Q&A with Monika Rostobaia about MON.EX
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What is your story ?How it all started ?
My name is Monika Rostobaia, a designer by profession. Since childhood, I dreamed of entering the world of high fashion. After graduating from the Tbilisi Art Academy, Faculty of Fashion in Georgia, I went to live in Germany, but the way to reach my goal turned out to be very difficult. Despite the obstacles, I was able to achieve my goals and became an invited fashion stylist of the company Breuningen, where I worked for three years. I have been interested in fashion design since a young age. I remember how a 12-year-old girl stayed up late at night and created hundreds of sketches. In the morning, her surprised parents could not hide their excitement when looking at so many sketches. Therefore, parents encouraged me to do my favorite work. My mother taught me to sew. With her help, I created MON.EX my first collection at school age. My mother is still actively involved in the production of the brand. My sister is also involved, who is my right hand and creative director of the brand. The brand (exclusive from Monica) dates back to 2016, and in 2021 I officially registered it as a brand and started producing seasonal collections.
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How much time it takes when creating a piece ?What is the process?
Due to the fact that the work on the collections did not have a systematic look, I created the collections based on inspiration. For the last two years, I have been producing collections seasonally. Two months before creating the collections, I make a mood-board and put all the details, ideas and inspirations on the board. After that, I start creating sketches, more than half of which are drawn and thrown away. Sketches undergo constant and gradual modification. I work on sketches until I get the desired silhouette and shape. The next stage is moulage and pattern cutting. In this process, constant experiments are carried out in order to get the desired pattern. The last stage is to transfer the pattern to the fabric and sew it. The most difficult process when working on a collection is to bring the idea and idea to perfection. This process is as difficult as it is interesting to me, because many new ideas are born.
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Where does your inspiration coming from?
My source of inspiration is those shots that are related to emotions. My 10-year-old daughter is often connected with emotions. My inspiration can be the world perceived through his eyes, or things seen through his vision, his paintings or other works. Street style and its shots can also be my source of inspiration, as well as an interesting photo or painting, book, story... I can get inspiration from anything that stirs my emotions and generates a new idea.
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Are you working on something new ?
Yes, in the spring, the presentation of my next collection is planned. The plans of my brand are very big and it is going to establish itself in the international fashion market. We are glad that we already have customers around the world, we cooperate with foreign stores and bloggers, as well as with the German "Bild" television, where we dress the presenters in our brand clothes, and also other offers that we are actively working on.