Kendra: Every creative remembers the one piece that made them feel like they could make a career out of their art. Mine is a tenth-grade writing assignment. What’s yours?

Andrew: When I got a big order for a company calendar with themed caricatures of employees for each month and the flow of orders on Etsy continued to grow. I understood that this part-time gig could become a real job and even a business.

Kendra: Did you come up with a lot of US pop culture in Ukraine?

Andrew: Before the collapse of the Soviet Union we didn’t have much pop culture and comics, but they have gained popularity now.

Photo Credit: Cartoon Portrait

Kendra: When it comes to your art you do yellow characters and also caricatures. How did you land on these two stylings?

Andrew: I create new listings based on the demand from customers and caricatures and yellow cartoon characters are very popular in my shop.

Kendra: What were you doing with your creations before you put them on Etsy in 2015?

Andrew: Before joining Etsy as a seller, art was a hobby for me. I believe I’ve changed the artist role and I have an entrepreneur hat at that moment. I’m managing a team of artists. Like Alex and Eugene who help to create the artworks for our valued customers. You can also see Natalie’s avatar in the shop About section. We appreciate her during the holiday rush. We have a tough time in Ukraine and the possibility to create new jobs for fellow artists in Ukraine inspires me even more than the art. There are a lot of talented artists here and I plan to add more designs in collaboration with other artists. The next will be wedding invitation illustrations and illustrated save-the-date cards.

Kendra: How is the art scene in Ukraine for you?

Andrew: For the first time ever I went to the Comic-Con in Kyiv this year. While super crowded, I met a lot of artists there. Many of them plan to open shop on Etsy.

Kendra: What are your plans for your art in 2019? Do you plan on attending any of the big comic conventions around the world?

Andrew: I will surely attend comic conventions abroad as well to get inspiration for new art styles and ideas.

The post Cartoon Portrait: Colorful Caricatures Come to Life appeared first on ZO Magazine.

Last week we met a pair from Ukraine who made extravagant pieces. Now we’re introducing you to another. Serhii and Kate and the masterminds behind the wonderful world of Royal Tailor. Together they come up with ensembles so fresh and fierce, one would assume they were up for Best Costume at the Oscars. In fact, last year Serhii and Kate did a couple pieces for some films. We talked about that and then some in this international exchange.

Kendra: Did you two initially bond over a shared love of design or was it a fascination with history that caused that first spark?

Serhii: At the beginning, there was a love of history and beautiful dancing balls. We heard about it but had no idea where it held. And, that was not supported with information, that there were groups that are engaged in such activities. And once, we met people who showed us this new world of historical events and reenactment.

We sewed all types of modern cloth, as well as costumes for dance balls and historical festivals only for us. In addition, over time, we realized that we have not a bad experience and can work in this area, even remotely, without having a close client.

Kendra: Between you, both are a number of years of design experience. Is this something that is self-taught for you both or did either of you take a formal education route to get to where you are today?

Serhii: We began with the tailoring casual clothing and rental of carnival costumes. A great love of history and the desire to do this led us to this. Katerina is a lawyer by education. She graduated from one of the best universities in our country. I’m a financier. We both did not work in the specialty according to education. Not having a special education, we learned various modern and historical methods of sewing and patterns. We periodically hold tailoring lectures at various universities, hold exhibitions with our work and seminars in museums.

Kendra: Self-taught or learned in school, the pieces are remarkable. Was Royal Tailor a business you two had prior to joining Etsy?

Serhii: Previously, for several years, we were under a different brand, more familiar to a buyer from Ukraine. Royal Tailor as a brand appeared on the Etsy platform. This also ousted our old brand, and we are already being recognized in a new way, including in our country.

Why a royal tailor – because we love good costumes, ballroom costumes, military uniforms, medieval dresses, etc. Our most beloved centuries are 14th-19th centuries. Therefore, we can perfectly sew a costume, for example, from a poor medieval artisan to nobility, and even a King with a Queen at a very high level.

Kendra: The attention to detail when it comes to these pieces, again – amazing. Have you two ever thought of costume design for film?

Serhii: We sewed costumes for two films that were in 2018 in Ukraine. The customer was very pleased. The task did not envisage many details, but we maximally realized possible.
We thought to collect our portfolio and send it to world film studios, yes. This is a serious step and requires good preparation.

Kendra: Being based in Ukraine, are there many who seek these fashions where you’re from or do the orders span the globe?

Serhii: Our customers are mainly abroad. A lot of dance balls, festivals, and historical events are held in Europe, America, Asia and other parts of the world. Many people want to participate in a unique good costume. Sometimes we have rush time with the amount of work and orders, and there are calm months. In Ukraine we also tailoring, we have several regular customers.

Kendra: Serhii, you also do woodworking on top of Royal Tailor. Do you utilize the same part of your mind when you design a piece of clothing as you do when you’re working on wood pieces?

Serhii: Katerina handles the main sewing process. Also, drawing of patterns, development of new models, selection of colors and fabrics, decorations, etc. My work in the organization of this process – assistance in tailoring, consultation about the discussion of new models, the procurement of materials, communication with customers, sending parcels, equipment support. In the time free from this process, I do woodworking associated with history. I make different tools for knitting, weaving, yarn, etc. I also make medieval furniture and accessories for costumes from different centuries. Previously, I engaged in the manufacture of medieval armor.

Kendra: What’s next for Royal Tailor in 2019?

Serhii: If we talk about the content and assortment, then we plan to expand it a bit – add some types of costumes for the 16th-17th century, as well as for the second half of the 19th century. Globally – to sew, create and make people happy!

The post Royal Tailor: Bringing the Past Into Today appeared first on ZO Magazine.

Anna remembers, “I learned Katerina created beautiful things in styles I loved, and I wanted to learn to tailor. We agreed Katerina would teach me, and I’d help her in other things. And over time, I began to create historical and fantasy costumes and dresses that have become popular.”

Now they run Dress Art Mystery on Etsy and it’s one of the most popular destinations online for those looking to rock a Renaissance/Medieval inspired look. Surprisingly, to them at first, even wedding looks. So sit back and learn a bit from two friends who turned their LARPing friendship into a career.

Kendra: There seems to be a number of designers in this realm in Ukraine. Do you have a big renaissance/medieval scene there?

Dress Art Mystery: Yes, there are many talented people in Ukraine, and we are very proud of it. Not that we have a very large renaissance and medieval scene. If we are talking about the Renaissance, there is a dance community where people go in for historical dances and attend thematic balls. Medieval is represented rather as a group of clubs of historical reconstruction. Well and, of course, a part of them intersect with each other. Most of them are role players. In addition to festivals and balls, we sometimes have historically themed events where both Medieval and Renaissance clothes are also popular. Actually, we find fantasy themes are more popular.

Kendra: Were you two designing clothing before you started Dress Art Mystery on Etsy a few years ago?

Dress Art Mystery: Yes, we have been professionally engaged in the creation of historical and fantasy costumes since 2009. At that time we worked only in Ukraine. We were making costumes and dresses for reenactors, LARPers, theaters, and movies. But then we understood that we wanted our products to be seen by of the rest of the world. So we decided to open an online store. Of course, it was unusual to work remotely, without a fitting, but we developed such a system of structures that allow us to be sure of its perfect fit. The DressArtMystery store at Etsy was opened in January 2015, so soon we will celebrate our five year anniversary.

Photo Credit: Dress Art Mystery

Kendra: There are a lot of photos featuring your works in weddings and engagements. Are those usually custom orders?

Dress Art Mystery: To be honest, it was rather unexpected that we became popular as a wedding studio. Basically, our costumes were created for LARP events and festivals. We had only one wedding project – our bestseller Silver gray elven dress. But now we really have a lot of orders for other dresses from our regular collection – both fantasy and historical – come precisely for weddings. More than half of them are custom orders. Some of them are completely individual developments from scratch. From the sketch to the finished product, the other part – partial changes in regular collection models. For example, changing colors, details, and decorations or other elements.

We’re pleased the brides and grooms trust us such an important mission because wedding dresses are always something special. In our turn, we are doing everything to make our customers happy, we are very attentive to all wishes and nuances, coordinate every detail of the dress, and every stage of production, so that the client gets exactly what he dreamed of. It even became our slogan.

Kendra: Back in the day when these outfits were the norm, men really went there in terms of elegance. Today, we see on red carpets that guys pretty much wear a basic suit and call it a day. Why do you think men lost their sense of extravaganza when it comes to fashion?

Dress Art Mystery: Modern style is first and foremost convenience, and then beauty and elegance. Fashion goes to simplifying the outfits, to universalization. Although even now some events oblige both men and women to the dress code. Of course, it looks less pretentious than the fashion of past centuries, but the modern rhythm of life dictates its own conditions

Kendra: What are your plans for Dress Art Mystery in 2019?

Dress Art Mystery: There are a lot of plans, and we are already working on their implementation.

In 2018, we released our first collection of casual clothing – IntegrityCasual. In 2019 we are going to expand it, to create many new looks for everyday wearing, but with the interesting “fantasy” points DressArtMystery. We often hear from our customers that they like our dresses so much that they are just waiting for more reasons to put on it again. Therefore, we want to make this dream come true.

Besides, we are working on new models in fantasy and LARP style. 2019 seems to be the year of The Witcher. So we are creating a series of costumes in a Witcher style, which can be worn at festivals, LARP games, and thematic parties. The fans of The Witcher will love it, we promise! We have new opportunities, modern technologies to create even more extraordinary suits; and partners, in cooperation with whom we will make not just clothes, but a full set with elements of LARP armor and details.

Our friends – GameFanCraft, who are the Grand Prix winners of the ComicCon Ukraine 2018 – are real pros in LARP and cosplay crafting. We have already discussed our ideas, ways of their implementation, and soon we will show you our joint development! Follow the news!

And of course, we will not ignore the other styles in our store. In particular, we are developing new dresses in the Renaissance, Victorian and Gothic style. We’ll show some of them in January-February in our store and Instagram. We’ll present the rest at the WGT festival.

The post Dress to Impress with Dress Art Mystery appeared first on ZO Magazine.