Origins
A love letter to what lasts
Damascena isn’t just a business.
It’s a story I’ve spent my whole life uncovering.
It didn’t arrive fully formed.
It revealed itself slowly — like a memory returning.
It began in the pages of fairy tales and second-hand bookshops.
In the quiet gravity of old stone churches.
In handwritten letters, marginal notes, and stories that carried more meaning than the moment they were written for.
It deepened through history lectures and heritage projects, through years of noticing that I felt more at home in continuity than in noise — more drawn to what endured than to what was new.
But this isn’t about nostalgia.
It’s about remembering what matters — and learning how to carry it forward.
The name
Damascena
Damascena takes its name from the rose — a bloom prized not only for its beauty, but for its use.
A rose distilled for healing.
For scent.
For ceremony.
Never decoration alone, but devotion.
This work is the same.
what we do
How Damascena moves through the world
This work isn’t transactional.
It’s relational. Intentional. Sometimes sacred.
It is slow design and quiet strategy.
Ancient symbolism, considered language, attentive craft.
It chooses meaning over marketing noise.
Depth over scale.
Continuity over performance.
It is work made to last — work your children could recognise, understand, and perhaps one day continue.
a closing note
At Damascena, I work with a small number of aligned clients each year so that every story is given the care it deserves.
If you feel that quiet nudge — that sense that your work holds more meaning than you’ve yet been able to name — I would be honoured to walk beside you.