1. Could you describe what a typical day is like for you?
A typical day for me starts with meditation, reading and social media. Sometimes I may take a trip to the gym after doing the school run. In the early afternoon, I do my coursework, design work which could be studio based, a trip to an exhibition, a meeting with other creatives or simply lunch and shopping with my mum. The late afternoon and evenings is usually dedicated to mummy duties and University.
2. How do you strike the balance between your work and your home life?
Balancing my home and work life has been quite a challenge which requires reviewing frequently and it also depends a lot on the type of project I’m working on. Whenever I can I try to incorporate my family into my working process. For one of my projects I designed and created smaller dresses so that my 3 young daughters could be my fit models. My daughters were asked to present the dresses in a fashion show and they also had the opportunity to star in a short fashion film which was filmed by my husband and directed by their Godfather who is an Actor (an ideal setup).
When it is not possible to work in this way I rely on my husband to hold the fort and occasionally if need be, other members of my family also. When I was working on the H&M project for example my children spent a few days with me whist I was working on the dress, then they went to stay with my Nan where different members of the family would take them out to do fun stuff.
3. Where do you seek inspiration?
My Instagram page is full of stuff that inspires me. Inspiration can come from anything; I like to think I have the art of seeing. I can see beauty in things, people and places that most people would over look.
4. After your collaboration with LCF and H&M to push sustainable fashion, what impact did that have on you as a designer?
The impact of the collaborative project with LCF & H&M on my career, was a high-profile platform that made my work more visible. Shortly after in the following month my work was featured in a ‘Beauty from Waste’ Fashion Show at Brighton Fashion Week which allowed me to meet and present alongside established fashion designers which then placed me in the category of a ‘sustainable fashion designer’.
5. What does sustainable fashion mean to you?
Sustainable Fashion is very broad & has a variety of meanings but to me it is fashion that has one or more Ethical practices and / or processes.
6. Often people think that Eco/sustainable fashion as boring and shapeless clothes, how can you change that perception?
All the Couture dresses I have produced to date, fit under the Eco/sustainable heading. When I create, it is my intention to make ‘art’ that can be worn or exhibited.
7. What can we do in our everyday life to improve the environment?
The things we can do in everyday life to improve the environment is to recycle clothes correctly by not throwing them in the bin. Put them in recycling clothes banks or donate them to charity.
8. What do you enjoy the most about being a fashion designer?
What I enjoy most about being a Fashion Designer is engaging in a creative process and experimentation; I love getting lost in an artistic zone and coming out the other end with something new. I also enjoy collaborating; meeting & connecting with other talented creatives.
9. What do you do when you really want to treat yourself?
To treat myself I like to have a glass of wine or champagne, listen to music and go shopping.
10. What are your favourite fashion websites, magazines or books?
My favourite fashion media is Business of Fashion, Fashion Monitor & the Ethical Fashion Forum website, anything that relates to trend forecasts, magazines such as Harper Bazaar, Vogue, Fabulous - anything with the work of photographer Tim Walker.
11. What’s one thing you hope the audience will take away from the experience of a Genieve Couture show?
After a Genieve Couture show I would want the audience to leave inspired. To feel like the emperor in his new clothes.
12. What are your future plans for your business?
My plan (for the future) has happened a lot sooner than I expected I recently launch G-Label which is a bridge line casual collection of printed homeware and accessories. I intend to broaden the range to include casual wear, soon.
I hope to complete my BA Fashion Design Degree at London College of Fashion next year and I’d like to exhibit my graduate collection in London, Paris and New York for Fashion week.
Discover Genieve Couture
Website: www.genievecouture.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/GenieveCouture
Instagram: www.instagram.com/genievecouture
Twitter: www.twitter.com/genievecouture
YouTube: https://youtu.be/c74Qt31W8H4
Vanity Afro, 14/01/2017
Be happy, do the best you can, be good and kind. X
