Designer Glossier

DVF.   Hanii Y.   Tigerlily.   Sass and Bide.  These are designers you need to know.  And if you need to know them then you must know these two...

Liz Casella and Bronwyn Ferguson run Karolina york, potentially the hottest textile design company in the biz and have designed for these designers and more.   They live in Sydney but are having a huge impact on designers in almost every major fashion city.  These girls are true artists which makes their designs unique and insanely original.  Constantly roaming the globe from their quaint Surrey Hills design studio to the Ramblas in Barcelona, they find their inspiration.. which is pretty much my dream job.  This talented duo gives us the inside gloss on their fab life.

Which designer would you love to see use your designs for their collection?

Dries Van Noten.  He continually inspires the print industry and our studio.  We are also big fans of Balenciaga, Alexander McQueen, Christian Lacroix, and Giles Deacon.

      McQueen Spring 09

Which designer do you think is super hot right now?

Manning Cartell.  An Australian label rockin a fun and sophisticated look.

Designers like Jason Wu and Thakoon have been petitioning in Washington to pass a bill regarding anti-piracy laws for fashion designers.  How does this affect you as a print designer?

Coming from a small industry like Australia's we've always been aware of designers using other international labels for influence.  Though being a print studio we are at the early stages of a fashion designers process so we don't come across anti-piracy laws.

Do you follow trends when your designing?

There is always a component of our range that is trend driven.  We show at international trade shows such as Direction by Indigo in New York and Indigo at Premier Vision in Paris.  For these we need to have a good idea what is happening globally.  Karolina york caters to both commercial and niche designers.  Our job is to constantly come up with new designs so we also create our own trends often influenced by art movements and our travels.  Each design is unique and stands alone.

What place has inspired you the most?

We take constant inspiration from our travels and enjoy setting up a home away from home.  We have both been lucky enough to spend time in Paris and Barcelona designing for Karolina york.  We find we keep the range fresh and energized.

Where are some of your favorite places to shop in Sydney.. NY.. Paris?

To be honest, we are normally hunting down the best places to eat, not shop (love that!).  Shopping is our industry, finding small eateries in the cities we visit is a total joy.  Our latest find is Bariocino (on Broome st) in NYC for Mexican!

What can we look forward to seeing from Karolina york in the future?

Lately we have been exploring the world of digital design.  With the resources to digitally print more accessible, we are able to push our design process further.  Prints are influenced by optical illusions and flat patterns made to look 3D using shading and gradients.  There is a definite move towards extremes: dark romance vs bold statement prints.  Dressing to define the times.

These girls are definitely ones to watch. 

xoxo,

SG