Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

I was born and raised in Luxembourg from Italian parents. I moved to Florence when I was 18 to do my fashion design studies at the Polimoda International Institute. I got my Bachelor’s degree and then started working for a Couture brand in Florence and made made-to-measure garments. After that, I interned at Vivienne Westwood in London which really shaped my creative thought process and gave me an understanding of what Unisex clothing is all about. I have been back in Luxembourg for a year and a half and have launched my fashion clothing brand, Einfühlung, which means empathy. I have my studio at the 1535 creative hub in Luxembourg.   

 

Which past experiences would you say have shaped your work, design sensibilities, & aesthetic?

The idea of creating a Unisex brand came to me when I was in Florence and I was living with my boyfriend in a very small apartment. We didn’t have much space for clothes, so what we did was we started sharing clothes. So when we would buy something, we would make sure that it would fit both of us. So, in the end, I decided to create something that we were already doing, and make it in a sustainable way. The unisex concept is sustainable in itself, as by producing only one collection we are reducing the waste and emissions by half. 

 

What’s your personal style?

I like to experiment a lot. I’m constantly researching new things and changing, so I won’t say that I have one specific style. But I do love to source a lot of vintage clothing, I mainly dress in second-hand vintage clothing. 

 

What inspires your work?

People and memories inspire me. Every collection starts with a memory of my childhood or maybe something more recent. I start from a feeling and then I develop a concrete mood board and story behind it. So the first collection was inspired by a painting that I had in my house that my mom painted when my sister was born. I was always very attached to that painting and its aesthetic, it was naïve art. I then started diving into different naïve artists, and then I created my collection from what I had learnt. So it really starts from a small thing, and then I create a world around it to support my collection. 

 

What is your vision for your craft?

My aim is to spread the brand outside Luxembourg. I’ve started from Italy and Luxembourg because my roots are here, but I really want it to get out of the country and spread in Europe, to begin with, and then elsewhere. 

 

Your favourite travel destination & why?

I love the mountains because it’s something I shared with my family, so the Alps are my favourite travel destination. Also, there is this place in Italy called Umbria, it’s very peaceful and I’m in contact with nature. I love to go there to get a break from the cities. 

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Your favourite book, film, activity - that motivate & inspire you?

I love Jazz music, always have ever since I was a kid. I like to read biographies and journals. 

 

 

Tell us something about your brand?

The brand is a unisex clothing brand, so every single piece of the collection is meant to be worn by both men and women. So the shape is really technically thought to be worn by both physiques. All the materials are from a sustainable source, so they are either recycled materials, like recycled wool from old garments or cutouts from other production. The cotton is GOTS certified. The buttons are made out of corozo, it is a natural nut. We cannot eat it as it is very resistant, but we can make buttons out of it. Also, the new wools I’m using are non-mulesed wools, they are sourced from Italy where they have to do everything in one place. It is very important to me that I don’t source wool from regions like Australia or New Zealand because of the mulesing process. 2% of my sales are devoted to different charities for every collection. We started this year with one in Luxembourg that I’m really attached to. It’s called North-South Cooperation.

Also, I really like to collaborate. Since I am in a creative hub with a lot of artists I always try to find collaborators here. With makeup artists, photographers, etc. We are all emerging artists, so I think it is very important to gather and create a voice together because it’s hard when you start. For my latest collection, I have collaborated with a Knitwear designer. 

 

Can you tell us more about your manufacturing process?

I don’t want to use synthetic material in my clothes, so I use recycled plastic bottles from domestic use to make my labels. Also, the hangtags are from leather recycling, which is very interesting as well. My business cards are also made up of recycled paper and cotton. This is a tradition in a region in Italy called Prato, of taking back old garments and dismantling them dividing by colours so you don’t need to re-colour and re-dye the fabrics. They make new fabrics. My production is in Italy and it’s very traceable how it is manufactured. They give me a tracking number of every garment, so I or my customer can go to the website of the Italian Chamber of Commerce and they can trace the entire manufacturing history of the garment. Also, 90% of the manufacturing is by women, which I’m also a fan of.