Paola Mapelli, co-founder of The Maptique Studio, has built over the years a world shaped by creativity, travel, and contemporary lifestyle. Today, however, alongside her work and projects, there is a new dimension that has changed the way she experiences everyday life: motherhood. On the occasion of Mother’s Day, she shares this new chapter of her life.
Between creativity and lifestyle: who is Paola Mapelli
Paola Mapelli is co-founder of The Maptique Studio, a Milan-based creative boutique agency born from the intersection of travel culture, fashion, branding, and contemporary storytelling.
After international experiences across Seoul, Shanghai, New York, and London, she built, together with Agnese Violati, a project capable of transforming a passion for discovery and aesthetics into a recognizable, refined, and deeply personal creative language.
Behind the cosmopolitan image and the dynamic pace of her work, a more intimate dimension also emerges: that of motherhood, experienced as a quiet yet radical change, capable of redefining priorities, time, and sensitivity.
On the occasion of Mother’s Day, we met Paola to talk about balance, everyday life, and how becoming a mother has changed the way she lives — and sees — the world.
Paola Mapelli shares her story
A personal and authentic story about what it means today, for Paola Mapelli, to be a mother.
What aspect of your life has changed the most since becoming a mother?
Paola: Definitely my outlook on life itself and my openness to the world. I think life has completely changed — it’s true what they say, in every sense. Of course, you no longer have the freedom to do things as if you were the only one who existed, and you no longer think only about yourself or your partner, so there are the usual considerations. But I believe it has made me lighter, better, and more balanced; it has certainly reaffirmed for me the beauty of life, joy, the amplification of emotions, and gratitude in all its forms.
Children teach us something every day: would you like to share what your daughter Aria has taught you in these first years of her life?
Paola: She has taught me patience and the joy of discoveries and small gestures. I used to be impatient and always on the go, now I am much more «calm». I truly love the time I spend with her, so she has taught me to be selective, to think about the fact that everything passes and everything flows, sometimes even too quickly. She has helped me focus more. And the beauty of discovering the world together is priceless.
What was the first item/accessory you bought when you found out you were pregnant? And the first gift you received?
Paola: My first purchase was a few pieces by a French friend of mine, a childrenswear designer based in Lisbon, Paloma Collection. In reality, I bought very little for myself, preferring to reinterpret oversized pieces from my own wardrobe and my husband’s.
The first gift I received was a bracelet with her name on it, while my first gift for her was a beautiful painting.
If you could describe your motherhood with an image, a feeling, or a word, what would it be today?
Paola: Infinite joy, colorful. A bit like a beach that sees all seasons: dawn, rain, sun, sunset, starry sky…
Today we celebrate mothers: if you could send a message to the Paola of the past, the one about to embark on this journey, what would you say to her?
Paola: I would do it all over again, sometimes with more lightness and less stress, but that’s part of the journey of awareness. I would say: well done Paola, what a beautiful life you have lived and built!