Jennifer Droguett's life took the turning point after she decided to move to Amsterdam. She completed her degree in Fashion Design and Technology and had a privilege to work with big brands such as Viktor & Ralph and House of Holland. For the past three years, Jennifer was working as a freelance designer and pattern cutter for emerging brands such as Richard Malone, Sadie Williams and Artschool.
Jennifer took an interest in art and fashion from a young age. “I guess the curiosity of how clothes were made, introduced me in some way to fashion. I was obsessed with garments. I used to get old clothes from my family and up-cycle them into new garments whenever I could.”
Jennifer admits that she wasn’t aware of fashion as such until she turned 16 and started to read fashion magazines or watch fashion shows on TV. “It fascinated me how storytelling played an important role in presenting the beautiful garments.”
A year ago, Jennifer took her career further by creating her own clothing brand Anciela. The brand plays homage to the Colombian and South American Heritage. Jennifer aims to bring new narratives to European fashion and involve the stories from her culture. “After living outside of Colombia for more than two decades, I’ve gone back to my roots.”
Anciela is the combination of Jennifer’s grandparents’ names, Angel and Graciela. The founder decided to use the rich experience of her childhood as an inspiration.
“In a way, I feel that creating this brand has been a journey to discover my true identity as a designer.”
The biggest challenge for Jennifer was to begin from somewhere. “I’ve had experience with other brands , small and big, but it’s different when it’s your own story, your own money.”
Jennifer remembers not being very confident, she was struggling to involve her personal stories with work but she knew this is the right path. “It’s such a saturated space for fashion at the moment. It’s difficult to stand out. I believe the challenge is to come up with an original story.”
The founder describes her brand as light-hearted and playful. Jennifer likes to mix tailoring techniques with vibrant colours and textures. Every brand has their ethics. Anciela believes in creating sustainable and long lasting pieces. All garments are handcrafted in London and made with several details and finishes.
The latest collection was inspired by one of the most infamous cities in the world, Medellin. Jennifer’s hometown. “The story is a remarkable tale of social change in the slums after the civil war, drugs and displacement.”
“I created a series of garments and outfits inspired by the neo-landscape of the slums with a structural take on the history of displacement that took place in the ’90s. I want to pay homage to all the people that suffered the violence from drugs, people that had to become nomads and leave their homes behind.”
The garments hold the serious message behind it. The 3D pockets compartments with chunky metallic zippers are not just a part of the design. It links to the historical aspect and make you question: “if you could only take what you are wearing with you, what would you take?”
Anciela team mostly use deadstock materials that otherwise end up in landfills or recycled materials from post-consumer plastics. The brand is also using natural fabrics such as wool, linen, bamboo and banana. Every season the brand is looking for new ways to be sustainable at all times.
“I think it’s been a tough year for the industry, slowing down has given an opportunity to self reflect and analyse what is important. From fast fashion to luxury fashion we need to wake up to the real problems like overproduction.”
Jennifer believes that the consumer plays an important role in this, everyone needs to move from quantity to quality. “Do we really need to lunch so many collections a year?” It is something Jennifer likes every brand to think about.
ON-Trend talked with Jennifer about the recent collaborations and projects. In the past Jennifer collaborated with her friend Alice Timmis, they have created several custom woven textiles with recycled materials. For the past two seasons Jennifers brand Anciela also collaborated with AAAUnbranded, an Italian unisex shoe label.
“I think collaborations are a great way to help each other out and complement our skills.”
Jennifer haven’t showcased her work at physical fashion shows yet. The founder decided to wait with this due to the immense cost that are involved behind every show. However, Jennifer and her team are still working on lookbooks for every season and even took part in Mercedes-Benz Russia Fashion Week for the digital event in May.
“This was a great opportunity to show our work to a broader audience. We enjoyed working with them and though it was a great way to do things in a digital way using the tools available.”
At the moment, Anciela team is working on the Spring Summer Collection 2021. Jennifer shared with On-Trend that it will be digitally launched at London Fashion Week from the 17th to the 22nd of September.
Jennifer's brand Anciela is always open for new opportunities and try to stay adaptable throughout these uncertain times. ”I think we are at the turn of big changes in fashion and I am hopeful for a conscious future in the industry.”
Follow the link to shop the latest collection at Anciela and keep up to date with upcoming news on Instagram.
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