In this Mother’s Day feature, we take a peek at the lovey-dovey relationship between Ginette Chittick and her adorable daughter, Luella
Not all heroines wear capes; we’re referring to all you supermums out there! We’re always struck with a surge of inspiration every time we hear about a badass mum who does it all, and this Mother’s Day, we’re showing love to a woman who we crowned as one of the women in Singapore who inspire us, Ginette Chittick.
Fashion lecturer at LASALLE College of the Arts and designer for her label FruFru & Tigerlily, frontwoman and bassist of shoegaze band Astreal, and prolific DJ who inspired a generation of scenesters at the now-defunct Home Club, Ginette is an icon of the local community who’s also the proud mum of daughter, Luella (a real cutie pie, she is!). We recently took a tour of her humble abode and had a chat about how she juggles it all, and how motherhood has changed her life.
Make sure you watch the video! These scenes will melt your heart.
Hey Ginette! So what do you love most about being a mum?
Waking up in the morning to this cute little face! She’ll ‘paw’ me going, “Mummy, wake up, wake up!” while trying to open my eyelids. But it’s also the realisation that I made this human who’s now running around while being so cute… and so sentient. I made her in my stomach factory! That is so amazing to me. It’s also really the power of science, because – and I want to make sure that people know this – Luella is an IVF baby. So science made this happen for me. It blows my mind.
What would you say is the biggest challenge that you face in motherhood?
Being very careful about who I am, and portraying how I am to my daughter. The things that I do for her or with her can have big repercussions in the future, so I have to be very careful because I myself am very impulsive and impatient. Sometimes, I’ll see someone rude on the MRT and go, “Hey!”. But then, I’ll remember I have to keep calm.
We’re sure you’ve taught Luella loads. But what has she taught you, Ginette?
Luella has taught me patience, and has given me new eyes to the world; every time she sees something new, I have to make it really exciting for her since she’s excited as well, and I don’t wanna be a wet blanket! Through them, I see the world in new, bright colours – lots of smiles and laughter.
You’re obviously a supermum. How do you juggle it all?
I’m just really lucky to have found all these different people and institutions that help me grow as a creative person. I’m fortunate working at LASALLE College of the Arts; they are very encouraging of all your creative pursuits and they celebrate that. If I’m recording an album for my band, my family becomes really supportive for the intense few months that follow. And when I do my weaving, the school allows me to have a day off during the week to do all my creative research. But also, if you want to do something, you just find the time to do it!
Do you have a personal ethos that guides you through life?
I have a thirst for knowledge. I like to find out about things, and it’s usually through doing; that also informs how my motherhood is. To borrow the term from a famous brand, “just do it”! If you really find out that you can’t, at least you know that you’ve tried. That’s what guides me through my life.
Would you consider yourself a cool mum?
I hope so! I hope that Luella doesn’t look at me in the future and go, “Stop kissing me, Mum!”. And hopefully, when I’m older, I’ll still be able to do these cool things. But I don’t do them because I want them to be cool, but simply because they’re super fun to do. I would still like to be cool… ish [laughs].
Don’t forget to show love to your own mum with these Mother’s Day dinners, events, and things to do, and our ultimate gift guide for mums!