CFW: Hansen Garments

Copenhagen Fashion Week is normally not something to look forward to. Most brands and designers show the same stuff over and over again.

But there are some exceptions, of course. A brand that caught my interest very early on is the Danish brand, Hansen Garments. So if you want to see something good while attending fashion week, go see Hansen at their set up on Værnedamsvej in Copenhagen. If you are not in Copenhagen, pray that someone puts up some pics of the new collection.

What sets Hansen apart from the rest of the Danish brands is their genuine interest in having their stuff crafted in Scandinavia. Besides the local production, they use top notch materials (indigo dyed selvage cotton, heavy twills, muskox wool, to name a few) and the details are equally amazing (I still dream about the horn cat-eye buttons and the beautiful handmade embroidery on a coat I saw)

With the whole heritage thing that has been going on for years now, one might fear that Hansen is another company just reproducing stuff, but that is a misconception. The line is much more fashion forward, and timeless, than that and I mean that in the best possible way. There are tons of what you might call repro brands, but most of them lack fashion sense, and there are tons of fashion brands that lack solid ethics and a good sensibility in many ways - Hansen Garments is firmly set somewhere in between.

I have been in contact with both Åse (the designer) and Per (second in command) several times (probably too many times) over the last year or so and they have been very friendly. I share their interest for local production, so I have been trying to help them find more craftsmen and craftswomen. This also means that I'll most likely be covering them more closely in the future as well as visiting some of the people who make some of their garments. Meanwhile, do check out their blog.

Now, my only hope is that I can somehow get to see their SS'12 collection soon and hopefully add some of their clothing to my own wardrobe as well.