An Interview with MARANGONI talent Silje Wamnes

The inspiration for my collection started with me exploring topics such as feminism in fashion, what makes a woman feel powerful, what makes a woman feel feminine and how the two emotions relate to each other. I felt called on to create an image of a powerful woman who is not trying to show up in the world as a man, but a woman who is expressing her power through her divine femininity. Elements of nature and a sense of “rawness” felt like a natural companionship to these emotions and I also wanted to bring in, or rather bring back, an element of craftsmanship, as I find there is something very feminine and powerful about the love and patience that goes in to practicing these techniques.

The signature elements of my collection are definitely the pieces created with the macrame knotting technique in unrefined wool and recycled cotton ropes. When reflecting on my research on femininity I came to remember this knotting technique my mother taught me when I was younger (macrame) to make bracelets. It resonated strongly with the feeling and image I wanted to convey and so I started to play around with the idea of doing a macrame piece that went around the whole body to create a dress. It took a lot of trial and error and finding the right ropes and material was also a time consuming process, but once it all came together (the materials and the technique) it almost felt like the pieces where making themselves. It is a very time consuming process, but luckily a process I have really come to love. It’s kind of like my meditation.