made in finland.

i was challenged by anna to tell you about my domestically made clothing. she started her own post from the realization that the quite prolific production side of finnish clothing industry has almost vanished entirely -- a familiar phenomenon in all of western europe -- implying that what little still is tagged "made in finland" comes from young designers or is vintage.

i instantly knew there were a couple of items i could post but, nevertheless, went through my closet and the two boxes of dresses i brought in from the storage because of last week's parties. i hesitated whether i should actually dig into my storage a little further, but the number already overwhelmed me (and will probably bore you...). so the rest must be saved for later, okay?

i'll start with some favorites: a white balloon dress from antti asplund and a forest green marimekko wool dress i inherited from my mom.

the asplund dress is from his s/s08 and i purchased last winter from his showroom sample collection. needless to say, i was thrilled to fit into the sample size... it features an exquisite print, is made of somewhat rough cotton and is definitely a pretty bold statement piece of clothing to wear. i cherish it, but wear it rather rarely.

the green marimekko dress is from the late 60's, and beautifully detailed around the bustline (click photo to enlarge). the sleeves are slightly short and reveal wrists delicately. the dark color works with my wardrobe and the cool shade compliments my skintone. i've worn it for years and will keep on wearing it until it turns into shreads -- which is unlikely to ever happen with the incredible material.

luckily i share my mother's frail figure pretty much to the inch because, as it turns out, there's more from where the above dress originated.

from the depths of my mother's old wardrobe surfaced this beautiful off-white summer dress by merry finn. it's a cotton-linen mix and, again, intricately detailed around the bustline (which unfortunately is a little tight because of the generation gap -- or should i say leap -- in chest size).

the kind of detailing that is found on both my mom's old dresses is something i truly miss in modern clothing, and one of the reasons i am willing to pay for finishing touches. it is also undoubtedly true that materials used to be better because the only reason some of my vintage numbers couldn't be worn today is due to unremovable stains, not wear and tear.

avoiding stains is easy with black, and below is a threesome i was unable to shoot properly in this winter "light".

the first top is a hanna sarén for iittala tee i bought in some state of temporary insanity and which i don't like (never worn; anybody like & want it?) although there are sequins and my internal magpie lurrves glittery sequins. i am actually unsure if it is made in finland, but could not find anything stating otherwise.



the other two are again from mom: a wool wrap skirt from marimekko and a wool blouse with a back zip from arola. i wear both because of the impeccable quality and great fit.

i normally steer clear of clothing that screams vintage and like timeless pieces i think the ones posted above are. some may look retro, but none are such that they couldn't possibly be produced today.

however, the collector and greedy hamster in me demand attention and activity, and i have several dresses in my collection that are rather wearable but definitely and obviously vintage. i wore them more when i had long, curly hair but nowadays they stay in the storage.

these two were made in finland: a smokey blue dress with hummingbirds and thin golden stripes from finn karelia and a silky, transparent pastel dress from stina. neither made my collection because of quality or craftmanship, but because sometimes i feel an urge to dress more maturely... perhaps it is the mrs in me?




nevertheless, the crown jewel of my finnish collection is this simple and feminine dress by kaunotar which was made in my old hometown, turku. the copper color is absolutely stunning and the combination of (quite common, but still high-quality) lace and satin uplifts the dress to a party favorite.

and this concludes the tour of finland in my wardrobe. i hope you enjoyed it and will visit again!