Why I Waded Into a Rainforest to Design a Bath Collection
I didn't expect to find myself jumping off rocks into a rushing rainforest river on a work trip to design a bath collection for The Condado Vanderbilt. But that's Puerto Rico. It has a way of pulling you in deeper than you planned. I came home with muddy shoes, a slightly sprained knee, and a full heart.
The collection is called MINA, and the moment I heard the name, I understood why. MINA is La Mina Falls, the sacred waterfall that feeds El Yunque. It's also the Spanish word for the gold mines that conquistadors sought for centuries. And it's yours: mine, in English. One name, three truths, one island.
Old San Juan
Walking the cobblestone streets of Old San Juan is like moving through time. The buildings that line these narrow lanes are a feast of color. But here's a detail that stopped me: those vibrant facades were not always this way. Historically, the buildings were whitewashed. The colors came later, introduced to help visitors navigate and fall in love with the city. What began as a wayfinding gesture became the character of the place. Beauty, once invited in, becomes identity.
The ancient fortresses rising from the cliffs are a reminder that so many civilizations fought for this island. For centuries, Puerto Rico was the gateway to the Americas. Spanish, British, Dutch — they all came. Puerto Rico absorbed every wave and made it her own. You hear it on the streets today. People move between Spanish and English mid-sentence, without missing a beat. It's a place that holds two worlds simultaneously. That duality is the invisible architecture beneath everything we designed.
Before I even set foot on the streets, I was already in conversation with color. The Condado Vanderbilt is steeped in various shades of pink. Polished rose walls, original glass chandeliers, brass details and Art Deco style all radiate the same warmth and glamour that have defined this hotel since 1919 when heir Frederick William Vanderbilt sought to build the finest resort destination in the Caribbean and commissioned Warren and Wetmore — the architectural firm behind Grand Central Terminal — to create the island's first luxury hotel.
That rose-and-gold interior became our palette accent. The deep forest green of the bottle represents El Yunque, the Island’s ancient rainforest, distilled. The color story didn't come from a mood board. It came from standing in that corridor and understanding what it felt like to be held by a place.
The Rum Tour
I also didn't expect a rum tour to become one of my most creatively inspiring afternoons.
Rum is Puerto Rico. It’s a craft tradition, tied to the sugarcane fields that once defined the island's economy and identity. The distillation process, the patience, the way time and Caribbean heat slowly create something complex and beautiful, felt like a lesson in design process: something that’s still becoming. I carried that with me.
When I returned home, I studied rum labels and bottle shapes obsessively. The letterforms, the contrast between thick and thin strokes, wide and narrow width fonts on the same label. It mirrors my experience of the island. Reggaeton pulsing through every street in Old San Juan, then complete silence the moment you step into the rainforest. Celebratory and still. Bold and restrained. MINA holds the same contrast.
El Yunque
If the hotel gave me the color palette, Old San Juan gave me the history, and the rum tour gave me the philosophy, El Yunque gave me the soul.
The moment you step inside, you understand why it's sacred. The air is heavy with moisture, alive with green. The coquí frog calls from somewhere you'll never find it. Touch the vergonzosa and it folds away from you, then slowly reopens when it decides you're safe.
I waded deep into the forest, water rushing through ancient rock, and canopies of ferns over my head. The green in there is unlike any I've seen, saturated, almost unreal. That green became the MINA bottle. Every time a guest reaches for it, they are, in some small way, reaching into El Yunque.
While I focused on fonts, bottle shape, and brand development, our Product Development team created the beautiful 100% natural oil scent that follows the same logic: vibrant citrus and green at the top, sprinkled with cedarwood and vetiver, the calm that settles after tropical rain.
The logo came last, and it came naturally. Watching the sunrise from my balcony, I sketched what I'd witnessed — cliffs, waterfalls, ocean light — until it became a single mark that fit the art deco space.
At LATHER, we want every guest to feel like the collection they use was made for them. MINA is a conversation between past and present, rendered in a design language that belongs entirely to now. Puerto Rico does that. It holds its roots and its future simultaneously. I'm so grateful to be crafting something in its honor.
From the design studio,
Kristen Merry
Creative Director, LATHER Custom