Inside Amsterdam Fashion Week with TFB Magazine

Interview(s) Proctored and Curated by TFB Journalist: Orianna Santucci 

Interview with Pauline Blind

Recently, I had the pleasure of interviewing Pauline of Pauline Blind, a confident emerging designer with a talent for combining the classically feminine with activewear, a feminist message, and a penchant for ice cream.

These elements were represented in her second Amsterdam Fashion Week appearance, a runway presentation that kicked off the week. The show featured dresses of ribbon and mesh, unique cutouts, eye-catching draping, and a deep red, pale pink, copper brown, and black color palette. The dresses highlighted the female form while face coverings and hair obscured the models’ faces or necks. To my surprise and amusement, I noticed that many of the models were wearing Converse All-Stars under their handmade dresses. (Pauline herself was also wearing a pair.)

Post-show, there was music, drinks, and a fully stocked complimentary gelato bar. Sesora and I skipped the drinks entirely and made a beeline to the ice cream. We made quick work of the tiramisu, crema, and cacao flavors while dancing in front of the DJ booth to 2000s RnB remixes. Tummies full of gelato, we remembered the original reason we had come to the show and found Pauline, receiving many well-deserved congratulations outside the venue.

INTERVIEW | Post-Show Backstage

TFB: My first question – and this just came to my mind when I was watching the show – but why the Converse shoes? 

Because I was looking for something to wear that's relatable and that you can customize to become something so special. My whole collection is sustainable; I reworked old garments, old fabrics, etc. So, in line with that, I asked Converse if they had any faulty pieces or sample stuff that they would throw away, and then I recycled them and made them into something new.

TFB: Okay, love it. How are you feeling overall post-show? 

Ecstatic, yeah, confused almost. It's weird that after a year of working on something, it's over, but I'm so pleased with everything. It's been an incredible experience, the whole team was so kind, and it was just a blast. Hearing that feedback was really touching.

TFB: So, on your socials, you share that this collection focuses on female empowerment and activism. How do you envision reclaiming the female body through fashion? 

I'm a woman making clothing for women who want to feel empowered themselves. I want women to wear clothes for themselves and their own beauty. That, for me, is empowering. And always having the political message as well is very, very important to me, and speaking out about issues when it comes to feminism.

TFB: This is a bonus question that is just my curiosity, but what does the essence of femininity mean to you personally? 

Having a big heart with a lot of space for loving yourself.

TFB: Beautifully said. You've already talked a little bit about the role sustainability plays in this collection because the pieces were all recycled. What unique challenges and advantages come with using thrifted clothes or recycled materials? 

You just have to get so much more creative when you're limited. When you could buy any fabric in the world, you are almost paralyzed by choice. To me, the biggest challenge is seeing how much I waste or all the stuff that ends up in landfills. That's a challenge for me in my job as a fashion designer because it hurts my heart, I hate it. So to me it’s actually blissful. It feels like a rebirth to find things that already exist and turn them into something else.

TFB: Okay, so I've stalked your Instagram. 

Love it.

TFB: I think you have a really great style, and I was wondering how this collection corresponds to your personal style. 

I love, love, love, love, love combining femininity and sensuality with sportiness. To me, sportiness is something very closely tied to being comfortable and loving myself and my body, which is a rebellious act these days as a woman. So I love the mix of boldness, elegance, and activewear.

TFB: So the Converse could be an example of that “sporty” element? 

Mhmm.

TFB: Can you give some insight into the creative process of putting this runway presentation together, such as the set design, light design, music, etc? 

I actually had the location in mind already before I even started making the collection. I knew the title and the concept a year in advance. When I saw that it was this beautiful temple, I thought it was perfect for Blasphemous Bodies. With regards to the lighting and everything, I really wanted it to be more than just a show but also an artistic installation.

For the audio, I work a lot with spoken word. I got the idea for the collection from this phrase that came to me: “I dreamt I was so rich I could afford my own body.” For me, spoken word and poetry come first — I first have words, then I have designs. So it was really important for me to find a great audio designer who could incorporate that. Lara really did a fantastic job of capturing the essence of the whole message behind the collection.

TFB: Do you feel that being rich can mean affording your body? Is it possible to be rich enough to do that? 

Rich in this case is a metaphor. I think true wealth is being able to rule over your own body. When I live in a country where I have the right to abort if I need to, or do anything and express myself, then I feel rich, because I have true autonomy over my body. Unfortunately, that is not the case for many women in the world. And it’s mostly men in power that rule over women's bodies, these rich men. So it's a bit of a metaphor, but it also stands for men in power ruling over women. The whole collection is about considering how to dismantle that.

TFB: Last question, how does this collection and the runway fit into your broader creative vision and goals? 

My goal in life is to empower women and make them feel beautiful. That's how the collection fits in: to make beautiful clothes that also have a message, and not only invoke the thought of “oh, that's beautiful,” but also “oh, that touches me, and I feel that.”

TFB: Okay, thank you very much. It was a beautiful show, a beautiful interview.

Interview with Marica NL

Marica’s third solo runway show took place at a spacious photography studio in Noord. Despite the inclement Dutch weather and the longer ferry times, Sesora and I were excited to be there. We were greeted with complimentary drinks at the door (wrapped in an adorable pink ribbon that we each took home for future crafts) and took our seats front and center along the runway.

In the audience and on the runway, I recognized faces I had seen the previous year at her fashion show at Obey. The importance Marica places on growing with her community was obvious, and it was impressive to see how they turned out for her.

The performers kicked off the show with original songs. The models looked like nymphs from the forest coaxed into participating in a runway show. They wore otherworldly makeup looks and walked at different paces and rhythms. Deconstructed crochet designs in fern green, cream, red, and black took center stage.

Interviewing Marica post-show was a treat. She has a gentle and genuine energy that shone through both in the interview and during her closing speech to the audience.

INTERVIEW | Post-Show Backstage

TFB: How are you feeling post-show? 

I feel really tired. I feel happy but tired. I think that's the best explanation. Everybody's asking me if I feel proud, but I always have to sleep before I know if I'm proud or not.

TFB: Was this your third or fourth runway show? 

This is officially my third own runway show. I did one in Obey, so it's actually my fourth, but I don't really consider that as my own.

TFB: You already spoke about this a little bit in Dutch about what inspired your latest collection, but can we maybe hear it for our English readers?

Yeah, sure. I actually have two things that inspire me. One is my best friend, who passed away unfortunately, but his parents support me all the time, and they come to my shows. Last show, they randomly surprised me, and they were like, “Mar, just know we always love you and we will always support you.” This collection is called Everybody Deserves Their Flowers. So that's why I gave him flowers.

I try to just keep the love high, you know, and besides that, I think it's nice to support each other as creatives a bit more because I feel like it's not done enough. That's why I also called it Everybody Deserves Their Flowers because everybody does, no matter where you are in the creative industry. Everybody deserves love and their own identity, and I feel like we need to see each other more as individuals. We don't need to do everything the same; everybody has their own journey.

TFB: Like you said in your closing speech, “not everyone has to do the same thing as me to be cool.” 

Yeah, true.

TFB: Is there a design that you feel most proud of or most attached to in this collection? 

Yeah, I actually made some corsets that are made from hard material, and I think those are nice because I wanted to challenge myself with what you can do with wool. Sometimes you think you can only do one thing, but when you're experimenting you discover there are so many options with one fabric. So it was nice to challenge myself, and that's why I love that one.

TFB: I’d love to know a bit more about your creative process because you've designed a full collection. When you see the sheer amount of pieces and the amount of work that goes into it, I'm curious to know how you go about brainstorming a collection. 

Basically, I'm doing it through feeling. I don't have any sketches, actually. Sometimes I do sketch, but not a lot. I don't believe in doing everything the old-school way. I don't believe in patterns. So I just start crocheting, and what I feel, I just add. That's how it's going. I’ll just go to my studio, check nature, and think “oh, that's so cool.” Then I just try. I don't have a plan ever; it's more an intuitive thing.

TFB: I mean, you can see that in your pieces, the way they’re deconstructed and everything. It feels very intuitive. On a broader level, can you maybe tell me a bit about the role that your team or your creative community played in helping you bring the show together? 

Well, some people I know from high school, and we’ve seen each other grow into the people we are now. That’s beautiful, I really love it. I also met some new people that I attracted through energy. I really believe in energy, and whenever the energy is good, I’ll just accept you into my team, and then we can grow together. I'm always open to doing stuff together. So that's also the vibe behind the scenes and the vibe the team is giving me. I'm really grateful, honestly.

TFB: And last question, how does this collection and the runway show in general fit into your broader creative goals or vision for the future? 

Well, I'm a really intuitive person, right? So I don't really have future goals; I do whatever I'm feeling. But right now, I will do Fashion Week in two weeks, and that was the goal. So I'm really grateful. But I would love to style or create an outfit for an artist that’s not in the Netherlands. That would be so nice, honestly. So that's a goal. But whatever happens, happens. I'm grateful for everything that's on my path.

TFB: Thank you so much for the interview, and congrats on your collection. It really is gorgeous. 

Thank you so much. I'm so happy that you all came.

Credits

 Interview by Orianna Santucci (Journalist, TFB Magazine)

 Photography by Sesora Murakami (TFB Magazine)

 Published by TFB Magazine, a print and digital title of TFB Collective