Natalia del Rivero
Creative Director, Del Rivero Design
Natalia, what part of being a first-time parent has you most excited? What about the most nervous?
We’ve waited a long time to be parents so there are many things that excite me about our baby boy’s arrival. I’m excited to see his face and curious to see if he will take after my husband Chris (I hope he does)! I’m not a particularly nervous person by nature… so rather than nervous I would say I’m overwhelmed by the lack of sleep in my future!
Who - among your friends and family - do you most admire as a parent and why? What will you borrow from them?
My own parents. They aren’t perfect but it is precisely in those imperfections that I have learned so much as a child and as an adult. They always provided me and my sister with more than we needed and have given us a life full of opportunity, love and adventure. There are many things I will borrow but mostly my mother’s joie de vivre and my father’s patience and guidance with academics and career choices. And of course, they’re general abundance of love for us.
Since you are a woman with impeccable and very thoughtful taste, do you have things you're certain you'll either do or avoid for your son's nursery?
Funny you should ask. I started renovating our home office without knowing I was pregnant so I splurged on a fabric from Nobilis Paris to reupholster the sofa and pillows and shortly thereafter found out I was pregnant. Thankfully I had chosen a neutral palette – not all was lost! The sofa and pillows ended up guiding the final direction of the room. I now wonder if I would have done things very differently had I known what the room was for (i.e. chosen blue) but I’m thrilled with the way it looks so I’m happy either way. I’m definitely keeping most toys in the walk-in closet vs on display or around the room. I’m a neat freak and like clean, open spaces without clutter. He’s going to have to learn the “one toy out, one toy in” rule pretty quickly!
Has your style or manner of dressing changed a huge amount during pregnancy? What are you reaching for most often these days?
To be perfectly honest I am not someone who enjoys the journey of pregnancy. I’m forever grateful that I finally have a chance to become a mother but I do not like the ride. Getting dressed has had its uncomfortable moments for sure but I think the seasonal timing has worked for me. I already owned many long, flowy summer dresses that I’ve been able to wear throughout (minus tiny cinched belts) and have purchased a couple of bathing suits. I do miss high-waisted trousers! Very. Much.
Where and how do you gather inspiration for a new brand project when you launch a project as your Studio?
Books! I love books and my entire apartment is filled with them everywhere you turn. I also love going to museums, galleries, the cinema and looking through a large binder of items I collect on my travels (think maps, business cards, receipts, postcards etc.) The more time goes by the less time I want to spend on my phone or computer. That said, I do use online resources like Pinterest, Mindsparkle Mag, BP & O, and other fellow designers’ websites.
Where and how do you keep concepts, inspiration and visuals that you are fond of?
As I mentioned, I keep visual pieces I’m fond of in a binder as well as a physical board I keep near my desk at the office. Most of my Project and Client mood boards however, are done digitally. I keep those final mood boards in the respective Client folder on our server together with a separate folder labeled “swipe” containing everything I gathered initially even if it didn’t make it to the final board. You never know when you might want to use an image for something else!
What are some of your favorite shopping destinations - online or in person - for home, womenswear, maternity, or now - baby?
Spoiler alert: I’m not a huge shopper! I don’t enjoy it as an activity but rather prefer to shop when I travel or when I need something specific be it for my home or my wardrobe. Below are some of my favourite stores and brands.
Home: Cote A Coast, Homenature, Eskandar New York, Matilda Goad, Dear Keaton, Rue Vintage 74, The Conran Shop, Design Within Reach, many antique stores in Madrid, Pamono and 1st Dibs.
Baby: Jacadi, Land of Bebe, Smallable, Friki Showroom Madrid, Atelier La Nonna, Bonpoint, Mama Madejas, Nicoli, Olivier Baby, Bonnet A Pompon and Condor Barcelona for knits.
Womenswear: Agolde, Zara, Chanel, Aquazurra, Massimo Dutti, Theory, Simon Miller, Mascob, Zara Home for nightgowns, vintage finds, and a lot of small shops in Europe.
How has your aesthetic or approach to starting with clients and branding in general changed over the course of owning your agency - seven years in?
My aesthetic has decidedly become cleaner and more refined. I like simple with a flair of personality. I do believe less is more in almost every aspect of life aesthetically and strategically speaking. The thing that has changed the most is my design process – where I begin and how I get to the end goal. I’ve also become very fond of taking on fewer Clients and/or Projects and nurturing a deeper longstanding relationship with those I take on instead of acquiring volume for volume’s sake.
How do you expect you'll structure your time between work and being a new parent - in the first six months - and then beyond then?
It’s easy to have a plan but who knows how that will turn out in the end. I’d like to go back to work after 3 months… I’m a rather restless person and like and need to be intellectually stimulated. I suspect the first few months back might be in a part-time capacity while we find our groove as a new family of four (I always include my dachshund Chuchi) though I hope to be fully operating sooner rather than later. I’m also open to change in my career if that’s what the future holds for me. I love to reinvent myself! I became a Pilates instructor 3 and a half years ago and continue to teach 16 hrs a week at present so who knows what awaits on the other side of pregnancy!
As a woman who has roots and continuous ties to Spain, how do you think you'll manage to connect your son to this place that holds such importance in your life?
I will certainly speak to him in Spanish as soon as he arrives and have already started curating his little library of Spanish books. A big everyday component will be homemade Spanish food and mealtime at home once he starts eating solids while making sure he hears a lot of stories about home and our heritage. We also have an apartment in Madrid where we spend a lot of time so hopefully, travel back and forth as well as summers in Europe will put it all together for him! I grew up in London from age 1-12 and am both incredibly English and Spanish in different ways. I never felt like I wasn’t connected to my culture, language, or Spanish family so I’m hoping the same will be true for him. 
Shop Natalia's Look: Smocked Cotton Dress
