It seems that nowadays women act as new-age cosmopolitan creatures, hybrids of globalization and an increasingly intimate connection to the fashion world. This is one of the reasons I call my blog Fashionality and that was the initial thought behind my evolving relationship with fashion design. It’s my dream to dress women as the best version of themselves, injecting to their looks greater confidence and booming originality. Simple and firm lines, as well as great quality of materials, are the way to create every-day luxury and the enhanced version of the so-called basics of a female wardrobe.
I’ve been traveling a lot to meet the true essence of fashion, its origins and the pace it moves in time, and I’m sure that most women are part of this journey of interacting cultures, identities and personalities. What came through this process is an increasing appreciation of the necessity to respond efficiently to the needs of the super-active woman. She is cosmopolitan and this, by itself, sets new challenges. But she is also very busy, and this means another set of requirements. Her clothes need to be comfortable, to imply a certain status, as well as to serve her in a variety of occasions throughout the day. She gallops from one place to another, with maybe different weather conditions, different etiquette and dress code, in a very short time. And she needs to look and feel perfect. I see her as a futuristic amazon, simple and effective, strong but not too loud. Her style should be imposing and awesome but not overwhelming.
All-time classic elegance is a quite a modern perspective and seems to be my view on how to dress a woman. Watching recently the fashion month and attending dozens of fashion shows, I had the chance to extend this dialogue I’d love to maintain with my future customers. Women need guidance in order to discover their personal style. Designers are the psychologists of style. They suggest and ideally should help the customers find the pieces that actually improve their quality of life. With this frame of mind, as a new designer myself, I am driven by different women’s unique lifestyles and schedules, to produce clothes that match more than one circumstances. Those who travel a lot need to carry parts of their wardrobe in the limited space of their luggage.
I had to attend many shows in New York, and I had to feel warm there and look special. I would walk many miles and wait many hours standing. I had to follow my duties as a fashion journalist, and at the same time have fun with my NY-based friends. My outfits had to be comfy and versatile. This was an excellent case study for me, and it always is. The so-called fashion month poses the greatest of challenges to a busy fashionista. For this multi-faceted occasion, I decided to create two multi-purpose coats, one in red thick-and-textured wool fabric and the other in navy blue super-heavy wool adorned with checked red-and-blue buttons with the option of a matching waist-cinching belt. For extra warmth, I accessorized my coats – part of my cosmopolitan collection – with a colorful blanket-heavy Theory scarf and an endlessly long Haider Ackermann scarf looped around my neck three times! On rainy days I wore my leather Jil Sander boots, while during the snowstorm I had my Dior après-ski boots trimmed with a little bit of black fur. As I soon realized, this beanie you see from the Eugenia Kim collection, ended up being my savior and my only ‘hairstyle’ throughout the fashion week. And it attracted quite a lot of attention, after all!
This is the way I’m dealing with fashion. It’s about how fashionable you can be, within the frame of special and sometimes extreme conditions you cope with every day, as a woman with unstoppable imagination and creativity. I’m always inspired by the profiles of super-confident, accomplished women who strive with all good intentions and talent to find the perfect balance between private and public life. And I’m very optimistic at that, because there are so many women who achieve it. The only thing they need is gaining control of the situations, being well-organized and maintaining their originality. This “Circus of Fashion,” as International Herald Tribune’s top fashion editor, Suzy Menkes, recently dubbed the overwhelmingly increasing interest of every-day people in fashion, is not that bad. People learn how to express themselves through what they wear, and they now understand more the importance of the fashion industry as an indicator of social reality and of the times we live in.
I can see many unknown fashionistas on the streets feeling more comfortable right now with their looks. It seems to be the most effective and constructive revolution at the moment, one which inspires hope. I feel happy when talking about fashion and it seems that most people are equally thrilled to have such conversations with me. Gradually creating new pieces for my collection, I see this dialogue opening up in new directions. I’m asking myself, my friends, my family, everyone interested in what I’m doing, for an honest opinion, and this helps me a lot. This, more or less, denotes the actual character of my upcoming Elena_Sendona collection, consisting only of limited edition pieces, customized items, and a few of them placed somewhere between art and fashion, which is the driving force of what I’m doing. I love art and I truly believe that it can really infuse fashion with an element of uniqueness. Hand-made details, special packaging and precious fabrics will be part of my design universe, as well as tailoring that is user-friendly, pretty much like our favorite gadgets. When a woman finds her true self, then she finds her beauty; inner and outer. It’s not a dream; it just happens…
For those interested in this new project of mine, my email is: fashionality@fashionality.nyc
