A New York designer’s moments in Paris

Claire Sullivan’s world is filled with gravity-defying skirts, dramatic drapes, and mismatched aesthetics. The New York-based couturier got his start with the cult-favorite label Vaquera and recently created his Addison Rae tutu-inspired VMAs look that brings most of these values ​​together in one outfit. and started a polarizing debate online. (Some people called it “weird,” but we thought it was great.) Sullivan’s unique approach to provocative clothing led to Ghani’s first show in Paris made her an outstanding choice in collaborating with.

Sullivan co-designed several looks Tuesday as part of the Danish brand’s designer consulting program. She created two different looks alongside her ref strap, Ditte, who is the brand’s creative director. The combination of an athletic, draped jersey dress with a puffy skirt and bomber jacket is the perfect combination of what a New York woman and a Copenhagen girl would really want to wear. It’s just a marriage between me and Gunny, Gunny’s girl,” Sullivan said. “She has an intelligence, a wit and a sense of playfulness, and she doesn’t take herself too seriously, but still takes herself seriously enough.” Both concepts clearly show that the peers really want to express themselves. It is connected to the reality of thinking, and can only be born from the mind of a young designer who travels around the world.

“Collaboration has always been an important part of our brand’s DNA and supporting young talent is so important. They are the stars of tomorrow and collaboration is about learning together and building each other up. I truly believe that,” Lefstrup said. “I love that we can celebrate emerging talent as we head to Paris. It’s a very powerful platform.”

Immediately after the show, Sullivan sat down with Kat to talk about inspiration, working with fashion giants like Gunny, and ultimately realizing her dream of showing at Paris Fashion Week.

How did this collaboration come about?

Ditte and I got the vibe. There was just mutual optimism and a love for making fashion more fun. Then they presented the idea and I thought, “Okay, so what? Let’s go. “

What was it like working with someone like Ditte?

She is very nice and I think the word nurturing is perfect for her. The entire design team was really great to work with. I really felt a sense of gratitude, respect, and gratitude, and it was really refreshing to be able to experience that in this industry. Niklas Skovgaard was also involved in this project. I’ve always been a fan of his work. So it was really amazing to be with him and still have a friendship with him because I love his work so much. I feel like there’s a thread between us, so it’s great that it connects.

What is it about Ganni that drew you to this collaboration?

This season was called “The Craft,” so there’s a lot of witchy stuff going on. I mean, I’m definitely a witch. I’m a tarot girl. And I think my design method is very intuitive. They were very depressed about it being very independent and gave me the understanding that I could be confident in the fact that they wanted me to present the look that I would present.

Besides the witchy look, can you tell us more about the inspiration for the looks you sent down the runway?

Ganni has a program called Fabric of the Future, and these are all sustainable fabrics, and the dresses made from athletic jersey are made with the company’s textile called Cycora. A fiber developed from post-consumer textile waste. I decide how to drape very intuitively. The inspiration was that I was really interested in combining these very athletic items to create a romantic feel. And they got excited about the idea of ​​me working in Jersey and I just started hamming it up.

I really love the combination of sporty and romantic. How would you describe your approach to design and the clothes you make?

My approach is usually to take advantage of the moment. I’m very interested in each piece being its own special moment and having its own story. I would definitely say there is a kind of story that unfolds in each piece and a lot of emotion behind each piece.

What story was playing out in your head about the look you created? What kind of person would be wearing it? Where did the clothes go during the trip?

I love the idea that a jersey dress is like getting out of bed and going to a gala. You can wear it to bed or to a gala. And that girl definitely does both. A short little black puffer dress, to be honest, I think it looks just like me running around in these puffy skirts all the time. I love the cuteness of pufferfish.

Between this and the stunning look he created for Addison Rae at the VMAs, his work has been in the spotlight a lot lately. How was that for you?

Most of all, I get so excited when the work I create means something to others and evokes emotion. That’s the most important part to me, more than being noticed. It’s more about how it impacts other people and the positive impact it has on the world of fashion.

What’s next for Claire?

I’m definitely looking at expanding, but I’ll leave it a little vague on that. There is also future growth. I think that habit will always be at the core and the soul of Claire Sullivan, but there is also a lot of room to expand from there.