Of Italian and Russian origin, everything predisposed me to become a designer and craftsman: Russian great-grandparents breeders of Astrakhan sheep, a daddy shoemaker who worked diligently with his sewing machine and maintained joyful contact with his customers, a mother who had made-to-measure dresses at a local seamstress and an Italian aunt who had set up her own beauty and hairdressing salon in the center of Milan, a magnificent woman, sunny, stylish, smiling, full of energy.
After studying at the Free University of Brussels (Roman Philology / Letters), then in Fashion Design (Institut Saint-Luc), I decided, in 2006, to create some tops that are sorely lacking in my wardrobe: tops that are elegant but not too much, comfortable but stylish.
I am going straight away for viscose jersey because it is an ultra comfortable material, very pleasant on the skin, natural, easy to work with, easy to wash, which lasts over time.
But to give it a more stylish look than a simple T-shirt, I quickly decided to add some nice details:
– other materials such as cotton, wool in cutouts
– asymmetrical necklines that you can’t see anywhere else
– punchy graphic elements, like piping, ribbed edges, which give light to my basic colors: navy blue and black. The ribbing that I create are knitted exclusively for my brand. They are therefore not found anywhere else!
MADE IN BRUSSELS
Beautiful, joyful, luminous and lasting
The quality of materials and production has always been one of my main concerns. When a customer tells me that she still loves wearing a dress she bought 10 years ago, I really love it.
So I spend a lot of time selecting materials that are comfortable, soft and high quality, that do not fluff after one or two washes. I only choose natural and organic materials certified Oekotex like cotton, wool, because it is beautiful and pleasant on the skin, because it is renewable resources and because it “breathes”.
All my fabrics are European (Belgium, Germany, Austria, France) and 1/3 of my fabrics comes from French and Belgian Haute Couture Houses, which further reduces the environmental impact since it reduces the overproduction of raw materials. And you, you have the happiness to wear creations with exclusive fabrics of very high quality at moderate prices.
Cheerful, peppy, bright ribbed ribbons!
One of the recognizable characteristics of my work is the use of ribbons that finish the garment in the neckline, the sleeve ends and the bottom of the tops, with peppy and bright colors: a base of mostly ecru with touches of fluorescent orange, fluorescent pink, fluorescent yellow, copper lurex etc. These ribbons are designed by me: I select, among 200 different colors from my manufacturer, the right combination of colors, the height of the lines, the best fabrics. These 100% cotton creations are produced exclusively for my brand in the north of France. You won’t find them anywhere else!
Make in a small conscientious clothing workshop in Brussels
From the start, I have all my creations made in a clothing workshop in Brussels which has excellent craftsmanship. I found Alicia a bit by chance and how lucky I was to cross her path: she works for all Belgian designers, including the cream of the crop! I am proud to give a job to this super Polish woman who set up her business on her own in Belgium and hired 4 seamstresses who were her colleagues in Poland. Over time, we have developed a very nice relationship of trust, respect and we understand each other in a single glance.
This geographical proximity allows me to control the quality at any time and especially not to pollute the earth even more with multiple transportations.
Alicia and her employees work at their own pace, without pressure and she practices fair prices for all which allow her to pay her 4 seamstresses with dignity and fairness. I really feel that she makes my designs as if they were her own: conscientiously, with love and with a smile. They all always discover my new models and my new fabrics with curiosity and impatience. They love my design and therefore work with it with pleasure, which is priceless to me.
All the advantages of preorders
When a client invests in one of my creations, it is for many years: the fabric is of quality: it does not pilling, does not shrink, the color remains flamboyant. I spend a lot of time selecting my fabrics. All of this takes time and therefore comes at a cost.
When I started out, I only sold on pre-order; So I decided to go back to my essentials: to produce almost only what you order, plus a small production for the store. This pre-order system has many advantages:- it allows me to reduce my production and fabric costs and to offer you a very qualitative creation but at the most fair price for you
- It reduces the use of the earth’s primary resources
- It allows me to have more cash, which is more comfortable for me
- It allows me to dare more to offer you less commercial and more daring models since I only invest money in a prototype and not in a complete blind production without knowing if this new creation will please you or in what sizes will I sell it
- It allows me to make the best use of certain exclusive fabrics that I only have in limited quantities: I only produce the right sizes that you pre-order; I can thus satisfy all of you; whereas when I was producing blind I had some models left in unsold sizes and some of you were frustrated that you couldn’t order it in their size since I no longer had this precious fabric
- It allows me to offer you creations that are really in line with the weather and adapt to it
- It allows my clothing workshop to produce at a much more humane pace: the seamstresses sew throughout the year instead of having to produce a production that must last 6 months in a single month
Finally, by selling without an intermediary, I apply a minimum coefficient, which guarantees you the right price. I also avoid all-out sales and discounts that no longer make sense. Only prototypes or end of series are on sale.4. My darling little creation – heartPre-orderin
g requires a little patience. This is not a compulsive purchase but a real crush. I am also very available by email or phone to answer all your questions. I am committed to offering you sustainable, soft, joyful creations that will do you good. And you have a double pleasure: that of pre-ordering and that of receiving it a few weeks later.
After graduating from L’Institut Supérieur des Arts Appliqués in Paris in 2008, Joanne Vanden Avenne quickly realized she wanted to launch her own clothing line. The Belgian designer, who presented her first collection at Tranoï in March 2010, has an innate sense of beauty, style and balance. Judging there was no need to work for another fashion house, she trusted her gut feeling and rose up to the challenge. Her collections seem instinctive and direct, addressing women who juggle the demands of daily life without renouncing their femininity.
