"Adê de Canela" is a name chosen ritualistically and blessed by the Búzios Oracle.
ADÊ is the Yoruba crown worn during celebratory rites in honour of the Orixás. Here, the Adê marks the presence of Brazil’s multicultural folklore, an essential element of the brand that inspires each of its collections.
CANELA (cinnamon), besides being the spice of love, care, sensuality and alchemy, it’s also the spice that names “Gabriela Cravo e Canela”: a character from Brazilian literature who is now part of modern Brazilian folklore. The founder’s namesake.
Meet the founder
Hello, I’m Gabriela Lotaif, and Adê de Canela was born from powerful forces that move me: Brazilian folklore, my Arabic ancestry, and my deep connection with Afro-Brazilian Yoruba cultures.
My passion for meaningful adornments emerged at this intersection of stories, bodies, and rituals. As a costume designer, I’ve spent years working with characters, symbols, and materials — always seeking to express what words often cannot. This language of form and intention became the creative seed for Adê de Canela.
So powerful was this call that I chose to launch the project while preparing for my own wedding. Alongside my family and bridesmaids, we wore prototypes from Drop 1 and Drop 2 during the celebrations. Designing and wearing those headpieces — in such an emotionally sacred moment — was a profound gift. That’s the experience I wish to offer: a piece that holds meaning, memory, and connection.
To honour this vision with ethics and consciousness, I sought mentorship, spiritual guidance, and collaboration. I received blessings from a Ialorixá and travelled to ancestral Arab lands to study ancient headdresses. With the support of Moken Studio, I shaped a business model that could sustain beauty, storytelling, and positive impact.
What you see here is the result of many women’s work, intention, and care. I'm deeply grateful for the path that brought us here.
The team
Francesca Migliore
Fran was Adê de Canela 's first ever intern. She has been working closely with our founder as we came to life, they brought Adê de Canela into life and prototyped our first ever products! They spent time looking into our first exhibitions' inspirational energies and visuals, deciding on colours, materials, shapes, sizes and finally manifesting all their creative endeavours into true celebratory amulets. Thank you Fran!
Gabriella Burns
Gabby interned at Adê de Canela right after Fran, she has helped our founder in enhancing the efficiency of our making process so we could replicate some of the Prototypes for which we needed to have stock. She also assisted in the planning of our first ever photoshoot, in choosing the models for it, making mood boards and planning a list of must-take photographs. What a pleasure to have had her on the team for this lead-up to our launch! Thank you Gabby.
India Rose
India just started her internship with us the week of our unveil to the word, she’s been spending lots of time on communication tasks. She’s been super quickly learning about how to build an e-commerce and how the workings of a small-scale-business that is purpose focused take place. Thank you Indi!
Collaborators
Estúdiio Moken has been our collaborator in manifesting our business plan and in pinning out our communication strategy during the launch of Adê de Canela.
WOOL Creative Studio has created the whole Brand I.D. of Adê de Canela.
Sustainability
We choose with intention. We create with respect.
At ADC, sustainability is not a marketing word — it’s a daily practice.
We work in limited series, with durable materials and independent artisans.
We don’t overproduce. We don’t rush.
We care about the origin of every element.
The relationships we build with those who craft.
The impact of what we send into the world.
Our ethics are woven into each petal, each thread, each gesture.