Living the dream . . . Carine Lesecq, who has lived on Martinique, Guadeloupe and, more recently, French Guyana, fell in love with St. Barths on a vacation in 1993 but took ten years to find her way back for good.

She, along with her husband Laurent and two children, moved to St. Barths in July of 2003. Having followed her heart to move to St. Barths, it was hardly surprising that her passion to seize the moment would provide the inspiration for her decision to open her business on the island. On a trip to France in December of that year, Carine discovered an exclusive line of swimsuits being designed in Paris. Carine was so certain that they would be fantastically popular on St. Barths that she decided then and there that she would open a shop on the island which would sell not only the suits but also island clothing and her other passion - jewelry.

She placed an order for the bathing suits on the 18th of December without having even secured a lease. On January 1st -- less than two weeks later -- she somehow opened the charming Filles des iles shop in the Hotel Christopher.

At Filles des iles, Carine now sells exquisite jewelry from such renowned designers as Shamane-London, Scooter - Paris, Dyrberg/Kern and, of course, her favorite swimsuits. She has also been working with local artisans in Corossol to create an exclusive line of island clothing.