No month full of Belgian creators would ever be complete without some special Belgian Fashion brands for both men and women. In this article we share the stories of three new clothing brands.
The secret to a great style is to feel good in what you wear
Abelone Wilhemsen
Abelone Willemsen grew up with parents active in fashion, perhaps that’s where she got her creative talent for making clothes from. She studied fashion and fashion technology in Paris and Copenhagen, but lost her heart in Antwerp. Initially she would stay in Antwerp for three months, but that soon became much longer. In the meantime she made the fashion capital her home.
Crystal Clear
Her Crystal Clear collection was inspired by the shape of a diamond. She likes how a diamond is facetted and how it catches light differently from different angles. Each piece is technically constructed out of several shapes, making a whole. Just like a shattered piece of glass, but than put back together.
“In my collection I used different shades of the fabric and also reversed the fabric
to give this illusion that the clothing piece is catching light
in different ways just like a diamond.”
Gender neutral
Abelone also wants to make clothes that no longer take gender into account. For her, a piece of clothing is not specific to a certain gender and everyone should be able to wear any piece, if that’s what they want. She also wants to dedicate herself more to the LGBTQIA+ and especially those who don’t immediately identify with the standard gender roles and the clothing rules.
“I would really love to work with the LGBTQIA+ community more
and give them unique clothing pieces that resonate more with their identity.
Because as we all know most stores and fashion brands are very heteronormative
and less focused on inclusivity.”
Maison La Rosa
The also in Antwerp based Matteo La Rosa likes monochrome and prefers to wear black. He wants to share this love of monochrome with his customers. He designs clothes for both men and women and doesn’t take gender into account. Matteo prefers to play with silhouettes that can be combined. By playing with layers or adding a belt for example, each piece gets a completely different interpretation. The shapes in his collections are rather basic, but still very edgy.
“The inspiration for my designs comes from 80’s fashion with a touch of modern.
My collections include pieces for both men and women who feel good
in an edgy basic silhouette of monotone colors.”
Made to order
Matteo has a number of basic silhouette fabrics and color combinations in his collection, but he prefers to make clothes that his client feels comfortable with. That’s why he gives his customers the opportunity to work with the colors and silhouettes themselves. That way every piece is unique and his work remains exclusive.
“I don’t want to make a collection that is just what it is.
What I want is to create silhouettes and give my clients the option to play around.
So I discuss with them the possibilities of each garment and adapt it to their unique taste.”
Paris Fashion Week
You can see Matteo La Rosa his first full collection during Paris Fashion Week next month. On the 3rd of October he will be presenting his collecting in a Fashion show at Salons Marceau.
SUAMI
28 year old Kelian Suami created the label SUAMI with the aim of becoming a fashion forward and eco-friendly designer beachwear brand. Unlike the two above he has no background in fashion, but he has always loved fashion since a kid. He came up with the idea of creating his own swimwear rand after being on a vacation in Thailand.
“A bunch of friends and I went to Thailand on vacation. I had some swimshorts on
but they ripped and I couldn’t find any fashionable swimshorts that I liked,
so I basically decided I should design them myself.”
Ibiza is the biggest inspiration for his first collections. He uses recognizable elements and transforms them into unique prints with a wink to the eighties.
“I got immensely inspired by Ibiza and what it had to offer for my brand.
I used a lot of it’s elements in my motif designs. For example you’ll see
the typical Almenros flower of Ibiza in aquarel style appearing on my designs.”
Plastic waste
A big source of material for the creation of his swimwear collection is plastic. The plastic is assembled by a group of fishermen and comes from the ocean, the Mediterranean Sea and the shores. This assembled plastic is then sent to factories that make fine granules out of it. Then the granules are transformed into thin threads that are assembled into a big canvas and printed on.
All genders
SUAMI started off as a beach wear brand for men, but recently Kelian added new styles to the collection. This weekend he revealed during his 1 year anniversary at Balthasar that the collection now will have beachwear items for women too.
We are looking forward to seeing how these new brands will evolve in the future. We are very proud of them and fan of their beautiful creations.
