When a designer wants to attract the general public, or at least the part of the population for which the collection is created, many ideas have to pass through his head and hands. Of course, it all depends on his talent, but also on several other factors. Slovakia has been slowly becoming famous for its fashion designers. We should be proud of the clothes that are being designed with a touch of Slovakia in each piece.
Jana Galvacová
Jana is a fashion designer who sniffed the craft at an early age, and as it begins for most creators; her dolls were honoured to wear her first models. In her words, the basis of design arts is
to master the technique. She is a stable star of Slovak fashion, her creations range from conservative or opulent evening dresses to trimmed mini, a series of romantic skirts, or leggings and
crazy accessories.
The main feature of Jana Gavalcová is blueprint, which is combined with modern materials, leather and faux fur. The collection offers traditional techniques of dyeing fabrics. She points to
blueprint´s elegance, freshness and timeless processing. We see that wearable fashion can also be breath taking. For example, if it is based on the wealth of our culture. She is the author of the
Slovak national costume, which represents Slovakia in the global Miss Universe contests. Jana is an author of several collections and she has cooperated with many celebrities.
We Are Not Sisters
The young fashion brand We Are Not Sisters (WRNS) makes broke through product design and fashion design with unique clothes that have a sense of humour and there is strong attention to every
detail. Under this label, there are two designers - Lucia Jarošová and Tamara Markovičová Tothová.
WRNS started spontaneously by customizing and refreshing the founders’ own wardrobes. Tamara and Lucia searched for something more fashionable and witty, with good quality and comfort.
Their ready-to-wear collection is inspired by a logo in the shape of a diamond heart and they work with strict geometric lines and shapes. Designers give attention to wearability and they
concentrate not only on the good look of the clothes, but also on comfort and purposefulness. The prototype dresses are first worn by the designers. The clothes are made of textures, emotions and
spirit. They are worn by people who have a forward looking and exploratory lifestyle, who are open and excited about new things and enjoy bringing a bit of humour into the simple things of their
everyday lives.
Lenka Sršňová
Lenka Sršňová graduated from the Fashion Design Studio at the Academy of Fine Arts and Design in Bratislava. As she says fashion is not just about clothing. Fashion is culture; it is a reflection
of the period and society. Clothes identify who we are and who we want to be. Clothes form our personality and are our second skin.
Lenka´s eye-catching pattern is significant among Slovak designers. She likes using intense colours, bold patterns and puts a great emphasis on every detail. Each model is unique and original at
the same time. Her fashion is full of energy and the joy of life. The vivid world that she presents every year is gaining more and more supporters. Her name and the brand are becoming the
guarantee of originality and quality.
Her collection for this year is called BonBon. She designed wonderfully girly pieces, where colour printing is the main dominance. A small girl with amazing ideas, Michaela Bednárová from Pujod,
became a textile designer again. The clothes resemble sweet candy wrappers or ´salónky´. They are covered with dots, lines and smarties. Whenever you wear a random piece of the collection you
feel like a princess in the land of sweet taste. It looks like a fantasy like whipped cream with sprinkles on the top. I am grateful that I had the opportunity to be a model for the new BonBon
collection. I love that Lenka wants to make people happy when they look at her clothes. Therefore during the shoot I was allowed to smile, laugh and jump around.
Nehera
A few years ago, such a shock happened to Slovak fashion. The Nehera brand came back. It was established back in 1923, but during the existence of Czechoslovakia it kind of passed away. On
Nehera´s rebirth, Bibiána Zdútová, with help of designers such as Boris Hanečka or Miro Sabo were able to create a new identity for Nehera with an emphasis on historical heritage. The current
creative director is Samuel Drira from France, who has also worked for fashion houses such as Hugo Boss, and Hermès. Since the rebirth there have been four collections, which have been presented
on the catwalk during Paris Fashion Week.
Last year’s collection for spring and summer got a lot of positive feedback among the well-known designers from around the world thanks to its emphasis on processing and materials imported from
France and Italy, which are important for the brand itself. Nowadays the Nehera design is in the hands of a foreign designer, but the entire production process, from patterning to tailoring and
to final products takes place in the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
by Linda Poláková
Year 2, Issue 2