I remember Vasiliki always being radiant: a beam of good mood, discretion, and courtesy. I knew that her brand promoted change, in a rather radical way. Clothes for everyone, clothes for people with mobility difficulties, versatile clothes. And obviously, it was a story that needed to be told. I thought, is fashion, clothing a luxury? To which she replied with full awareness: “The way we dress is not a luxury, it’s a necessity, and that’s why you want to see real people at the end of the day, real people are not perfect. And now I am ready to share my own story, the story that brought me to where I am today.” A story, I will add, with difficulties and love, aiming for change and inclusion, visibility, mobility difficulties, disability, muscular dystrophy, dreams, and acceptance.
“I ALWAYS WANTED TO BECOME A FASHION DESIGNER, even though I didn’t study it from the beginning, I studied law in London. I didn’t practice the profession, Fashion was something I wanted from a young age, but I had difficulty expressing my creative side or showing my designs to the world or talking to them about this passion, for many and various reasons, I felt somewhat embarrassed.
DESIGNING, drawing clothes was the first thing I did, and I showed them to my family, and I remember my mom saying “oh, Vasiliki will become a fashion designer”. Of course, I was the girl who dressed her dolls, I dressed my mother, my sister, I liked it. But still, I left it aside as a safe space for me. I didn’t take it seriously, I didn’t even know that studying fashion could be an option, I thought I wouldn’t fit into this industry.
I REMEMBER MYSELF at a young age watching fashion shows all day long, yet still feeling like I couldn’t fit into that world. And this is due to the standards, because growing up you want to have standards with which you can identify, to say ‘oh, since this person I identify with did it, I can do it too’. And because I have a disability, I couldn’t identify with any role model out there, with a fashion designer who was a success story, to learn about someone who would say ‘I have a difficulty, a disability and yet I succeeded in the world of fashion’. There was no such thing. All the standards that existed were very specific for all women, and growing up the thought comes to your mind that you don’t fit into what you see.
I FINISHED LAW and stayed in London for a year. I came back to Cyprus, did my internship and the day I finished I said, ‘never again, it’s not going to happen’. I simply declared it to my family. There was a short period of time without working in a specific field and one day, in 2017, I woke up and said, ‘I will open my own online clothing shop’. At that moment, the feeling prevailed that this is what I should do.
THROUGH THIS, I thought about how I could achieve my goal, which is my own designs, and how I could give myself the title, I wanted to have the knowledge, to be able to honour the title and so I took some lessons. I followed some lessons with other fashion designers in Cyprus and I thank them, for three years and spent a year in London where I took some very intensive pattern making and other courses.
I RETURNED TO CYPRUS ABOUT A YEAR AGO. I came back to pursue the dream, the brand with the resources I had, I felt more ready and more complete and being Cypriot, I want to do something for Cyprus. The brand Vasiliki Official has a specific philosophy, it’s designs that I want to be versatile, meaning you can wear them in more than one way, you can take a piece from the long pants and make it short. But a very big part is inclusivity.
FOR ME, INCLUSIVITY is two things, one part is for my design to be accessible and easy to wear by people who have mobility difficulties. For example, the fit of the blouse might be different. This is also based on my own experience, I remember growing up having trouble getting dressed, that’s why it’s very important for me for my designs to be easy for anyone.
I GREW UP WITH MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY, it’s a condition that constantly changes, over the years I experience changes in my body, now I’m at a stage where it affects my daily life. In the past, it didn’t affect me as much and so I had put it under the carpet, I hid it. I had the fear that I would be marked, that if people knew about it, they would underestimate my talent and that I wouldn’t be good enough because ‘I have something’. I can’t say that I experienced any underestimation from those around me, but I didn’t want to share it, I have a lot of pride and I would never want to feel like someone is changing their behaviour towards me. Of course, this had its price, as I grew up the more, I hid it, the more I heard unnecessary comments that affected me, for example ‘why don’t you smile, why don’t you walk faster’. Of course, now I answer, if you ask me, I’ll tell you very comfortably ‘I can’t smile’.”
CREATING INCLUSIVE CLOTHING requires a lot of research and that’s why I’m trying to promote it, because I want more people to come to me and tell me their difficulties. It’s very important to be more aware of what’s happening around us. Obviously, you can’t create a piece that can satisfy everyone, but I will try to facilitate a person in a wheelchair. For example, a skirt that ties instead of buttons offers greater ease. This thought arose from conversations with people who already experience this difficulty. But still, it’s something very personal, another person may not find it convenient. So, I can again modify the existing pattern to make changes that will accommodate others.
MANY PEOPLE with mobility difficulties approached me and told me they were waiting to see something like this. When you have a mobility issue, you learn to adapt, the people I spoke to may buy a piece of clothing and sit down to alter it themselves to suit them. That’s why through my brand, I want to promote people that some girl can identify with. The way we dress is not a luxury, it’s a necessity and that’s why you want to see real people at the end of the day, real people are not perfect.
ONE OF MY CAMPAIGNS was represented by models with real mobility difficulties. It’s something we need to see, it’s something that needs to be normalized. The day we don’t discuss it, we will have succeeded, the day we see models with mobility difficulties next to models without and it won’t surprise us. I don’t want to do a photoshoot with people with disabilities just because it’s a ‘trend’, disability is not a trend, it’s not fashion. It’s a reality. Many people experience it from the day they are born, and it finally needs to be integrated. It needs visibility.
IN CYPRUS, THERE IS A LACK OF AWARENESS. I believe that the fact that society as a whole and the infrastructure do not assist people with mobility difficulties in leaving their homes plays a big role. And I say this from my experience. Personally, I enjoy going out, having a drink, going to a restaurant, but I will think once, twice, and three times before going somewhere because not all places are accessible to everyone. And so, I end up calling and asking: do you have a restroom on the ground floor? Is there disabled parking nearby? You conclude that the country does not help you feel like you are part of society because it is designed for people who have abilities that you do not. Of course, this is gradually changing, I see the change and I am happy about it, especially with new dining spaces and even people’s behaviour, they try to make you feel comfortable. But what needs to change is our mentality: if the mentality changes, changes will come like an avalanche, everything will change. However, to change this, we need more exposure of people with mobility difficulties, our eyes need to get used to it. And you know, what helps a lot is social media, because there you see everything.
MY DECISION to represent this community of people with mobility difficulties through my brand was conscious. I just didn’t say it publicly, that the reason I’m doing it has to do with me. I used to think that maybe I didn’t need to share my own story. However, now, after a long journey with myself, I have reached the point where I am very proud and confident about who I am and what I have done, about what I am trying to do and if I can influence even one person who can identify with me, I will be very happy.
IN CYPRUS, THERE IS A PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE who grow up with muscular dystrophy, and there are various types. My type is not common, we are, let’s say, a small percentage. In our place, there is Telethon, a group of activists, and AbleBook, a great initiative that helps people with difficulties a lot. Things are happening. What I believe is very helpful is talking to people who experience a similar problem. I didn’t do this at all in the past, but now that I do, I realize how much your psychology changes, being able to talk to someone and think that you are not alone.
I AM HURT by the lack of information and knowledge and the fact that even when there is information, it is momentary, for ten minutes, for a panel, and then it passes. This needs to change, doing something for a few minutes doesn’t mean much. I want our society to gain empathy, and we need to work together to change something.
INFORMATION
Website: Vasiliki Official
Instagram: vasiliki_official__
