Madame Demode looks out at the world and creates their own fashion principles, assembled from a wealth of diverse and often surprising inputs and ingredients.
The curious Madame Demode clothing design studio-duo is the creation of two Zagreb-based designers – Viktorija V. (Ukrainian) and Sanja Č. (Croatian) – making it the perfect eastern European multi-cultural fashion mix. As both of them originate from countries with no particular fashion legacy it was natural for them to start their creative collaboration-process from the inside, rather than choosing an existing theme and eating it up.
Trendy, uncomfortable clothes were never their thing; they needed something that would feel good on their bodies and at the same time, make them feel stylish.
Sanja’s devoted relationship to male trousers and Viktorija’s obsession with the finest fabrics earned them many female devotees in search of clothes with a twist. But the passion they share is the clothes and style of the seniors. The grandpa loose-fit trousers – as they call them – and orthopaedic grandma shoes make them feel like “bizzaro” fashion Robin Hoods, stealing from the old and giving to the young and styleless.
Worn out old-fashioned fabrics, old-school professional tailoring and the unbearable awareness of the elderly style-presence are only enhanced by the contrast of the omnipresent plastic bag, which assumes the role of fetish object supreme. The plastic bag has it all: you can carry your groceries in it, use it as a garbage bag, put it over your head or shoes when it rains – flatten it and it can even fly.
The style they work to create, that gets them going, couldn’t really be called retro – it’s more of an eclectic “retiree-chic”.
Living and working in the Croatian capital of Zagreb, packed with young girls in tight low-cut jeans and even tighter tops that hinder blood circulation and (they say) seriously damages health, made them design clothes with no gender or age boundaries – trying a stylishly-humane approach to saving the lives of tomorrow’s women – today.
The girls insist the well-aged have an extraordinary way of wearing their clothes, making them look smart in things that are always meticulously chosen and combined. For them, choosing the right accessories could be of vital importance, for if – let’s say – granny wore a rucksack, it would be literally impossible to defend herself against the young delinquents out there. Choosing to accessorize with an amazing, shabby handbag could prove to be a life saver.
Let’s face it – the older are wiser, with age comes wisdom, so anything they choose to wear definitely qualifies as a good choice.
What would Madame Demode like to propose to all the young and restless, image-driven tormenting their fit and firm bodies? “We say look after your kidneys and ovaries by wearing long johns from autumn to spring, save your feet and spine using orthopaedic pads in your favourite heels, and last but not least, never go anywhere without the plastic bag.”
Autor: Maja Mujičić
Photos: Špela Kasal
