ABOUT

 

OUR BRAND

Founded in 2020 by Emily Morrison, Elysian hopes to bring you on a journey of inspiration and exploration. Each Elysian piece is a window into a world filled with vibrant colors, rich patterns and luxurious textures rooted in history. Collaborating with our artisan partners in Turkey, we design statement pieces with a modern bohemian aesthetic using traditional ikat patterns and designs that are both current and timeless. Our collections utilize one-of-a-kind textiles from the Silk Road, combining centuries-old dyeing and weaving techniques from Uzbekistan and Central Asia.

At Elysian, we believe in a layered life. Whether it is collecting treasured pieces from around the world for your home or accessorizing with a statement piece to transform your style, textiles and goods that reflect individuality and elegant worldliness can enrich your life with beauty and character and inspire confidence and joy. Handcrafted with livable luxury in mind, our designs are meant to be transitional, effortless pieces and are to be lived in for an elevated daily life.

OUR STORY

Travel has always been Emily’s passion. Her adventurous spirit took her on many voyages, including a spontaneous trip to Turkey in 2019 that forever changed the course of her life. From Bodrum to Cappadocia to Istanbul, she encountered an unexpected world of history, beauty and charm. She was drawn in by the lure of the Silk Road and the bustling stalls of the Grand Bazaar, and found herself transfixed with the intricate patterns, the playful use of color and the multitude of ways a tulip or pomegranate was depicted. The beauty and culture surrounded her, but the people drew her in. Before she knew it, she was making friends with tailors, cobblers, artists and designers; friends that were calling her sister and her husband brother.  

After coming home from Turkey filled with suitcases of new treasures to share with friends and family, Emily could not stop thinking about the people she had connected with and the vibrancy of life that was reflected in the patterns she brought home. The colors and craftsmanship awakened something inside of her, something that could not be put to rest. 

With a background in law and finance, and after 16 years on Wall Street surrounded by numbers, Emily decided it was time to tap into her fearless spirit and turn her passion into her purpose. Inspired by the incredible artisans, unexpected friendships and rich experiences she encountered in Turkey, Emily started Elysian as a pop-up series to share some of that inspiration. Selling out over and over again, she went back to Turkey; and without a set course or plan, her mantra became “leap and the net will appear”.  After popping up around the country and launching an e-commerce business, Emily opened a storefront on Magazine Street in the fall of 2020. Based in New Orleans, Emily travels back and forth to Turkey and around the world to design products with her artisan partners.

Today, Elysian hopes to continue this journey of a woman striking out on her own, following her passion and exploring the unknown. The promise of a world of adventure.  

THE INSPIRATION

Travel has always been Emily’s passion. It is hard not to fall in love with Istanbul, the most romantic city in the world. It is the land where East meets West, where thousands of years of civilizations overlap in Central Asia. Known to the world for centuries as Constantinople, it was the capital of the Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman Empires. The Silk Road stretched from Asia to the Mediterranean, but all roads wove through Constantinople, as it controlled trade from the Black Sea to the Aegean. This network of ancient trade routes brought with it art, culture, architecture, religion and philosophy. From the intricate tiles in the Topkapi Palace, the gorgeous mosaics in the Rustern Pasa Mosque and majestic Ottoman buildings along the Bopshorous landscape, the deep history and foundation of richness is found throughout daily life in Istanbul today.