A fashion beyond gender. Interview with Pamela Timpano, bearer of an idea of fashion that dampens differences.
Let’s start from the beginning! Your origins and love for fashion. How did it come about and how did you carry it forward?
The passion for fashion was born during my childhood, watching my mother work for hours on her beloved Singer treadle sewing machine with which she sewed, mendes and hemmed everything. To me she was a sorceress who used scissors instead of a wand. I remember that my living room furniture was inundated with pattern and sewing magazines but also fashion magazines like “Elle” to always keep up with the latest trends. When you see a garment being born, even without fully understanding the technical aspects of tailoring, you learn to value craftsmanship because everything is taken care of down to the smallest detail, thus making it a unique garment. And it was precisely the uniqueness and customization of the clothes that led me to this new project and the creation of my brand.
How did the idea of creating your own brand come about? Was that your dream from the beginning, or was it a lighting that came to you later?
No, the idea of opening a brand never crossed my mind. I started upcycling my wardrobe in 2012 by modifying all the clothes I no longer used and then selling them on sites like Depop or eBay. I wanted to give a second chance to those discarded clothes and when I realized that my ideas aroused interest I started to take things seriously by searching for vintage clothes and warehouse remnants but also quality fabrics and materials that could be used and assembled in my clothes. However, I wanted to give an identity to those garments so I decided to create my brand Ti_Pa at the end of 2021 (the name comes from the association of the first two letters of my surname and my name).
The creative process of a collection is quite complex. What phase excites you the most?
Perhaps the most exciting phase is starting from a reverse process, since instead of designing the model, choosing the fabric and making the garment, I look at the finished garment and get an idea on how to enhance it.
What inspires you? Your mentors?
When I’m in bed in total silence my head starts to travel, I have time to find inspiration for what I want. I start to put together the pieces of what interested me during the day. I think inspiration should come naturally, without effort. When I have something inside my head I can already imagine it and so I make it happen.
The true underlying theme of the brand seems to be that of “A gender” fashion. Is it a real stylistic opportunity or does it simply reflect the need to communicate a message? For me, “a-gender” fashion encloses both intentions. The message I’m trying to give is that you can’t tell people what to wear! We can’t say what a woman or a man should buy! Gone are the years when pink, tulle, rhinestones and sequins were a girls’ prerogative or blue was a purely masculine colour. And what I am proposing are fluid clothes suitable for every body and every gender, without distinctions, labels or prejudices, a true fusion between masculine and feminine.
Your collection is young, conceptual and unusual. How would you explain your brand’s philosophy to those accustomed to mainstream fashion?
Unlike commercial fashion, when a unique piece is created, every aspect is taken care of down to the smallest detail by the design. Uniqueness, combined with customization, and sustainability are the strong points. When they ask me what the essence of my brand is, I start from the definition of upcycling: “the process of transforming by-products, waste materials, useless or unwanted products into new materials or products perceived to be of higher quality”.
Is there any style that influenced you for this particular aesthetic?
I don’t have a precise reference aesthetic. Fashion is cyclical and the great thing is that we can enjoy it in the way we want every time. The styles can be endless, but I like to reinterpret clothes based on current fashion trends.
What will be your brand’s promotion strategies: social media, influencers?
Word of mouth is helping me a lot. I believe it is one of the first forms of promotion also thanks to the presence of social media. I also believe in the power that influencers have in being able to involve the users who follow them.
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