This year is very special for the OmaMood fashion show as it is celebrating its 10th anniversary. For already a decade the legendary fashion show has taken place, which with its unique concept and artistic approach to staging has won the hearts internationally. Its mission to popularize and modernize heritage fashion has succeeded – never before has there been so many designers and brands focusing on the heritage fashion movement, the use of traditional handicraft techniques, and contribution to the slow fashion movement

The Designers’ Contest for OmaMood 2022 attracted many exciting designers from the Baltic States, who cultivate elements of heritage principles on their designs. This year, however, OmaMood wanted to keep the number of designers low, in order to produce high quality fashion movies of the collections by the participating fashion designers. This is why four of designers were invited: Annika Vaalma, Vilve Unt, Katre Arula and Kristina Libe. These are designers who during the previous shows, have produced beautiful collections that have passed on the values of the show. You could even say that they are the iconic designers of the OmaMood’s performance. The other three – Grete Küppar & Maarja Palu, Sirje Ani and Anu Sirkas were selected from the contest, as they showcased timely ideas and the use of heritage in their work.

The designers for the 10th show of OmaMood are the following:

1. Annika Vaalma – “57° 49′ N, 27° 27′ E”
2. Anu Sirkas – “Honeyland”

I made a promise to myself before creating this collection. Stop searching too desperately for inspiration and
start looking at simple things around you. Past years have been rough for the people of this planet with so
many things taken away from us. So many lockdowns made our stay in the same places and the same routines.
In order to keep the excitement alive, I had to change my perspective and try to see beauty in every little
detail around me.
Hence, the collection Honeyland was born in the countryside of my parents.

The collection \”Mode of City\” is inspired by the tradition of wardrobe dresses, which were the transition
dresses from folk clothing to urban fashion. Also, it is nice to think that despite the changing roles of folk
and modern clothing over time, a dialogue between them is constantly being re-established.

4. Katre Arula – “Silverwoolly”

For many years, I have been making shoulder bags, handbags and backpack bags from the furniture factory leftover fabrics. Woolen fabrics and woolen felt fabrics are always among the leftovers. For me, wool is a very valuable material, so therefore I haven´t used wool to make products for sale. Even so, I have collected a large amount of wool and I have now decided to use them as the main material of the collection. To pull parallels between metals and fabric fibers, then for me silk equals with gold and wool with silver. This is how the title of my collection could be written. The pieces of the collection are inspired by recycling, folk costume skirts, embellishments and being unique. For me, the skirts of folk costumes have powerful colors which are woven on axles. Color harmony, horizontal and vertical stripes, folding and crafting is a recurring theme in my collection. I have always been fascinated by embellishments, which I use this time too, but in my own way.

5. Kristina Libe – “Amalie Paul”

6. Sirje Ani – “Grandma and the Sea”

I was inspired by the photographs I took of the sea and the traveling stitch patterns of Ruhnu gloves and
stockings.

7. Vilve Unt – “Travellers…”

It was a pure joy to discover the painting On the Road to Church (1917) by Peet Aren at KUMU Art Museum – the clothes of the travellers are very inspiring and surprising – as well as Under the Stars (1907) by Kristjan Raud. The latter inspired me with its graphic drawing and yellow-brown colouring.
 
How did the local fashion and the notion of beauty evolve at the time; which colours and patterns were considered beautiful and how to interpret the art of being beautiful – all this forms the creative process of my new ethnic fashion collection TRAVELLERS.

OmaMood 2022 show will take place on June 10, 2022 at 7 PM in Viljandi, Estonia at the CENTRUM cinema.