterfly. It takes time for this to happen from a few weeks to a month or even in some cases years. Struggle is an inherent part of our lives. We all are struggling in some way at some point in our own domains. But nothing is permanent. Painful experiences come and go if we allow them passage through us. We need to trust that our personal battles are leading us toward our destiny. It might not show up in the way we expect, yet it is always working behind the scenes. The beauty of struggle is the opportunity that lies ahead.