Juxtaposing the iconic, straight-edged 90s Versace silhouette with the light, fluffy loveliness of a guinea pig’s downy coat, RCA graduate and ITS finalist Amélie Marciasini, combines textures and textiles to create her signature aesthetic. i-D Online sashayed down to the Swedish babes studio to rifle through her dress up box of fabrics, costumes and back catalogues of archived magazines.
Why were guinea pigs such a specific inspiration for this collection? This specific collection has all these natural mohawks and movements; I wanted to incorporate that into the garments.
Where do you source these fabrics? I found a floaty fabric and then I just customised it. When I cut strips out of the fabric and brushed them I was left with a hairy structure. I took these strings, cut the fabric out and weaved the fur together, and this then gave the illusion of one fabric.
How do your clothes embody your own personality? I can get very excited about things and I show my feelings quite strongly, I think that shows in my garments. I also hope to get that mix of having craziness but I’m also a little bit traditional in the way I dress myself, so when I design it’s like a channel for me.
What kind of woman do you have mind when you are designing a new outfit? A strong, modern, woman. Its really important to me that what I do is wearable I wouldn’t wear an absolutely crazy jacket with crazy pants, it has to feel natural.
You studied at the RCA, but where are you from? I’m from Sweden. I did my BA in Stockholm, I think in Sweden things are more conceptual and l struggled more. In London its become so much more liberating to be like ‘wow, this is cool and like something just because you do, its important not to over analyze anything.
Where do you source your references? I’m more into reading old catalogues, from the 50s and 40s. I recently worked on a Diesel project that I called for ‘The Future of Denim’. It’s all about engineering a distressed denim, destroying it.
Are you always on the hunt for new fabrics? Yes, the most boring fabrics actually, that nobody wants. You can find really weird things and do a lot with them. I think that’s the challenge as well.WHAT NEW TALENT ARE YOU
What is fashion now? I think that fashion now is all about the power of the wearer. It used to be the designers directing what people should wear and nI don’t know… I want to learn as much as possible, from as many people as possible. There’s so much more to learn and I guess I will feel like that all my life.
