The main accessory of the Breeze collection is the hemp belt made with the macrame technique.The knotted wonder is the work of Anikó Mengyán, who creates even more beautiful products and DIY macrame packages under the name @anifactory.Read his story and see his works!
Tell us a little about your brand, how did you come up with the idea?
I went to art high school, where I am a textile artist and hand weaver.I loved it, we tried a lot of things at school in addition to weaving, for example we did batik, sewed, learned the screen printing technique, etc.It was a very inspiring environment.On my father's side, my mother worked in the textile factory in Békéscsaba, so everything was full of materials, threads, and yarns.My sister and I loved this because the babies had something to sew new clothes with.I loved all forms of creativity and tried many.My life then turned towards photography and then marketing.Later, to revive my knowledge, I started attending a weaving school and around this time I also discovered macrame weaving.The yarns were at hand, and the technique did not seem complicated after weaving.
What is macramé?
Macrame is a knotting technique.The 13.Arab weavers used the technique for the first time in the 14th and 15th centuries.It was also a widespread technique in Europe from the 19th century onwards.The popularity of macrame actually started in America in the 1960s and 70s.My earliest memory was a wall decoration knotted from very thin yarn at my mother's.I remember that I always tried to weave in the fringes at the bottom, with more or less success.Today, bags, backpacks, clothes, belts, wall decorations, flower pots, swings and more are made using the macramé technique.
Why hemp?
I live in a family where the people around me are very receptive to sustainability, environmental protection, conscious or more conscious creation.In this way, I involuntarily absorb this "feeling of life" and the knowledge in this connection.So even though I tried to pay attention to the yarn I used from the beginning, I felt that I could find something better than this, I wasn't satisfied with the recycled cotton yarn that you can get in stores.
I delved into the topic and read about hemp, so this could be my path.Hemp is one of our most sustainable crops for several reasons.One of the reasons is that its field of use is extremely wide.It is used in everything from animal litter to the food, construction and automotive industries to pharmaceutical and textile production.And upstairs, it "grows incredibly fast, a four-meter-tall plant grows from its seed in three months."There are no weeds that can compete with it, so there is no need to use herbicides in hemp fields.It has few pests, so spraying is not necessary in many cases.It needs half as much water to grow as cotton, and a quarter as much to process." (source: https://fenntarthatodivat.hu/basic materials/hemp/)
It was a separate misso that if it was hemp, I should get it from Hungary.But it worked! :)
Besides these, I also really liked its smell, material and texture.
Products, DIY packages, courses... what do you see as the future of your brand?
The image of the brand changed a bit during the virus.More precisely, the line that I planned anyway became stronger.I would like to make everyone fall in love with technology itself.I would like the possibility of creation and creativity to reach more people.The macrame technique is not a complicated thing.You can also make great things from basic knots and the feeling of success is guaranteed.Now that we had to be at home a lot, I also heard from my immediate environment that they don't know what to do, that they are bored, that they have no hobbies.In response, I started making DIY boxes.I am still at the very beginning, I would like to come up with several types of products.The workshops will also strengthen this direction, but in any case paying attention to the current situation of the epidemic.
The other line is that I would like to combine weaving with macrame on various wall decorations.
That's all I can think of now, if there's anything else, feel free to write and I'll wait for the pictures! :)