Nanushka creative director Sandra Sándor’s take on resort didn’t dilute her codes, it reinforced them. Following a fall collection derived from her own core memories, the Hungarian designer used nostalgia as her primary form of inspiration. Budapest, the place where she was born and raised, again served as a foundation, but this time she focussed on her late teenage years.
“It’s definitely my grandfather’s wardrobe” said Sándor, while going through patchworked details and hook hardwares. “He used to wear these types of workwear while gardening in the countryside, but they came from his war years, typical of an Eastern European workforce.” Papier-mâché was used to construct a fringe-like texture, alongside laser cutting, hand-cut fringing, fabric blocking and zips. “I got really fascinated by the biker subculture in Western movies, and I was able to translate and subtly merge it with our brand pillars,” said the designer of a more sportswear mood shift in the collection, guided by a never-ending investigation into comfortable clothing.
OKOBOR, the signature alt-leather that Nanushka trademarked, ran throughout the collection mingling, at times, with a form of regenerated leather partly made from a compression of unwanted leather offcuts, on a journey of sustainability. “I used the regenerated leather to give more structure to the silhouettes, as in coats. While for lighter blouses and puffy looks, OKOBOR is our first choice,” Sándor said.
Following a recent relaunch of its new identity, Nanushka has a monogram on satins and leathers, borrowing symbols from wooden totems that decorate the showroom, as well as origami bag locks. The menswear section presented a new type of recycled cashmere. With the 20th anniversary of the birth of the brand approaching, the team behind Nanushka is gathering new ideas to enrich the business. “My mother was in the kidswear industry, and I’d love to implement that segment in the business in the future,” said Sándor.