About

Hola

Hi, my name is Karmele and I live in the Basque Country (North of Spain)

After earning my BFA some years ago, I’ve lived in different areas of Spain (Bilbao, Zaragoza, Barcelona) and in Germany. I’ve worked in graphic design and restoration of Roman frescoes and vintage books.

From 2008 to 2009 I lived near Salzburg, close to the border of Germany and Austria. Since summers there can be as hot a in Spain and air conditioning is very rare, a black fan from Barcelona proved to be my best companion during the muggy days of July. One afternoon on the train back home, a woman asked me if she could use my fan. She loved fans but wasn’t able to find them in Germany and Austria.

Soon after coming back to Spain my black fan broke and I decided to make one myself with fabric I loved. Reminded of the woman on the train, I thought there could be other people out there who would love to keep cool with a unique hand fan, so I made more with original Spanish wooden staves and different kinds of cotton fabrics.

My fans are limited edition. I usually make two to four fans from each print, but the fan turns out to be one of a kind depending on the pattern placement. I love playing with patterns and colours and making patchwork-like combinations.

I also accept custom designed orders, and I have made several left-handed fans.

Each Olelé hand fan comes with a handmade case to avoid damage.