Meet the designer: DEGEN

Photography & interview by Victoria Brandt, Model Kai Cameron

How did you first get into designing clothing?

I learned to knit when I was very young but I think my mom making all of my Halloween costumes growing up was a huge inspiration.  I had a little fashion show in high school and continued making some clothing pieces during college.  I didn't really make wearable garments until 2008 when I made some finale pieces for the VPL show.

Where do you get your inspiration from?  

I'm inspired by my friends and their work.  We are all making different things in a lot of different mediums.  We all influence each other.

"I have always been an advocate for being comfortable with your own body."

Does the knit aspect tend to inform the rest of the collection or vice versa? 

Up until this coming ss15 season I'd say my collection was 90% knitted.  The other aspects of the collection were added afterwards to help add balance to the work.  I really only think about the knitting when I first begin a season, then I add those other printed elements.

Your collection is very playful, what helps you keep this playfulness?

I think making everything myself is the key to keeping the fun within the collection.  Because I have to make everything I want the making to be fun.  That means working with a lot of colors and textures to keep myself excited.  I think you can see the fun I have making the work in the final product.

We loved the boobless rainbow top, is this an embrace of sexuality in the #freethenipple way? 

I have always been an advocate for being comfortable with your own body.  I think the #freetheKNITple movement comes from a similar place although I would say that both women AND men should be more comfortable.  So I guess its less of a feminist statement and more of a universal sexuality statement.

Where do you want the brand to go? 

I would like to be able to continue making art while also expanding the wearable section of the brand.  I want to see DEGEN in more upper tier stores.

http://degen-nyc.com

Nisos 1948 - Menswear

“IT WAS A GREAT CHALLENGE FOR ME TO SUCCESSFULLY COMBINE THE NATURAL DYEING OF YARNS WITHOUT CHEMICALS, TOGETHER WITH GREEK TRADITION AS SEEN THROUGH MY OWN EYES, AND PERFECTION IN THE QUALITY OF OUR GARMENTS…” -Smaragda Navridis, designer of Nisos 1948

 Smaragda Navridis and Gregory Hatsatourian, the wife and husband duo behind the menswear label Nisos 1948, uses a unique dyeing process inspired by the premier luxury dye of the ancient world, “Porphyra” or Tyrian purple—a reddish purple natural dye extracted from a particular species of sea snail.  

Their special mix of natural ingredients carefully collected from all over the world. A combination of fruits, woods, rocks, and vegetables produce each color and maintain the original characteristics of the natural fibers. One of the beneficial aspects to this method is the protection of the environment, using no chemicals and all natural elements there is no chemical waste.

According to Aristoteles, the preparation of the dye for clothes began in spring. It was extremely time-consuming and the final product was worth its weight in gold, since thousands of snails were required to produce just one gram of dye. Only royalty and very wealthy people could afford to dye their clothes in this manner. One of the most striking characteristics of “Porphyra” was that it did not fade but actually became brighter and more intense with weathering and sunlight. The Greek islands, amongst which Rhodes, Kos, Amorgos, Chios and Crete, were renowned for its production. The other dyes with herbs and fruits were also intended exclusively for the wealthy, as colored garments were a luxury in antiquity. Common people’s clothes were undyed. Natural dyes, with raw materials deriving from nature, were used for thousands of years, until the late 19th century when chemical dyes came into common use. Chemical dyes were quite a revolution as they were used for everybody’s clothing.

Interactive Photography : Victoria Brandt 

Model : Carlos @ One.1 Men 

http://www.nisos1948.com