IN CONVERSATION WITH: NANA STUDIOZ

In conversation with Sofia the incredible curator of Nana Studioz, the new up and coming brand that is taking over the universe of art & creativity as we know it.

Photography used in Courtesy of: @sofiabadi / @nanastudioz / @malesuerio

The knit wear craze. Now that it's fall and the temperature is getting cooler we are seeing more and more knits than ever before. It's safe to say that the knit wear craze has everyone in a complete choke hold, as I for one can attest to this. From small brands to high fashion brands, knits are becoming the new it thing, and it doesn't look like it's stopping any time soon.

Nana Studioz, the brand, or should I say the universe that took me by storm as I was scrolling through twitter, engaging in light discourse about what’s going on in the fashion world and the latest trends that are popping off. I mindlessly came across Nana Studioz and their first promo shoot for their first capsule collection “Playdate”. I immediately fell in love with the collection and wanted to know more about the brand and the curator herself.

Sofia, the curator of Nana Studioz is a twenty three year old graphic designer, based in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is an emerging designer already making a name frfo herself and her brand. And I was able to speak to Sofia about the growing process of her emerging brand, Nana Studioz.

T: What inspired you to create Nana Studioz?

S: One thing that happened to me during the pandemic is that I gave myself the space and time to relive and re-explore my childhood interests. When you’re a kid, there comes a time where society tells you that, in order to “grow up”, you have to stop doing many things you enjoy and love, because they are labeled as “childish”, and most of them are related to a kid’s creativity. I feel like adolescence is a moment in life where personal interests are put to shame. You have to fit into a certain mold -- you are taught to go unperceived, and anything that could make you stand out is labeled as “embarrassing” or “weird” by your peers. In order to fit in, you start repressing your desire to pursue what brings you joy. You convince yourself that these things are in fact embarrassing and you shame yourself into stopping completely. In my case these things were illustrating, writing, painting, making ceramics, etc. I’ve always been a very crafty kid, and was pretty good at everything I tried doing. Watching things come alive from my bare hands was (and is) the most joyful thing in the world to me.

Unfortunately I was picked on a lot during most of my school years, so anything that would make me stand out even more, I repressed, and I became very depressed. Being a graphic design student for 5 years had also entirely submerged me in the digital world, and I spent most of those years in front of a computer.

When the pandemic and lockdown came, I realised how much of my time I had spent staring at a screen and looked desperately for an escape from the digital world, and my mind brought up all these things I used to do as a kid, so I pursued them again. I set a new goal: discovering a personal art style. Most of my drawings were these little kids who would have these sweaters and hats that were just too big for them, sleeves draping on the floor, as if they were playing dress up with adult’s clothing. In may 2020 I asked my mother to teach me how to knit, and once I learned, I realised I could merge my drawings with knitting, and I knitted one of the huge sweaters I drew. i cried when i finished the first one i ever did - and that's when i remembered the joy i used to feel when creating something with your hands, of seeing something that's been on your mind brought to life in the real world. Then I also made these drawings of these kids in knits into ceramic pieces - which I now have a couple of and cherish with my whole heart. After these moments I knew I wanted - I needed - to keep doing this, to keep creating. Since I was reaching the end of my degree, I thought about the possibility of making a life out of creating instead of graphic design, so I set my mind to make it happen. And that's how nana studioz was born.

For her first capsule collection “Play Date”, the pieces consist of ten handmade and hand dyed 100% wool knitted sweaters made by Sofia herself. With each piece you see from the collection it is evident that there was a long thoughtful process that went into the knits and how Sofia was able to capture the inner child within all of us.

T: How long did it take to create Nana Studioz from start to finish? Has this been something that has been in the works for a couple of years/ months?

S: I’d say it's been in the works since june 2020, after this whole realisation i had after learning how to knit, of me wanting to create and not necessarily do graphic design. At first I thought about the project as somewhere I would only sell these knits I did - actually the original nana is “nana knitz”. Then in 2021, when I started gaining more confidence in my work as an artist and as an all-round designer, I decided to take a leap and trust myself, and changed the project to nana studioz, not a clothing brand, but a universe of its own.

“In my path within the world of design, I developed a connection with crafts like knitting, sculpting, screen printing, and illustration”. Furthermore, Sofia's goal for Nana Studioz is to bring to life the universe she lives within her own mind. With her passion for crafts like graphic design and knitting, to name a few, it is evident that Sofia wants to make a difference in the world and for all creative people out there in the world who don't have an outlet to express themselves creatively and freely.

T: What inspired your first capsule collection “Play Date”?

S: The capsule was a reaction of me reconnecting with my inner child during the pandemic. That's what “playdate” is all about - rediscovering joy, giving yourself as an adult the space to play again. And telling yourself it's okay to play, too. I think it also translates to the space i am as a designer and artist today: still figuring out who I am, having a set of skills and tools and simply playing with them, experimenting, in hopes that during the process I will make them my own - finding myself, a moment of growth.

From the soft pastels, to the playful illustrations and visuals, Nana Studioz is something to be remembered by. From all of the different stitching, colors, and styles of the knits, it is applicable to say that these knits will be a hit and skyrocket the newly found brand into notoriety. The brand’s Instagram page alone is reputable to the brand and in turn helps the brand stand out amongst the many knitwear brands out there. What Nana Studioz is doing as a brand is something to look out for and pay close attention to as Sofia has stated this is not just a brand, but a universe.

T: What is your brand's message? What do you want people who come across your brand to know?

S: I don't know if this is necessarily a brand message, but living in an era where mass production and cutting edge technology reigns, I think that what matters to me the most is creating things that show humanity, and process. Uniqueness, as in, this was made by a person, therefore there cannot be another exact copy of anything that's been done. I think that that’s why most of my graphics for nana are handmade, because i want the spectator to see, to feel that there was a human being behind every creation.

T: With your graphic design skills, how did that influence the creation of Nana Studioz and the first collection?

S: Surprisingly, the hardest part about the creation of nana studioz was the branding and graphic design, because as a graphic design student i'm supposed to excel at that, right? … right? Well, I'm usually very harsh on myself, I've always been my biggest critic. I kept postponing it, and I would keep knitting, drawing, all to avoid facing the moment where I would have to sit down and decide the graphic identity of what nana studioz is. I completely dreaded it. Until one day when I started thinking about what identity is and what it means. I think of nana studioz as a reflection of myself, and anyone that knows me can tell you the only constant thing about me is change. I have a burning desire to try everything, to experience it all, so I'm constantly changing and evolving, physically and mentally. I've always been a rebel somehow, I will always question everything. I realised I couldn't for the life of me do a little branding manual with instructions and a palette to identify this universe i was creating, since like me, it would never stay the same. So I decided to shake the foundations of everything I was taught and simply not brand it. Nana studioz has no logo, no palette, no font, no branding manual. The core identity of nana is in my illustrations, my handwriting, the things I create, and all of these things you will witness change and evolve, right beside me.

T: Now you have said that Nana Studioz is a universe that doesn't just consist of knitwear. What are some of the multitude of things that Nana Studioz consists of?

S: Well, I've always been a very crafty person since I was a kid and super eager to try new crafts or methods of creating different things. I've always known I would end up doing something along the lines of design since I was young. I have had education in design since the age of 14, since the high school I attended offered a bachelor’s degree in industrial design. I’ve been designing and manufacturing from small objects to furniture for a long time now. I was introduced to graphic design during that period too, and after that I pursued a major in that. I am 23 years old now, one month away from my graduation, and I've completely fallen in love with the many crafts i was taught during my formation in global design, all of them whom I'm willing to explore in this space, with complete freedom. So the goal i've set for nana studioz it's for it to carry everything from fashion, prints, objects - man, I'd love to design furniture even. Hopefully it’ll all be possible.

T: And lastly, what is your favorite piece from the collection, if you could only pick one?

S: I would say, for emotional value, it would be the moss XL sleeves knit. Its the piece I used for my HFMetGala look this 2021. The HFMetGala is an online event hosted on twitter by and for fashion lovers which invites you to participate with your own take on the year’s met gala theme.The theme this 2021 was “Faces in the Mirror: Haunted Introspection” and my look was about my body dysmorphia and gender dysphoria. I cried for hours after posting it - it was one of my rawest moments on social media for sure - so I think I'd choose that one.

But as for looks, the pistachio balaclava crop knit is my favorite, it pains me to sell it. It was the first balaclava knit. I don't think I invented garments with an attached balaclava, but i can say for sure that i had never seen one before my mind came up with it, so i'm very proud of that one.

Sofia also does beautiful, well crafted balaclavas which fall directly into the balaclava craze that has taken off this past season. The Nana Studioz kitty balaclava’s currently comes in a range of colors, pistacchio green, blush pink, grey, black, and beige. With worldwide shipping you to can purchase these cute lovable kitty balaclavas @nanastudioz on Instagram.

Nana Studioz beautiful designs can be found on their Instagram @Nanasthdioz. Sofia is for sure the next up and coming designer to watch out for as her sub universe Nana Studioz gears up to share more than just intricate knits and well crafted balaclavas. It's a universe so of course there's more to explore.

Find Nana Studioz on Instagram @NanaStudioz & on depop @NanaStudioz (depop.com/nanastudioz)

A Special Thank You to Nana Studioz.