Meet Isabel Penne

Who is Isabel?

I was born in East Flanders and studied German languages at KU Leuven. It was my dream to teach, but the labour market has decided otherwise, and I am not sorry about that.

As a consequence of my hostess-job during my study time (my first official shawl moments) I became Alumni Responsible. In 2000, I organized the 575th anniversary of KU Leuven, which involved quite some fundraising efforts. In 2001, the Leuven University Fund was established, and I became director in 2006. I love matching two parties: on the one hand people who want to donate money for a specific purpose, on the other hand people who work hard on those charities and need financial support.

I have a lovely family, with two sons and two grandsons.

Love. Cherish. Connect …. are the values of Fulardo and it is also the name of the first collection. What do those values mean in your life, Isabel?

Love
My grandchildren! How children live their lives …. They have no ulterior motives, everything they do and say is pure and sincere. Besides, my grandchildren always wear beautiful wool scarves, I noticed.

Cherish
Moments. Around the table with family and friends, I really enjoy it!

Connect
I love networking. It’s a must in my function, but it is also my nature! The nice thing about a scarf is that it is an excellent conversation starter. Complement someone with his beautiful scarf and you are connected!

How many scarves do you have and how does your scarf dresser look like?

I did not count them but it guess about 200. Included a lot of beautiful scarves that I got from my mother’s collection. And I prefer not to make a photo of my shawl dresser… , which looks rather messy, I admit.

Why are you a scarf addict?

For me, a scarf is like a jewel. It completes your outfit, brings it to a higher level. A beautiful scarf can revive a very sober garment.

When do you wear your scarves?

Almost always for events. And I combine certain specific scarves with specific outfits.

What is your favourite way of wearing your scarf?

Ha! I only have one. Just simply around the neck. There is still room for improvement here, isn’t there?

What is your favourite Love. Cherish, Connect. scarf?

The blue one! The colours light up completely.

You donate a Love. Cherish. Connect. shawl to … No, we won’t reveal the name yet, but can you give us a hint?

Well, today I have discovered that we both are born in East Flanders. We met in our professional life, where we developed a lot of respect for each other. When the pressure on our family life eased as the children grew up, we also met in free time and our relationship became very friendly.

To be continued 🙂

– November 29, 2017 –

Do you want to donate: https://www.kuleuven.be/mecenaat

Do you want to purchase a Fulardo scarf: https://fulardo.be/en/webshop/