Archivi categoria: Made in Italy

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

Giulia Bonandini

Galleria

LOVE AS RELIGION

 

“Imagine all the people sharing all the world” says John Lennon. We all know this song, but now more than ever, we need to share something.

So, I want to tell a story. A story about a young designer: no seams, no cuts, no tricky fabrics. One t-shirt, only one concept: Love as religion, by Giulia Bonandini, a 24 years old designer from Turin.

How your brand was born?

When I graduated I needed to get in touch with different cultures, my travel to India was the first step to look for myself and my identity as a designer. I needed to understand the world I had chosen. Love as religion is not a brand, it’s a way of life.

Was your muslim boyfriend a problem in your project?

Yes, I started thinking about myself and him as a fusion of cultures not only as a love affair. He gave me the input to go on. Who is Giulia? What kind of life she wants?

 

So, to tranfer your concept, do you choose a T-shirt.

 

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At the beginning it was just a way to have something mine to do. T-shirt is the fastest way to communicate your idea. First of all, by opinions, surveys, interview, then I built the base, then I bought the T-shirts!

 

What has the main surprise?

Many young Muslims asked, they were curious. Sometimes people think we are opposite poles, but I named their culture that of the hug. They want to listen to you, mostly new generations. They are not marketing or trend victims, they only want to know and discover.

 

About your project. News? Tecniques?

I saw a large interest, so I realized a logo-pattern for foulards and bag (maybe). I prefer basic-product to make stronger my concept, with direct digital print.

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Choice of colors?

Black and white is a classic, natural colors instead want to be a fil-rouge of my idea. For the future I’m thinking of salmon pink, pearl, noisette, always natural colors, but with a look for the trend.

 

What was the main problem you have had in your project?

Foundrising, looking for print shops, someone able to to produce a small sample collection. It’s not easy. I’ll do the rest: photos, lookbook, social campaign, as I could, with university network.

 

I think, your message is important today. Italy, Europe, the whole world, with Covid-19 emergency, need something to believe. Fashion not like overproduction and trend, but fashion like concept and sustainability. Have you any last message about this?

 

Faith and love are similar, love as religion was born with this intent. We are all the same and we all need everyone’s help.

 

Giulia Bonandini graduated at European Insitute of Design in 2018 in Turin, is working for a fashion studio in Turin, and she is carry on with her project.

Her Mission.

 

Go and see “loveasreligion” on Instagram.

 

Benedetta Simone

 

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

SILVIA TOFFANIN

Galleria

It was love at the first sight with Silvia! Perhaps because of her energy, or her genuine and contagious smile with whom she welcomed me when we met the first time. I believe I would like everything made of her just because of her and the way she moves in the space around itself, because it seems she does it lightly and cheerfully.

Silvia was born in Padua, a quiet city near Venice, in the north of Italy. She was a cheerful, active, diligent school girl, but very talkative 🙂

She is now living in China after 13 years spent in Milan, where she is now running her Footwear Design Consultancy Studio, BLACKZEROstudios, based in Milan and Shenzhen.


Why China? It happened by chance, but she discovers a completely different way to work and to make business: in China everything moves fast, people are very dynamic and love to risk.

The Made in Italy is unique but Chinese people are unbeatable in business.

Dreams

I started dancing at 5, so obviously the first dream was to become a dancer, then in middle school suddenly, after seeing Apollo 13, I began to dream of being an astronaut… later an airplane pilot! My childhood was serene and happy: afternoons after kindergarten and in summer, when my parents had to work, I spent time with my maternal grandparents. Grandma is a seamstress, I always saw her with needle and thread in her hands, so I spent the whole afternoons playing and messing with fabric remnants and copying clothes. Since then I noticed that my interest in fashion increased and when I was 8/9 years old they gave me one sewing machine toy for my birthday.

The Beginning

Since adolescence, with the help of grandma, we created a lot of clothes or customized what I bought or what I already had, adding particularity and originality to the pieces I wore. At the end of the High School, where I studied languages, time has come to make a decision how to continue my studies.

To everyone’s amazement I decided to study fashion. Fashion was far away from my previous studies and from my personal style at that time. Indeed in that moment, I was not a Fashionista in the literal sense. I was a little rebel: creative, eccentric, thinking out of the box, with a great passion for streetstyle and couture, always researching new mixes of fabrics, colours and shapes. That’s why I thought my creative energy could perfectly find application in the charming world of Fashion.

My family initially disagreed, but eventually we found a solution and I left for Milan. 5 years at the Politecnico of Milan, a thousand adventures, ideas, projects, experiences.

Even before finishing my master’s degree I started working for a Footwear Design Studio. Thanks to a university course I have known Marco and Guillaume and their brand Guillaume Hinfray, like this I sent them an email asking for an internship and so I started. Beside my grandmother, surely they are the people who inspired me to take this path and thanks to whom I turned my passion into my work.

From there everything began!

 Work

(2009) I stayed with Marco and Guillaume 6 years long and then moved on to the freelance business collaborating with other studios and brands.

Less than one year ago, in 2019 I started my project Studio Blackzerostudios_Milano: after so many years drawing shoes, in September I got the chance to participate at the London Fashion Week with a capsule of clothing. I took the opportunity on the fly: this is how my first clothing collection was born.

Future Projects

And now here I am, I continue with the same passion and love for fashion I have many projects in the drawer that I hope to realize soon! These days I’m working on a new important personal project. It’s a “secret dream” I’ve been keeping in my heart and now I think it’s the right moment to start.

I can’t reveal more details, so… stay tuned, news are coming!…

 

Photo credits by Ph. Elisabetta Brian @elisabetta_brian
Model: Francesca Interlenghi @the_dummys_tales
Location: Galleria Raffaella Cortese @galleriaraffaellacortese
Exhibition: Unrequited love by Monica Bonvicini

 

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

MARCO CASTELLI

 

Marco Castelli

Marco Castelli was born in Sicily and started modeling in Milan after graduating from high school for brands such as Chanel, Ferrè and Benetton. His passion and his job took him everywhere, name one city… New York, Shanghai, Beijing, Tokyo and Los Angeles.

He approached also design and started designing clothes for the royal family in Doha. This new adventure took him back home. Once in Italy,  he started organizing events to promote his products. In a recent interview Marco stated: “Doha’s royal family wears clothes I have created and I obviously feel very gratified, although I also feel that mine is just a small step that contributes in bringing our nation higher on a stylistic level”

One of the most loved piece from his collection is the Bicolor Coat, handcrafted  with care  in two different fabrics; wool and cashmere. The colors available are camel and black, navy and black , ice and navy, red and black and many others. It’s incredible his artisans dedicate attention to  each single piece from the design to the packaging, every model is finished by hand giving it a special and precious touch.

Find more about what’s happening in LDC Pop-Up Store this February during #MilanFashionWeek!
For more info about the designer, please, contact: nikki@lonedesignclub.com 
Marco Castelli is also featured on the e-commerce platform of LDC www.lonedesignclub.com

 

Marco Castelli Men Jacket

Marco Costelli Men clothing

 

 

 

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

B.e Quality

Galleria

Pilar Morales, a Peruvian Textile Engineer graduated at UPC, Spain, has been working as Quality Control and Production Manager since 1998 for European brands and traveling around the world, is the founder of B.e Quality brand.

 

 

The B.e Quality Project re-started on 2017 with the collaboration of 2 fantastic Italian designers. I have decided to create a brand which could be based on the Slow Fashion concept, being Sustainable, Vegan friendly, made with the Highest Quality and with Love to last in time.

And this is what we do: Men, Women and Newborn Timeless garments made in the Highest Quality to last in time, in a Sustainable&Ethical way. The B.e Quality Cotton fabric is a knitted fabric in natural Organic Peruvian Pima cotton that is as soft and shiny as silk, even after years of wearig it. Better known as the Cashmere of Cottons, as per its high quality.

Moreover, the manufacturing is paying attention to details that really make the difference.

Garments should last in time, as Love&Values do!

I was seeing the other side of the coin of the fashion world, the opposite of what we see here. This is the reason why I decided to create my own project based on human values and Respect.

 

Actually I really have never been interested in Fashion, but I was good at numbers and as an Engineer’s daughter, I wanted to make Engineering. Peru has a big tradition on textiles, as pre-columbian civilizations developed special techniques for weaving and dyeing. And this fascinated me.

When I was 15 years old, I had very clear I wanted to be a Textile Engineer, that is a technician who manages each step of the production process (nothing really related to design). I had been lucky to meet somebody who went to the same university I did afterwards. And I felt in love with this discipline. I’ve been offered at that time a full scholarship to go to the US for any career, except Textile Engineer, and I declined it!

1993 I started the university in Spain, I loved it, as we spent a lot of hours in the laboratories, making so many practice… how to set up spinning&knitting machines, the quality control… it was great!

1998 after my graduation, I started to work in this industry.

 

My dream is to create a successful business based on Respect. And that in some way helps me to live in a more balanced way.

What inspires you?

A question someone asked me many years ago is what inspired me: how would you act in this situation if you were Love?

In that moment my brain was saying: Whaaaaat??? and went out of it’s automatic mode. This helped me to see further… and understood that both in the mid and long term, the best solution is to allow the Love guide my choices and my actions (and not fear, sadness, insecurity, anger, pride, ambition, etc…).

How may I combine my professional skills with this and how can I share this with others? The answer to this for me is the Love Collection, a small collection of garments that have the intention to remind us to practise more the gestures of Love, that warm our hearts! And that is why I have created the Love Collection: to remind us (me at first) to act guided by Love.

 

How do you pursue your goals?

I have been making consultancy since 2006 in the fashion industry.

I have created B.e Quality on 2010, based on Responsible and Sustainable production, making Slowfashion pieces. Still I felt I needed to create something that could have a stronger message. The more I observe how we live today, and our scale of values, and how we are full of objects and a tight agenda, but empty inside… And what is the common thing behind the people acting with anger, fear, insecurity, pride? A lack of love!

How do you motivate yourself?

For me living in Love is not an automatic state, and my aim is to learn day by day how to be closer to that. And I think I’m not alone on this journey, so I decided to share it with more people and in some way, together supporting each other.

The beautiful thing of this journey I just started with the Love Collection is that I am learning a lot about myself, my needs, the benefits of living a slower life, the benefits of the love in our health and happiness, I am also meeting special people that support me or inspire and teach me to act ‘in Love’ and compassion.

 I am very grateful that my work is helping to grow and learn to be a better person! It is a great gift! 

 

Which kind of difficulties you had to face?

The first barrier to break was to talk about my feelings and beliefs on my ‘working’ environment: In my professional life I was very disciplined and would never show my human side. As the role I was playing as a consultant, I had to be very effective, strategic, having everything under control…

Then my belief that integrating the Love message in a fashion collection was not going to be understood in the way I meant it. This is why it took me more than 1 year to start it. And I was so wrong! Everyday I receive confirmations that people gets the message very clear.

My will to build a respectful and sustainable collaboration has turned on an irrespectful and unfulfilled supplier, as they are not used to this kind of approach. I need to improve it for the future!

Now my aim is to reach more people with this message! So, today I’m studying marketing, communication, while finding the right partner on these areas.

But I guess this is just the start, so I am open to learn and break down more walls, meet new special people with joy and love!

Donatella

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

MARCO ZANUCCOLI

Galleria
SQUARe027 represents Nature, Innovation and Transformation.
It’s a process that originates from a social and human need to develop a positive and necessary CHANGE.
It’s the manifestation of the desire to be closer to Mother Earth.

Let us talk about the Italian young genius and talented designer behind this brand, Marco Zanuccoli, born in San Mauro Pascoli, the Italian center of excellence in shoe manufacturing. Marco’s parents, masters in the footwear industry, passed onto their son the strong desire to make this world a better place. Thanks to their positive influence, Marco focused his attention and curiosity first toward technology and Computer Science. However, this path was not satisfying for him, it was not enough to leave a positive impact on the world. Something inside him claimed his creative and innovative potential, which is now vented in his technology creations.
The respect and the love for the environment and nature led him to give life to a Cruelty-Free footwear line.

SQUARe027 is an innovative fashion luxury brand that designs and manufactures vegan and environmentally friendly footwear, this is the reason behind the decision to use biodegradable rubber soles and cruelty-free glues. Furthermore, the manufacturing process is almost entirely realized by hand and, of course, Made in Italy.

SQUARe027 was created with the purpose of generating a new Life Style for anyone seeking ethical and sustainable fashion accessories, so it is not limited to only vegans and vegetarians.

SQUARe027 does not utilize animal components but only materials from plants and synthetics with very low environmental impact. Also recycled materials are used, giving the products a second life.

Buy your shoes, support the brand and help Mother Land via Kickstarter: CROWDFUNDING FOR SQUARe027

L-1

For the L-1 range, SQUARe027 mainly adopts a luxury microfiber, a comfortable material and soft to the touch.

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The microfiber is made by combining recycled polyester fibers with raw ones making the production process completely nontoxic and solvent free. The product color spectrum ranges from plain colors like blue and black to fashion colors like pink and silver. The combination offering does not only include colors, but also different materials put together like microfiber and velvet.

D-1

Avant-garde is the concept that inspired in the creation of this shoe.

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The avant-garde shape of the outer sole provides both an aesthetic function and a utility aspect related to the comfort of the foot. The polyester and microfiber combination makes these shoes even more striking. Six color combinations are available, from black to green and fluorescent yellow.

M-1

The M-1 models combine natural materials with neoprene.

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Innovative materials like wood, obviously respecting the most rigorous FSC regulation, are used for these spectacular shoes that are characterized by natural colors, such as the brick red and the walnut.

R-1

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The Spring-Summer 2017 product models include natural materials like jute and wood to envelop the foot in a universe of comfort. The neoprene inserts give the shoe an original twist.

 From now on, your footprint will have a completely different impact!

info@square027.com

www.square027.com

 

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

FROM OWL

Galleria

  “Your dream should be to create a new product, to express a new philosophy, to stimulate the mind of the people, to be able to bring innovation”

 

Let’s start talking about you, who are you, when did you decide to work together and to create From Owl?

I am Alberto Ziveri. Born in Parma in 1994 and now studying in Milan at Bocconi University. Filippo Tommasini is the co-founder of the From Owl with me, and we’re friends from childhood.

It all started back in 2013 when we both decided to start printing some designs we made together with Marco Gherri (Filippo’s cousin) on some t-shirts. We made 60 t-shirts and sold them all. Since that moment we understood we could make something more sophisticated, with the help of other friends who became part of the team eventually: Luca Rovelli, Luciana dal Zio, Lorenzo Maestri, Luca Marocchi and Matteo Costa.

How did you begin and where does your passion come from?

We started in the summer 2014 to learn about the process, we bought the first textiles and focused on the first ideas.

What it is important to say is that we’re not fashion designers, we’re economics students with several passions (sports, web design, photography, fashion and innovation), but practically we are not able to design as a normal skilled designer. We just brainstorm new ideas and work with our team to develop them. That’s probably our advantage: we gather ideas from our ignorance without being limited by “design dogmas”. We are very passionated about products and innovation.

Difficulties  encountered to manage the business?

There are lots of difficulties, but that is part of the game. If it was too easy, it wouldn’t be challenging. I could list shortly some of the most challenging ones:

– Creating a product that can both satisfy the team, but also your target. Creating a product whose message can be efficiently communicated and can be profitable. Sometimes we create products which are extremely beautiful, innovative, but we make mistakes in how to communicating the message. Or worse, sometimes the message is clear but not positively perceived by the customers and, consequently, they become not profitable.  To overcome these difficulties you need experience, skills but also “instinct”.
– To create perfect products when you have a low budget. Our time and resources are limited hence we can’t make everything we want in an excellent way. So it’s extremely difficult to not make compromises when you should be forced to make them.
– Communicate our philosophy in order to convince people to prefer From Owl. We would like people to understand that it’s better to buy 1 Owl product rather than 4 H&M items. It’s part of our mission to teach to customers how is possible to make more responsible purchase choices.

– To find the right suppliers. It’s the most boring activity but the most important one. We contacted over 300 potential suppliers in two years, and worked with just 20 of them. It’s very hard to find the perfect supplier.

What would you say to somebody who has a dream like yours?

Don’t start a brand/company just to produce clothes or  for the sake of earning pennies. Nowadays everyone can make a t-shirt. There’s a lot of superficiality when starting a brand. The true difference between an original brand and a superficial one stays in differentiation so… Your dream should be to create a new product, to express a new philosophy, to stimulate the mind of the people, to be able to bring innovation…“making clothes” is not enough.

I can see hundreds of brands making a printed tee and giving them to football players in the old school way, I would feel very sad if I had to make things other people have already done. However, this my own perspective.

From Owl is not a famous brand yet, and I certainly still don’t have the “privilege” to deliver advices to other people: I’ve still have a lot to learn. What I’ve done till now is just following the instinct with ideas and skills.

Do you have a place/city in which you feel more inspired and why?

London, Cape Town, Los Angeles, Lofoten Islands. They are all inspiring cities because of their landscapes, colors, the citizens’ way of living. But our first source of inspiration is Parma: our hills, our philosophy, the excellence of our companies (Barilla, Parmalat, Rosa dell’Angelo).

How do you communicate with the world/ how do you concretely express yourself?

Videos, photos, stories. We communicate with the world with these three vehicles and through years we learnt a lot about video making and photography. But, as always, you can’t have skills without ideas, that’s why when we make a video it’s not really important how we make it, but it’s fundamental what idea we want to express.

What makes your brand different?

We think we’re different from other startups for several reasons, starting from our “unique” set of skills we have: from management to photography, design and web design, which hardly you will find in one team (many of the clothing companies outsource at least one of those activities). A second reason is that we have a philosophy: we want to express emotions, to connect clothes to stories. The third reason is about quality, since profitability is not our main goal, we don’t make compromises: we always strive for perfection and we work with companies which are used to work with famous luxury companies. Our idea is precise and it is getting even more sophisticated the more we work.

Projects for the future.

We have a big mission in mind to make From Owl an international popular brand, how? With the products we’re working on, with the clear communication, with the right prices and durable quality. We strive for this goal, but we’re aware and ready to fail and learn.

Ready to shop now? Their Online Shop is waiting for your visit here at  www.fromowl.com 

You can also follow their adventures and their trips around the globe here: From Owl Facebook Fan Page

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

ELISA SANNA

Galleria

“Elegance must always be the foundation of everything. Even before wearing a dress, it must be part of the attitude of a person. Only then you can give life to what you wear. My passion starts from here. From the beauty of women.”

 

Who is the young powerful lady Elisa?!

I am a young creative girl who has always done everything that was going through her head. Despite the difficulties, I have always had big dreams and big ambitions and I have always aimed for something bigger.

My passion is to create clothes, which means to me an idea to become reality, a form, a thought or emotion.

How and why did you start to work as a Fashion Designer?

It’s something that I have always had inside, that slowly took shape over time, and so has turned into this job. There is no exact timeline to which I could place my decision to become a fashion designer.

Could you imagine having a different job?!

I could adapt to everything, but I could never imagine my life doing another job. For me it is not a job, it’s a real passion to which you can assign the value in getting more work.

Where do you find your inspiration?

There is not an historical period or an exact event from where I find inspiration. The flair and the inspiration come from everywhere and everything and from nothing: I mean, sometimes I find it looking at someone walking on the street, from the colours that I see in the city and are parts of it… but also from a thought, or just putting together different fabrics, and the forms they create can be a source of inspiration for me. I can be really inspired from everything! The most important thing is to be able to interpret ideas and to put them into reality.

What is your philosophy? Where does your passion come from?

My philosophy is to make something beautiful into something even more beautiful, that is able to emphasize the best side of the female body. Elegance must always be the foundation of everything. Even before wearing a dress, it must be part of the attitude of a person. Only then you can give life to what you wear. My passion starts from here. From the beauty of women.

I started my journey learning the trade a few years ago in a tailor’s shop where a great seamstress was able to form me and teach me the secrets of this work. I did not attend any academy of fashion; I just did practiced in tailoring, where I started sewing simple linings. I have always been fascinated by everything around me, my ideas were born playing around with the fabric and the dressmaker’s dummy. Just the touch of high quality fabric moves me, to observe the expert hands of a seamstress that transform a design into reality, and to see my idea taking shape. I think that direct contact with the fabrics and the sewing machine is the most effective way to learn and absorb the most of everything that you need to know. It takes a great load of patience and humility, but if you have patience, passion and determination nothing can stop you from achieving your dreams.

What is the message you want to share with the colours and materials you choose?

For this collection i decided to use natural fibers, like silk, nettle, soy and hemp. I am a lover of light colors and contrasts. The colors that I like to use are beige and light peach. They are colours that are lightweight, make clean shapes and personally, for me, they represent serenity. I also like to create contrasts with these colors combining them with more nuance decided, as can be white, black, or simply create contrasts embellishing the fabric with crystals.

What are your goals for the future?

My goal for the future is surely to keep doing what I love. I would like to have a distribution and make it grow over time showing what I know and what I can do.

You are young and a woman: do you think that it is more difficult for you to be credible?

Absolutely not. I think the credibility depends on the actual capacity of a person, regardless of whether it is male or female. I think to devalue the work of a person just because she is a woman, is part of a mind perhaps a little “bigoted”. By now many women have very important roles of men and I think that we are slowly moving away from the idea of the woman like an housewife without ambitions.

Your biggest regret / failure / success / intuition!

I think it’s still early to talk about failures and successes. Definitely my success for now is to have the good fortune of being able to realize and develop my projects, in this I am very lucky. Having courage and the desire to get in the game, I consider a small success.

What would you like to change in the fashion world/ culture?

The fashion world contains within itself many diverse branches and many different tasks. People often generalize when it comes to fashion. It’s a world worked primarily by designers and tailors, from which everything is born, then around them all other tasks are developed.

There is nothing in particular that I would change… maybe I would relive in a period when the great couturier was given more importance, when we focused more on the work done by hand.

The new collection of Elisa Sanna is now available for the customers!

WEBSITE

FB

Donatella

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

Claudia Errante

Galleria

In the Spring 2013 I asked myself: “There must be a way to wear a turban with the comfort of having them already ready to wear, whenever you want, without having to tie and build them all the time!” No sooner than I thought it, I did it!

 

First of all I would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to tell something about me in your wonderful magazine. I’m an italian fashion designer. I’m 27 years old and I am Sardinian. I live in a beautiful city, Cagliari, a place that helps me to be happy, although it’s very difficult to live here. I’m a very messy, eccentric and curious girl and I love imperfections.
In my job there are NO RULES (order, schemes and rules are not for me. I know, I’m very undisciplined!). I want to be free to live and I feel that I am really fulfilled.

In 2010 I finished my studies and graduated in Fashion Design at Istituto di Moda Burgo in Milan. Later I worked so hard, experienced and learned a lot thanks to some artists who, believing in me, allowed me to assist them in their work and teaching me the “True Life of a Craftsman”. I immediately wanted to get involved, getting more consensus on my debut, which occurred in March 2012.

From that moment I never stopped creating!

But for a moment I would like to put aside the “Claudia designer” and I want to speak to you as fashion lover. Even since I was a child, I never left my house without an accessory on my head; it could be a bow, a scarf or a hat, it did no matter, it was only important that I did not have a bare head (that’s how I feel if I don’t wear an accessory!)… this is my hallmark. Because I loved turbans, I tried often to build them in my head, and in the Spring 2013 I asked myself: “There must be a way to wear a turban with the comfort of having them already ready to wear, whenever you want, without having to tie and build them all the time!” No sooner than I thought it, I did it!

I experimented and found a perfect mixed structured line of a turban with the convenience of a real hat. Now I’m in effect THE GIRL OF TURBANS!  😀

Movie stars from the past and African women are my source of inspiration, even though they are two contrasting styles. It is an accessory that reminds me of grandmothers, the dark times that they lived and the desire to feel beautiful and stilysh, even though they could not wash or take care of their hair during the Second World War.

The woman, in general, is for me a source of inspiration, such as the many and strong women who fight against a disease, who need and want to feel beautiful despite fighting constantly with a monster trying to spoil their beauty. It is a kind of gift for them, a moment of being carefree and frivolous.

I allow them to combine helpful with pleasure.

Where does it happen?! Almost never in my city, because I always looking for high quality, rare or vintage fabrics and less popular, special prints and colors. I rely very often on a company that works also online, but of course my favourite stores are the markets organized in the city. There you can find many treasures, such as fine tablecloths, perfect to created one or more turbans, very old fabrics disused belonging to old seamstresses, the kind that makes you admire its textures and patterns, and makes you want to say the classic but true sentence: “There aren’t any more beautiful fabrics like in the past!”

I work alone, drawing, designing, sewing, advertising, organizing, selling, delivering and I also take care of everything that revolves around my brand. I’m also a waitress every night in a restaurant. That’s because I’m messy, undisciplined and disorganized! To be ble to have a person who works for me is the next step. Unfortunately until now I do not have the financial ability to hold up the expense of an assistant. I hope that things will get better and above all that the brand is able to fly, to afford to live only by my passion and give work to some greatly talented guys who are unfortunatly unemployed.

Social networks have given me the opportunity to have costumers from all over the world and a lot of visibility. Many American girls find my products via hashtag that I post on Intagram. Believe me, I did not think that social networks had all this power and this big utility!

Much of the credit of my success definitly goes to “Amazing*Us”, a cultural association that organizes events in my town dedicated to art and artisanship. They supported me, by allowing me to share my products at their events, that hosts Sardinian curious, but also with many tourists, giving them the opportunity to learn our local products.

Well, thanks to these events, I have expanded my costumers and now I regularly have lots of Russian, Spanish and English girls that have discovered my items and my brand during their vacation in Cagliari. Isn’t it cool?!?

Thank you so much dear Deshabille, it was an honor and a pleasure to chat with you!

Claudia Errante Fashion Designer

Website

Donatella

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

ISULA DESIGN

Galleria

“Sometime ago I was forced, for health reasons, to stay locked up in hospitals for a long time and from there I realized the importance of being alive and staying in the open air, watching the colors of a sunrise or a sunset, feel the wind that caresses your face just for a minute and enjoying the scents that only the nature of this land can give you, even from a window.”

 

Tell us something about you and Isula Design!

My name is Francesca, I live and work in a small seaside village in the district of Sassari (in the North Sardinia). I like everything that has color, form and tradition. I am a nature and animals lover, I live with the fact that I love my dog Sunshine, who taught me to love his world!

I love to walk by the sea as well as in the countryside and  I like stars, the moon, the sun, but also rain and melancholy. I consider myself a very (perhaps too) sensitive and emotional person, full of life. I like to smile and the smile on the face of the people I come close to sends me endless positivity! I am a natural and colorful food lover, as fruit and vegetables are. I think that in life there is always a lot to learn from other people, with humility and respect.

I graduated two years ago as a seamstress / modeler at the School of Art and Fashion in Sassari, for me a dream that came true and I want to continue creating with my style “SardAfrican”, because every woman wants externalize what’s inside, being free to feel colors and by being unique!

Can you tell us more about the ISULA PROJECT?

The project Isula design and the choice of the name was born out of this land, Sardinia, that is very close to me. It is my island that commands my heart, which offers different colors and shapes, but also distant Africa, which is also close in a sense!

Where do you find the inspiration?

The design of the clothes like the colors chosen for the fabrics are a reflection of a deep sense of belonging to my island, endless source of my inspiration. In each piece I try to interpret, with great respect and modernity, the ancient traditions of Sardinia and the bright colors and distinctive landscapes that this land gives to me. Mixing my Sardinians immense passion with the ancient soul and freedom of the African continent, the wonderful and colorful countrywomen, my collection becomes a perfect combination of ancient traditions and modernity, memories of deserts and unreachable mountains, open seas and splendid colors.

Each dress is the story of a mood, each color a feeling. Each collection is an old music.

Where was your passion born?

The passion for the art began as a child, growing quickly with a strong aesthetic sense towards clothing. As a teenager, I began to wish for a look that could fully represent my personality. Finding no garment that reflected my desires, exploded in me the urge to create by myself the wardrobe of my dreams.

Without ever having sewn, driven by a lively inspiration, I bought my first piece of cloth and alone, with the sewing machine of a dear friend, I created my first skirt. Driven by this magical inspiration, I created a garment after the other, with no experience, no pattern, just by looking, touching the fabric and getting carried away by instinct. My friends, affected by the visionary forms and evocative colors, asked me to create dresses for commission.

As if I had done nothing all my life long, I began to study by myself all methods to tailor, to improve day by day the quality of my clothes.

The requests came from people like me, who wanted to wear one of my dresses, out from the usual style, and they increase more and more and at some point it came natural the creation of a brand that identifies perfectly with my style.

I had the impression that nature plays a really important role in your world and for your fashion…

Oh yeah, I love to talk and listen to nature! Sometime ago I was forced, for health reasons, to stay locked up in hospitals for a long time and from there I realized the importance of being alive and stay in the open air, watching the colors of a sunrise or a sunset, feel the wind that caresses your face just for a minute and enjoying the scents that only the nature of this land can give you, even from a window. I think there is no better place to take photos for my clothes and feel in tune with it!

What does your logo represents?

The logo represents for me eternal freedom.

In fact the inspiration comes from the Egyptian key of life, which is also known as the Ankh, or the Egyptian cross Ankh. It is a T cross crowned by a circle, an oval and in some representations, by a snake that twists (the serpent is the symbol of wisdom and if chasing its tail forming a circle is a symbol of eternity). The form of the ankh remembers a key and that is also the reason why it is called “Key of Life” or “Key of the Nile”. Symbolic representation of life and survival after death, but it has been interpreted as a free butterfly, with Sardinian spikes.

The message is therefore to feel free, colorful, feminine, rich in tradition, but above all unique and special wearing my dresses!

ISULA DESIGN

FRANCESCA COLOMBINO

Donatella

Fashion Designer, Made in Italy

LILLE FERRARO MAISON

Galleria

“We have a whole life to draw beautiful clothes and to sell them. But we have only a few moments to sew and print our emotions on them.”

 

Let’s discover more about LILLE FERRARO MAISON and the project behind it, above all about Luana Ferraro, the brain and fashion designer of it.

“I could write for hours about it, I really love to write and maybe it depends on my genetic (there is a poet in my family!) but time is running out, that is why I will try to describe myself in a few words. I am curious, stubborn, capable, and ingenious.
I live my life full of passion: I strongly believe that the work in this sector has improved myself and elevated my spirit, giving me the opportunity to develop many and different points of views and thousands artistic sides.

At this stage in my career, commitments are many, but the thing that I continue to love the most is to sit on the lawn of the Place des Vosges in Paris with pencil in the hand and a breathtaking view, just me and my art. Yes, I love Paris, it leaves me breathless every time.”

How was the idea of LILLE FERRARO MAISON born?

It is a concept of different ideas that encompasses the brand of Lille Ferraro Maison and Lille Ferraro “Fatto in Italia”. For me, advising as a wardrobe consultant was only a little hobby and a great passion that later became a beautiful and challenging job. I created outfits for my clients, and through email, social media and the website, they can send their requests and budget. It is incredible how with a small budget you can still create a wonderful outfit! 

Do you remember when you had the flash of inspiration and you thought that your dream could become true?

I did not understand it exactly, but I think that it was always inside me.

My brand has an identity or leitmotiv, if we want call it that, and it is well-structured and clear for the final consumer. A minimalist style and bohemian at the same time: because I am a lover of fabrics, I prefer and choose only natural fibers and plants, my collections are small treasures of haute couture guarded throughout time. My woman smells of lavender flowers and cotton, keeps her hair natural, and wears silk, cashmere and angora socks. It’s a strong woman, sensitive, cosmopolitan who has taste and style and likes to mix vintage pieces with clothes from Lille Ferraro.

How to you find the inspiration?

Part of my inspiration comes from deep within me and from nature, traveling, colors and a thousand shades of everyday life.

What is your philosophy?

The brand was born from the creative mind and the pencil of Luana Ferraro – fashion stylist and wardrobe consultant, creator of the company “Lille Ferraro Maison” and designer of it. The brand embodies sophistication and attention to everything that is natural.

The strength of the brand is the authenticity of the materials used in the creation of every collections. Plant materials and organic fibers make this label a perfect combination of art and passion for fashion. Completely handmade in Italy, the Lille Ferraro relies on the expert hands of artisans and competent professionals for the realization of each piece.

The extreme attention to detail combined with the creativity makes the brand up- to- date, sophisticated and “Ecologically Friendly”.

What are the biggest difficulties that you found on your way?

Unfortunately there are many difficulties: first of all the market, which because of the crisis became divided in two categories, luxury and commercial products of low-end. For creative talents and emerging designers the road is very rough. But I am pleased to have found my niche.

What do people like most of your job?

I think first and foremost the quality, extreme attention to details, high fashion with regard to the brand Lille Ferraro.

My clients say that I am able to understand savvy their tastes: I have a lot of patience, I love to listen to women and girls who need help to rebuild their wardrobe, but underlying it is all about the great love and effort that I put into making my work.

Do you want to spread a message with your art?

“WE HAVE A WHOLE LIFE TO DRAW BEAUTIFUL CLOTHES AND TO SELL THEM, BUT WE HAVE ONLY A FEW MOMENTS TO SEW AND PRINT OUR EMOTIONS ON THEM.”

My personal impression? At the moment Luana is talking as you’re listening, you can think that you now know something about her, but she is already taking steps forward; she is continuously changing and evolving. Today we learned something about her… lets see how she will surprise us down- the- line!

LILLE FERRARO handmade collections, made with heart, in Italy (Reggio Emilia, Emilia Romagna)

If you want to get more information you can have a look here:

LILLE FERRARO OFFICIAL WEBSITE

LILLE FERRARO FACEBOOK PAGE

Donatella