Some stories don’t begin on set—they start in gardens, kitchens, and long-distance friendships that feel like fate. We chatted with one of our longtime Dos Gardenias muses whose journey with the brand started before she ever stepped in front of the camera. From her roots in Hana, Maui to building a dream home in the Pacific Northwest, her life is a beautiful balance of movement and grounding. She models with intention, gardens with artistry, and wears her Dos Gardenias with the same effortless confidence that defines her path. In this interview, she opens up about the magic of connection, cultivating beauty from the inside out, and the bikini she’s been sketching in her mind for years. Meet Diansa Anuenue.
Tell us about how you met DiDi and how you came to model for Dos Gardenias?
I met DiDi in 2017 through my best friend, Angelina, before I began modeling. I was back on Maui for six weeks before moving to New Zealand. Angelina came to model for Dos Gardenias, she and DiDi are old friends. We quickly found out that our mutual connections spanned much further than Maui, making the relationship feel quickly familial. My family and friends call me DiDi, we both have wild curly hair, she immediately felt like a big sister. She has that way about her though. I signed to model while studying in New Zealand and started shooting for Dos Gardenias on my trips back to Maui. I love that it all began with me helping hold a reflector while studying Angelina and Frankie shooting together.
Diansa and Angelina during a photoshoot in Maui.
Give us a sense of where life has taken you, and how these travels/adventures have shaped you and your life now?
I was born in Hana, Maui. We lived in a few places on Maui while I was little. Eventually we moved to the Big Island but always came back to visit. When I was 13 my family moved to Orcas Island, WA, a much smaller island. At 17 I moved back to Maui by myself. Since then I’ve lived in Maui, Seattle, New Zealand, Los Angeles, and New York. Now, I live in a small city called Bellingham, back near Orcas Island. I bought a 1902 house in 2022 and have been remodeling every inch of it since. It’s both an investment and creative outlet. When I’m not building, demolishing, designing, or gardening I model in Seattle, Portland, LA and sometimes back on Maui.
DiDi has been my greatest design influence while remodeling my house. Modern trends push a minimal and colorless aesthetic. DiDi has the most inspiring maximalist interior design style. She’s not afraid of bold art, color, and texture. Well executed color palettes are difficult but she makes them seem effortless and obvious. Seeing what she creates in her spaces showed me what’s possible and gives me confidence when I can’t find references online.
“My gym is my whole foods. My whole foods is my therapist. My therapist is my muse. My muse is my art. My art is my gym,” says Diansa.
You have an incredible green thumb - how did you come to cultivate your own food and what is the philosophy behind your horticultural efforts? What is your daily routine? How do you maintain your connection to nature and what kinds of self-care, nutrition & fitness keep you on track?
I was born in a garden in Hana so maybe it started there. Being raised on tons of veggies and whole foods could have contributed too. Before modeling I cooked in a French restaurant with a locally sourced seasonal menu. This experience gave me my work ethic. I love efficiency; I hate waste. The French have what’s called “Potager Garden” which translates to kitchen garden. I’ve always believed in living an active lifestyle rather than working out in a gym. Hours in the gym seems like a waste of time when I can get exercise by growing my food. Nothing encourages me to cook, eat clean, and workout as much as the garden. I love art, specifically painting and I’ve discovered so many similarities between the garden, cooking, and painting. Growing, harvesting, and sharing produce and flowers is exciting, fulfilling, peaceful and literally grounding. A wonderfully efficient hobby.
Ok. Swimsuit talk…To you, what makes a great swimsuit? Are you a bikini or a one piece girl? Tell us about your favorite DG suit.
A great swimsuit makes you feel confident and sexy. I’m a bikini girl. Due to tanning really fast, I select my suits based on the tan lines they’ll leave. Dos Gardenias has the sexiest one piece suits with amazing support. I style them as bodysuits all the time. This season I’m living in my POG Crystal terry bottoms and Candy top, maybe the best fit on me yet. Crystal clings in all the right places and Candy is very flattering. I’ve been designing my dream Dos Gardenias itty bitty tanning bikini in my mind for a couple years so let me know when you’re ready to see my sketches.
