Milda Jankuvienė, a lecturer and designer at the Faculty of Arts and Education of Kaunas University of Applied Sciences, took part in the Eastern European Fashion Week in Kyiv at the beginning of February, and as soon as she returned, she got the news about the invasion of Ukrainian territory by Russian soldiers. “It’s hard to believe how fragile things are… My new Ukrainian friends are now living in a state of survival, not creativity,” the 31-year-old designer hardly finds the right words for the occurring situation.

Organized twice a year since 1997, Ukrainian Fashion Week has become the first pret-a-porter event in Eastern Europe to fully meet global fashion week standards. Have you transported your collections there for the second time?

Yes. I went to Kyiv for the first time in September. I presented a collection for which I have created a special pattern of hearts that is repeated in one way or another in many of my models. I then hired the same models to showcase my work on the catwalk in February. According to my former teacher-designer Agnė Kuzmickaitė, Ukrainian Fashion Week is a great start for young designers. Actually, a year ago, when the COVID-19 pandemic was in full swing, I only sent my own clothes to Kyiv – I didn’t take part in the event. Why did I choose Ukraine? For several reasons. First of all, a high level of fashion has long prevailed here. Secondly, both we and the Ukrainian designers belong to Eastern Europe, so I see a lot of things familiar and understandable to me in their fashion. Thirdly, I know a number of fashion designers who started at that event and later became famous. Among them is A. Kuzmickaitė.

Didn’t you feel the threat of war atmosphere while visiting Kyiv in early February?

Anxious rumors were already spreading in the mass media. I read about the events and in parallel, I was preparing for Fashion Week. After all, I wrote to the organizers of the event to find out about the situation. I asked if it was better, as last year, to send them only the clothes from my collection and refrain from flying to Kyiv. The Kyiv people responded very calmly to my concern. They wrote that they have long been accustomed to the ongoing turmoil in Ukraine: they have been involved in a war with Russia for eight years. They invited me to come and see for myself that it was safe in Kyiv. And it was really quiet then. The people of the fashion world were extremely friendly with each other and did not dramatize situations. In Kyiv, I enjoyed every day. I was proud of myself for not running away and missing such a great opportunity to see others and show my work.

Everything that is happening in Ukraine these days is being watched by our people as if through a magnifying glass. Have you also become dependent on knowledge from there after making a lot of new friends at Fashion Week?

Really so. While in Kyiv, I made contacts with designers, stylists, photographers, and models in that country, who presented my collection in both September and February. As soon as hostilities broke out in Ukraine, I wrote to everyone. I asked how they were doing, what the real situation was in their country. We have been in contact with everyone so far. Most of my new acquaintances are still in Ukraine. Those who usually live in the capital were scattered into villages, homesteads. There they are trying to wait until the end of the war. They believe the actions of this war will end soon. While the situation was still peaceful, I sent my clothes to a stylist in Kharkiv for a photoshoot. Now they are still there. So I will have to come back again (laughs). Do you know the superstition of throwing a coin into the sea again to return there again? That’s my “coin” left in Kyiv. I hope to get back there as soon as peace prevails. We still keep in touch with the mentioned stylist on a daily basis. I know she spent ten days in a row in the basement because of the bombing. I offered contacts of people from Lithuania who could offer transportation and help her escape. She refused.

Is it true that Lithuanian celebrities like the clothes you create?

If they already say so, that’s probably true (laughs). I really dressed up a lot of our famous people. I graduated from the Academy of Arts, and currently I am working at Kaunas University of Applied Sciences as a lecturer in Fashion Design. I am the founder and designer of the “Mild Power” brand. There are a variety of occasions for which I prepare famous Lithuanian people: photo sessions, public appearances, TV projects, filming. After the pandemic year, I started to create an everyday image as well.

How was the “Mild Power” – a gentle force – brand born?

The origins of this name should be searched for in my study years. I created a collection for a bachelor’s degree. I chose… boxing gloves as my main motive. I liked that it is soft, but at the same time allows me to express my strength. It reminded me of a weapon, but a soft one – to protect the one who strikes and the one who takes the punch. Isn’t that a contrast?! So my whole collection was about that. Actually, the name of the collection during the exam was “Soft Power”. When one of the examiners heard this, she made a joke: “You are Milda, the goddess of love and tenderness, could “Mild Power” sound better?” That’s how it all ended that time. When I started thinking of a name for my brand, I immediately remembered the words of my teacher.

Some Lithuanian designers say that in the future there will be no boundaries between men’s and women’s fashion, unisex will prevail. Do you think so?

I would not dare to predict so boldly. Partly, this trend still exists. I am tall, so I often buy clothes from the men’s section as well. I do not think that the boundaries will be completely erased in the future. In my opinion, this will not be allowed by the different nature of people. Let’s say you never put my husband in a dress, he doesn’t wear high heels. On the other hand, I increasingly see that not all people in the field of fashion tend to experiment with their outfits. Notice how many designers who create very interesting clothes don’t even try to express themselves through clothing. They seem to want to remain invisible, unnoticed. When you spend so much time creating collections, analyzing fashion trends, living a few years ahead, it’s like getting enough of the current product and it becomes commonplace to you. In my opinion, the fashion of the future will not be unisex. After all, life moves with an algorithm: when a person is really filled up with something, he starts to want something else. We went through the days of super-feminine barbies and super-male kens, then unisex came. The end of this will be the beginning of something else. On the other hand, there are always people who go against the current.

For several years now, you’ve been interested in frequencies and how they affect people. You have found research that says the highest frequency fabrics are linen and wool. Is that why they dominate in your latest collection, presented at Ukrainian Fashion Week?

Maybe I’ll start with the frequencies and the reason I took an interest in them. My dad died a few years ago. Since then, the same motive has been repeated in my dreams – electricity, electrical appliances, currents, switching, lightning, and so on. I took an interest in it, read a lot, and searched through how the electromagnetic field affects a person. Finally, I decided to integrate this information into my work. Pass on a bit of that good energy to people. Therefore, we made knitwear from wool by hand and decorated the clothes of the collection with them. We used lace from linen. The main highlight of the collection is the pattern of hearts I have created in knitwear. After delivery of it in Ukraine, I received many compliments. People, the local media felt the good energy spreading out from my clothes, which I wanted to share, to create a celebration for everyone.

Spring is already outside the window, the sun is shining during lunchtime, but it is still cold at night. This also means we have enough time to prepare for the upcoming warmth. What should be left in the closets for the new season, and what should be thrown away?

The biggest news of the warm season is that the “Pantone” Color Institute has apparently changed the color of the year in response to events in Ukraine. At first, it was “very peri” (light purple), but to this day the colors of the year were changed to two: yellow and blue. Therefore, let’s put as much yellow as possible into the outfit – the color of light and positivity. I really like knitwear, handmade, national motives. Why not turn to your national heritage and use any original details from there? I believe that the purposeful use of the treasures of ethnoculture can become a response to the globalization that is gradually taking over the world. I notice this in the work of my students as well. In the past, national motives did not interest them, and now the majority want to use them in their work. On the other hand, recent years have been extremely dynamic, so for me, it is hesitant to predict anything. Let’s say in 2018, corset fashion was predicted to disappear from sight, but that didn’t happen. In October 2019, it was predicted that three-piece suits would become popular in 2020, and we were all dressed up in sportswear.

Say at least a few words about the fashion of the most comfortable clothes in the world – jeans. What should they be – wide, narrow, or maybe still torn?

I suggest that jeans and trousers should be treated in the same way as all other clothes. Take a closer look at what’s in the fashion magazines, and analyze yourself – what’s right for you, with whom you’re comfortable. Because some will look funny with wide jeans and others – with narrow ones. Let’s say I have several jeans models that suit and appeal to me, so I’m not very interested in their annual trends. I care more about the unique style of each person than just fashion. If you like walking with clogs – do so. If not, wear sneakers or footwear that are comfortable for you.