IN THE VAN #03 :: SHAMPALOVE

At the beginning just friends, also colleagues and accomplices today, Floriana Serani and Roberta Cena owe the name of their brand, Shampalove, to all those people who usually heard them talking about trends and gossip, as two “shampiste” (hairdresser, EN) would do.
Through a blog, they shared, among them and with the others, passions, inspirations and stimuli, and then they decided to give a new shape to their meeting by creating bohemian and neo gothic clothes which are ultra-feminine, chic, with a dark touch and a bit of irony. The main inspiration for the next Winter will be “to bring together Dracula and A Clockwork Orange”, and they are also planning to launch a menswear collection, probably starting with some unisex t-shirts.
As for now, they mix exaggerated wedges, extravagant accessories and dresses with clean lines, soft shirt with studs applied a little bit everywhere. We met them in their atelier!

DROME: From which need bears the will to work as a duo? Which are the advantages and which are the points of frictions?
SHAMPALOVE: Generally we go very well together, we define ourselves as complementary. Sometimes we fight, but it arises from the continuing desire to do better. Floriana deals the manufacturing in China, she is very flexible, but also stubborn as hell. Roberta thinks about the customer care and the administration: she is diplomatic, but when she’s nervous it’s better to keep away. The mood and the research, however, are aspects followed by both, with a (almost) perfect harmony.

D: What do you think about today’s fashion system and how would you like to see it change in the future?
S: We would like that in Rome, the city where we live, the creative ferment that actually exists would receive the right consideration. In general, it would be good if the various fashion companies would reduce their exorbitant prices, by rewarding the true quality. There are many people who have taste and who would, and would know how to, dress well, but they are hindered by the excessive costs.

D: You mentioned the Roman environment. Which do you think is the most influential and innovative fashion’s hub today? And why?
S: Certainly Stockholm, because there is a lot of cultural vitality and desire to experimentation. Almost the same climate, however, can be found in London and in the Asian capitals.

D: What is your greatest satisfaction at the time?
S: Surely the fact that, after less than five months from the birth of our project, we have been contacted by Topshop which asked to see – and then to sell – our garments, finding us, moreover, a little bit unprepared. And also when, by chance, we meet someone wearing our clothes.

D: Let’s talk about extra-fashion influences; if you have to compare your personal style, your fashion to a music record, which would be? An at movie? A book? A dish?
S: It is not easy to think of a single record, but… Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness of the Smashing Pumpkins. As a movie, The Craft, while as a book The Neverending Story. On food, we have no doubt: a luxurious chocolate cake, filled with melted chocolate, and without cream.

text by Anna Franco
photos by Alice Camandona for DROME magazine
16.04.2012

www.shampalove.com

The model invited by Shampalove for IN THE VAN #03 is Baby K. Born in Singapore and raised in London, Baby K is now considered one of the most promising talents of the music scene and she is currently the most valid and credible voice of Italian famale rap.

Making of IN THE VAN #03 | video by Tommaso De Dona / Jacopo Pergameno – music by Frankyeffe