If I could relive my life, I’d be that person who names paint. How fun would it be to name all the colors of the rainbow after strange occurrences in your life, old boyfriends, family names and nature’s wonders?
To compensate, whenever I see a good name I try and think about why they called it that. Designers aren’t exempt. So, just to see if I was right, I asked a range of designers to tell me the significance of their name.
I was way off.
Here are some fun answers:
FILLY – It came down to aesthetics, of course. I liked the way FILLY looked – all those tall narrow letters pressed against each other. Ladies and gentlemen at a crowded party.
Rebe Designs – Rebe was created in 2000 when I saw my oldest daughter’s art talents blossom at age 15. We used Rebe as a nickname for her, (Hillery Rebeka) and since she was my muse in starting a business I chose the name.
modaspia – “modaspia” very loosely translates in Italian to spy fashion. At the time I started the label I had a cropped bob I dyed several colors in one year and was dubbed “Spygirl” by my boyfriend – like the spies in old movies, changing their look. We had “Spycar”, a ’62 Volvo like the one in the old spy series “The Saint”. A clothing line? It had to fit in the scheme but the Italian sounded cool. I still have the car and married the boyfriend.
SUST – SUST came to me towards the end of a 9-day meditation retreat in Iceland in the spiritual heart of the country. The concept of an organic clothing company came like a thunderbolt to me with the name SUST, short for sustainable and also a play on the British slang word sussed, which according the Oxford English dictionary means well informed street-wise, in the know, cool.
Feral Childe – I don’t really go into the story too much. I like to say that Feral refers to our approach to sewing and construction – we weren’t trained as designers so we have a very unconventional approach – a wild, untamed technique. Childe refers to the stories behind each garment – their reference to something from the past – that’s why we put the “e” at the end – to get at that days-gone-by feel.
ANGELROX – I created my symbol first and was searching for the right name. Already felt the concept of balancing opposites was the core idea. When a girlfriend of mine named Angel and I used to go out people would refer to us as ANGELROX.
It seemed to fit and has played a significant role in the evolution of my product and brand. I was never that into angels before but now firmly believe we are all angels both living and in spirit form. It has also given me strength to understand that our loved ones that have been relieved from the burdens and pain of living are then free to be with us at all time offering strength hope and love.
Loyale – loyal to style, loyal to the environment.
Image: jack dorsey
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