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I am from Helsinki, Finland. I first came to Mallorca when I was living in Barcelona, as I was doing design projects for Camper. I would come to the island for a couple of days each month. Until this time I had not visited Mallorca much. We used to go to Formentera more when living in Barcelona.
I started with a foundation course in fine arts and then studied a tailoring degree in Helsinki. I went to university in England and received a BA degree in Fashion design, and from there, as an exchange student, I moved to Barcelona. During that time, I was offered an internship at Miró Jeans, a brand by the Catalan designer Antonio Miró. I worked for two years designing the Antonio Miró women’s wear line, shown at Cibeles in Madrid, twice a year.
In 2002, I launched my own brand, a small independent label, and in that same year I also co-founded Comité, a designers collective shop, together with 4 other designers. Those were fantastic years in Barcelona, a lot of things happening design-wise. I won the ModaFAD prize, which then enabled me to have a stand at Barcelona fashion week, then Gaudí, and later on I showed at Circuit and 080 Barcelona fairs twice a year. I also formed part of a selection of designers from Barcelona showcased at fairs and showrooms in Paris, London, Berlin, Italy and Japan. I started the collection working mostly with recycled materials, such as antique sheets and men’s shirts, transforming them into women's wear garments. Today, I still work with recycled materials but more for one-off pieces for exhibitions, films or special projects or custom made pieces for special clients. The collection itself is made all of organic, GOTS-certified, cotton and linen and the collection is produced locally here on the island. I do two collections a year.
I guess I have quite a nordic, minimalistic view on design, but living here brings in a more relaxed, Mediterranean ease into it, which makes a good mix. Light and darkness, casual sophistication with some nordic nostalgia. Producing here in Mallorca has its limitations, so I have to adapt the designs to what can be made here. It is also very expensive to produce here, so this helps to simplify tailoring and avoid excess complications. I stopped using silk, even if it is a natural, amazing fibre, it is not vegan nor very ethical – so there is a challenge in how to make more sophisticated pieces using very down to earth, organic, materials. But these limitations are exactly what keeps it interesting! I have always been doing yoga, but it wasn't until living here in Mallorca that I started my own daily practice. I could not find sustainable, locally made, yoga wear so I first made some just for my own use but then developed it further into a small yoga wear collection. Now I basically live in the new yoga jumpsuit. The yoga collection is also all GOTS-certified, organic, cotton and produced locally here in Mallorca. We decided on the soft organic cotton jersey instead of the more durable polyester as, even if recycled, polyester is all plastic, made from oil and generates microplastics with every use, with every wash and on top of that takes hundreds of years to biodegrade. So the yoga pieces allow flexibility and freedom of movement and to feel great at the same time. There are no microplastics, no harmful chemicals or working conditions throughout the entire production process.
I also make a very small line of limited edition tea blends, mixing herbs from the island, some from my own garden, with green tea. This is probably also a project I would not have thought of doing if I wasn’t living here in the middle of nature.
The spring/summer 2024 collection is continuing this ongoing process of making timeless, sophisticated pieces from natural, organic and down to earth fabrics. A new turn on the GOTS-certified cotton gauze, combining the textured, soft muslin with highlights of crisp linen. Soft bamboo jersey for t-shirts and flowy Tencel Lyocell made from Eucalyptus trees for flowy dresses and jumpsuits. The overall objective is to combine the everyday needs in terms of dressing, to feel (and look) great, the best organic materials, local production and a conscious way of living – doing all this in the best way possible.
I will also release this spring a new capsule collection that I designed within LOOP, an innovation design initiative, in collaboration with IDI and Deixalles. It is a collection of dresses, shirts and tops made 100% out of recycled hotel sheets from Mallorca and this project will be launched in January 2024. The extra durable fabric is made from densely woven, immaculate white, fine and crisp 100% cotton yarn, a high quality fabric not commonly found in clothing.
No place has ever made such an impact on me as the Tramuntana mountains here on Mallorca. It is the first place in my life that It is the first place that I miss in advance even before leaving the island. So, hiking the mountains, swimming in the calas and doing yoga here in these mountains!
@ceciliasorensen
