Get to know the Founders of Melbourne based accessory brand Sun Diaries, Molly and Poppy Newton. This sister duo launched Sun Diaries in 2022 as a way to encapsulate all things summer, with the aim to create beautiful statement pieces that bring a sense of confidence and will brighten any outfit.
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Names
Molly & Poppy
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Star Signs
Molly: Scorpio | Poppy: Capricorn
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IG Handles
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Why did you start your business?
We have always dreamed of starting a business together and we both have a love for fashion and being creative. We like to keep an eye on upcoming trends and new fashion pieces that haven’t yet reached Australia. We love drawing inspiration for our own outfits from Scandinavian fashion and noticed the 90s trend of pendant necklaces resurfacing. We were dying to get our hands on one but couldn’t find anywhere in Australia selling them. We realised that surely we weren't the only ones wanting one, so this is when we decided to start our own brand and create our own pieces.
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Is there a meaning behind the name Sun Diaries?
We absolutely love summer, it's by far our favourite time of the year. Some of our best memories are from holidays to warm tropical places. We could spend hours at the beach and in the water, and definitely feel our best in summer, so we really wanted a name that would encapsulate this feeling. When we came up with Sun Diaries, we knew it was the one straight away and we’re so glad we named our brand this.
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Where does your brand inspiration come from?
We find inspiration in many different ways! We love looking back on vintage fashion, and unique, special pieces that can’t be found today. However, we think our ultimate inspiration comes from nature and summertime.
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What were you doing prior to starting Sun Diaries?
Molly: I was studying a Bachelor of Communications - Public Relations at RMIT University! I graduated at the end of last year so it’s been amazing to work on the business full time this year. I’ve also interned at a few PR agencies in Melbourne & worked in both retail and social media.
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Poppy: The year we started Sun Diaries I was taking a gap year after finishing school. It felt so nice to be able to delve into my more creative side when working on our business as I didn’t really get to do this during year 12. Now I am studying a double degree of Law and Science while continuing to work on Sun Diaries.
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Who is your style icon?
Molly: Definitely Matilda Djerf. She is my ultimate fashion inspo, I really just love everything about her!
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Poppy: I have so many! But, I absolutely love Hailey Bieber’s fashion. She nails her off-duty/street-style looks, as well as her more glam looks.
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Biggest brand milestone
For us, the biggest milestone so far has been seeing all our beautiful customers wear our pieces. It’s honestly the most incredible feeling whenever we see someone wearing Sun Diaries out and about. It’s also been amazing to receive so much love and support from influencers that we’ve followed and looked up to. When Tammy Hembrow posted and tagged Sun Diaries we couldn’t believe it! It’s still so surreal to us and we are just so happy that people love our pieces as much as we do.
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Favourite piece you've released
Molly: I would probably say our Heart Necklace, I especially love wearing it with white rope. It’s such a staple in my wardrobe!
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Poppy: I always find myself reaching for our Gold Circle Necklace with brown rope. It's a classic piece that looks good with so many different outfits! I also love our Cream Crochet Headband, especially for wearing in summer at the beach.
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Typical day in your life?
Everyday is slightly different but we usually love to start the day with a reformer pilates class or a walk. Coffee of course too! We then usually head into the office to get started on work. Daily tasks on our to-do list usually include admin work, packing orders, meetings with our manufacturers, designing new collections and working on our marketing/PR strategy. We love working on Sun Diaries and feel so grateful that we get to do this everyday.
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Advice to someone starting their own business
Believe in yourself. If you genuinely love what you’re producing, then chances are that other people will too! Although there will definitely be some challenges along the way, the result is so rewarding and so worth it.
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A quote you live by
‘If you can dream it, you can do it’
