Reykjavík Grapevine - 13.04.2012, Qupperneq 29

29
The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 4 — 2012
Fashion | Interview
Designing With Some Heart
With Reykjavík Fashion Festival
just behind us, we decided to track
down one of the most recent ad-
ditions to the Icelandic fashion
scene: Hilda Gunnarsdóttir. She
launched the label Milla Snorrason
in 2009 after her graduation col-
lection, which consisted of wooden
eyewear and striped socks. It was
especially well received; the prod-
ucts were snatched up by fashion
conscious Icelanders almost faster
than she could make them avail-
able. At the Fashion Festival, she
showed off her new fashion line,
which is characterised by quirky
modern silhouettes juxtaposed
with a vintage sensibility. That, and
earrings made from moss!
So how did the fashion show go?
It went really well. Everything went as
planned. It’s the most amazing thing
in the world to do a show like this. My
adrenaline is still pumping…
Has your style changed since you
put out your graduation collection?
I think I have a strong style; I see simi-
larities between my college work and
this collection. I still like the same
things that I liked back then. I’m really
fascinated by classical shapes and light
colours. I don’t use black at all; Goth is,
well, just not me. I like geeky things. I
never go for obvious sexy; I prefer a dif-
ferent kind of sexy.
Ultimately, being sincere is most im-
portant. That’s so much better than try-
ing to be cool all the time. Just be hon-
est. That’s something I started thinking
about when I was living in London.
Was this collection a long time in
the making?
It may have taken me longer than it
needed to, but I’m just figuring out
what the process really is. I spent quite
some time designing the collection,
for instance the prints. One of them is
based on forms from architect Guðjón
Samúelsson’s buildings. To make it, I
cut out all these little pieces and stuck
them back together and the whole pro-
cess took close to three weeks. But the
other print only took about a day to
sketch up.
Do you prefer drawing from some-
thing familiar, something you care
about?
When I was in London, I was very home-
sick so I decided that my line would be
based on Reykjavík, and that’s where
these patterns come from. I wanted
to use the city in some new way that I
hadn’t seen done before.
I look back to the 1920s. Many de-
tails came from looking at old photos,
which are a constant inspiration to me.
On one hand I’m inspired by nature
around me today, and on the other I can
look at old albums for ages and disap-
pear into a bygone world. With my next
collection I want to focus on a different
place in Iceland and work from there.
What matters to you when you’re
creating? Who are you designing
for and what is your market?
I try to think about a group of consum-
ers, but I also try to make sure that the
group is not too narrowly defined, as
the market in Iceland isn’t very big. In
general my market is “smart women.”
I always try to think about the body.
Even though I’m slender, I try not to just
make clothes that would only fit me.
It’s really important to be sincere
and to try to put yourself completely
into what you’re doing. It makes every-
thing so much more interesting.
Words
Erla Björk Baldursdóttir
photo
Nanna Dís Jónsdóttir
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