Hello, my name is Margaret Belder
While cycling the dikes of a windswept Southwest Holland on my way to school every day and plowing my way into a storm, I was as a young teenager more than aware that only a pair of jeans and a cotton summer jacket would leave me shivering in the cold.
Still I was too stubborn and left my rain suit at home, braving the weather with only that. Rain suits in those days were like oil skins, ready to sail away with on a fishers boat, but to cycle in it? No way!
After my graduation at the fashion academy and more than ready to start as a designer, I knew I did not want to make fashion alone. For me fashion seemed temporary and irrelevant. Not that it actually is so, but I wanted to make something that, apart from being beautiful, would last and protect you from the elements. Since than I enjoyed working with numerous companies that offered me the possibility to grow into the experienced and qualified designer of sports and outdoor apparel and accessories I am now. When I left my last employer in 2016 I went into business for myself at Maggie=
Walter and I love long distance walks and we fortunately managed to hike in places like Scotland, Sicily and Peru. Enjoying the different sights and local people within close distance.
Half an hour’s rides by bike to school are nothing compared to a genuine trek through the windy moors and bare rolling hills of Scotland or a true hike to the tops of Munros like Ben Nevis, where the weather can be unpredictable and treacherous.
Conditions like these you simply cannot ignore and with respect to that and to the people living there you prepare yourselves with not only the essential food and drinks, but also with the protection of warm and waterproof clothing, sturdy boots and a comfortable backpack that won’t leave you with backaches after one day walking.
I developed a true love for products with a significant role for function, quality and design. It is not only by traveling, visiting museums and attending fairs, but also by following workshops, courses and training on a regular basis, that I continue to be inspired and improve my creative skills and stay well-informed of developments in the market.
Blending the experience of our travels and my longtime work as a designer in creating products for sports and outdoor gives me the most joy and fun.
Meantime my other fortune is seeing our children growing up and enjoy sharing the practice of drawing and handwork together.
If you like you can click here to view my illustrations and drawings. Otherwise, my design work is presented throughout this website.
Enjoy!