Like all schoolgirls in Iran, Sepideh Ahadi had to wear a uniform. Now, as a Berlin-based fashion designer, she stresses individuality through her clothes.
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00:00Asymmetrical, casual, chic and profound – these are the words to describe Sepideh Ahadi's
00:12creations.
00:13Sepideh began studying fashion in her home country, Iran, and finished in Italy.
00:18She's lived in Berlin since 2018.
00:21The essence of my work is uniqueness and that's what I brought somehow from Iran with me.
00:29We are forced to wear the same uniform in the school.
00:36Whenever I was finishing my day at the school, I really wanted to wear something that it
00:42just like show who I am.
00:44Sepideh also strives to offer her customers the opportunity to express their individuality
00:49through fashion.
00:50So many of her pieces are versatile.
00:54I truly believe that it's really important to ask the wearer, the person who wears the
01:02clothes, to also add something to each design and this democratic way of designing is something
01:09that I always think about and I care about.
01:12She grew up with three sisters, her cousins, aunts and grandmother on Iran's northern
01:17coast.
01:19This feminine energy is an important component of her creations and influences the choice
01:24of models for her campaigns and shows.
01:27It's not just about the way how the model looks like, it's also about the accept the
01:35differences the way that we look and the way that each age has its own beauty and I think
01:46these are also something that we miss somehow in the fashion industry.
01:50For her collection called Castle of Shirin, Sepideh chose saffron yellow.
01:55She regards it as the color of women who share dreams and provide mutual support.
02:01Rice flavored with saffron is said to grant wishes.
02:03We stir it together while we are stirring, we dream of something and then we ask it and
02:11we stir it in the hope of like achieving it.
02:13So for me that moment played a big role in my life and then the time that I designed
02:19this collection I was really missing this togetherness, I really felt that I need to
02:26do something with this big hole that I have in my heart.
02:31Sepideh learned the importance of sustainability in the fashion industry in Italy.
02:37She makes sure her creations are made in Europe only and as fairly and ecologically as possible.
02:44I use leftover materials, this is where the sustainable part of my work plays the main
02:53character.
02:54And then when I use the leftover materials it gives me this limitation and freedom to
03:03make the unique pieces.
03:05Berlin provides an ideal environment for her creative ideas.
03:10She can find inspiration in the city's flea markets and antique shops.
03:17I like the forms, you know, and also the colors, sometimes they remind me of something.
03:24For example, that's one of my favorite colors when I'm collecting the glasses because it
03:29reminds me of a very special stone and the color in Iran that is called Firoze.
03:35So I have a collection of the glasses in this color.
03:41Many things in Germany's capital remind Sepideh of Iran.
03:44This constant shift between cultures is also reflected in her work.
03:49Her designs are inspired by her life in Germany as well as her memories of Iran and her family
03:54there.
03:55This collection is really important for me and the name of the collection is My Name
04:00is Taj and it's about my grandmother who had Alzheimer and she was living basically two
04:05different lives at the same time and that's why I created everything double, so double
04:11color as you see it's just like two colors at the same time and double layer so in this
04:17collection everything was about layering and double.
04:21Along with fashion, Sepideh's second love is cooking.
04:25When preparing traditional dishes, she feels a connection to her homeland.
04:30She still misses many things, in particular her family whom she visits once a year.
04:39It happens a lot to me that I feel homesick.
04:42I miss my sisters, my parents, the smells of the cities, the sounds, like everything,
04:54everything about my country, about Iran.
04:57Still, Sepideh Ahadi has made a home in Berlin, but without losing her roots.
05:02Her fashion is an expression of her creativity, but also a plea for freedom and diversity.