Enjoying the sun, finalising the new SS24 collection. Doing pretty pretty good.

I was a textile designer for Jakob Schlaepfer when I started designing handpainted and handpleated garments. Over time, people were getting increasingly intrigued by my work and were asking for more. After winning the Swiss Design Award for my first collection Adobe Indigo, I realised that I created a product that people found compelling enough to buy and wear. That’s when I decided to pursue my own creative path.

I usually start with the print artworks. I gather all the images and colour references that I find relevant at the time while we are working on the new silhouettes. Then both of those pieces of research are merged to create the final looks, by coordinating the respective techniques.

It actually boils down to daily discussions with the team. The inspiration comes from our everyday lives. We openly share any inspiration or situation we come across whether on the street or online while working together on the new developments. I would say inspiration is overall something very ephemeral, fluid and unpredictable.

I guess the biggest challenge consisted in giving birth while working on this collection. So, this collection was led by love indeed. We had so much fun creating this celebration of joyful looks. Our biggest challenge actually always consists in knowing when to stop. The work on colour and print combinations could be never ending and overwhelming but we somehow have to narrow it down to key looks and save the creative overload onto the next collection.

My first encounter with Shibori happened while I was a student at the Denmarks Design Skole. Shibori is a Japanese manual resist dyeing technique used on textiles to create patterns that spread unevenly across the fabric. What’s special in our case is that we don’t use it for dyeing but for pleating.
I was used to approach textile design in a regular way through flat patterns, maybe creases, stitches, some pleats here and there to consider, but Shibori immediately intrigued me. Working with  three dimensional shapes, giving each garment its own dynamic shape. A handycraft technique in combination with a more industrial process of digital print design. It’s the perfect fit for my way of designing, bringing old crafts together with new technology.

I would say it’s about the contrasted approach to beauty, almost like a visual contradiction or confrontation which functions as a whole.

It’s a continuous flow creatively. I’m never splitting one collection from the next in my mind. They have to be though for many practical reasons but you always have to look and think forward in fashion. Time wise, you’re caught up in the process where the current release feels like the past and future ones feel like the present.

Like I mentioned before, I’m not looking into creating pure beautiful imagery. What I find interesting in a single image is how disturbing or dissonant it can get. A slightly awkward beauty with a humorous twist, something to remember and think about.

Of course! It’s Spring/Summer, the year is 2024.