Crafting The Occult: The Magic Of Videnoir (Sustainable, Italian Made)

1. When did Videnoir officially launch?

"We’re currently celebrating our 10th anniversary. The brand has developed and evolved so much from our early days on Etsy in 2014 it still feels unreal."

2. What pieces were a part of the first collection?

"My background has always been corsetry, something I’ve learned from my grandparents. Before Videnoir, I was already making custom costumes and corsets for performers and I thought it would just make sense to create my own brand. It’s safe to say corsetry was at the core of Videnoir 10 years ago. Soon after, I also started experimenting with items that have now become staples in our collections, such as vampire collars and pannier belts. Back in the day, Videnoir was the only brand on Etsy offering these sort of items. It took me a minute to come up with designs that were good looking, durable, and practical, and these old pieces looked quite different from the current ones you find in store. However, they were the foundation we’ve been building on ever since and helped put us on the map."

3. What do you draw inspiration from in your offerings?

"I would say history and movies have always been something I look up to. It’s easy to trace back the references to both I assume. These have always been big passions of mine and I’ve always felt drawn to it in an inexplicable way. Actually for the longest time, my absolute dream was to be a costume designer for movies. Also, I’ve been part of the gothic subculture for a long long time and starting to sew was simply a matter of wanting to create items for myself I couldn’t get in stores. Videnoir is deeply rooted in the gothic aesthetic/culture, most definitely our biggest source of inspiration up to this day."

Model: @sigourney.beaver | Photo: @ericrichardmagnussen (LEFT) Model: @cervenafox | Photo: @radiant_inc (RIGHT)

4. Were there other brand names considered before Videnoir?

"Honestly, we were stuck on several English adaptations of the same name and even considered a few options in Latin which somehow felt a bit too “pompous” to our liking. The obvious “Black Void” almost took the cake but we were not totally sold on it. It felt too generic and just didn’t roll off the tongue. And then, as it often happens, the answer came to me when I simply wasn’t thinking about it. As I mentioned, my family is responsible for my love for sewing in general and corsetry in particular. Well, that branch of the family also happens to be French, so I thought a French name was gonna be elegant, sexy - quite important when you’re in the lingerie game- while simultaneously being a homage to my heritage. It was a win-win situation, so we tried “Videnoir” and it felt immediately right. Et voilà!"

5. Are all designs done in house? What is the production process?

"They are and it’s actually something we care for deeply. Videnoir is a team of 3 people and 3 people only. It feels like most of our followers don’t realise it. We take care of everything in house, from designing our fabrics and patterns, creating the different styles all the way down to packing and mailing the orders one by one and replying to all of the e-mails and comments. On top of that we have the content creation, mailing list, website, brand communication etc. I would say it takes a village, but as of now our village is more of a single house and I’m quite certain you know far too well how it feels!

It all starts with a thousand ideas which we eventually tear apart until we get to the one we are gonna pursue. Then it’s sketching, a whole lot of sketching. Fortunately, right now it’s all digital or we’d be responsible for way too many trees. We develop the different models and get our fabrics made exclusively for us from an Italian supplier. It’s all made in Italy, from the fabrics to the providers, and we take pride in being one of the few small businesses who’s still trying to support local, family-run small companies who've been doing the same thing for generations. Italy can be a bit of a mess for many many things, but it surely has a massive history and know-how when it comes to fashion and we have consciously chosen to pay homage to our country and heritage. Once we get the fabric and patterns ready, it’s time for me to painstakingly sew each sample and make the necessary adjustments before these get photographed and finally uploaded onto our website."

6. What is your most favorite piece or product you’ve created?

"Hard to say. The Bats Cloud design is most certainly relevant as it went viral so many times. It definitely helped build our brand reputation. On a more personal level, I’m quite proud of our Ribcage corset. That one started out as a corset with hand-moulded 3D elements inspired by some garments I created for advertising purposes many years ago. People seemed to like the idea, so we thought we needed to offer a style that was way more wearable and comfortable rather than just a show-piece. So, we translated the 3D elements into something a little more practical without sacrificing too much of the original “pizzazz.” I think we kinda nailed it. Also, our corsets offer so many custom options in terms of colours and fabrics. You can really create your own corset, like a reflection of your personality and style."

Model: @freyja_luna | Photo: @sensual_photo.ch (LEFT) Model: @ashlynnedae | Photo: @saffelsphotography (RIGHT)

7. What’s your preference: Pencil/gel or liquid eyeliner?

"Personally, I am not super proficient with eyeliner, so I go for a pencil and a bit of a smudged look. However, I’m always in awe of these people with mad skills when it comes to liquid liners. If your lines are sharp enough to cut, you’re most definitely doing something right!"

8. What’s your preference: Lipstick or a liquid lip?

"Liquid lip for the win! Like a classic matte deep red with a slight blue hue, or having fun with some holo and chrome effects. Or again, wild colours to match vivid hair hues. Go big or go home, right?"

9. If someone wanted to model or create with Videnoir, how should they contact you?

"I do realise in this day and age, this is a rather common question. However, our answer might be a bit atypical. In 90% of the cases, we don’t do collabs of any kind. We’ve always preferred having actual customers represent our garments without any constraint or requirement - how very millennial of us. Sometimes we will actively contact some artist or creator we really like, or if we feel they could be a perfect fit for the lingerie, and ask away. So, short answer: you don’t find us, we will find you!"

Model: @weirdosphere | Photo: @vdpicturesofficial (LEFT) Model: @itsusannstarr | Photo by: @ericavincentphotos (RIGHT)

10. What can people expect to see next from Videnoir?

"For over a year and a half we’ve been focusing on improving our Ready to Own range. People were always frustrated when they could not purchase our garments because of the limited slots available, so we thought we needed to sort that out before anything else. It’s been a huge step and commitment and since there are not too many of us, it kinda took a toll on our ability to develop and offer new designs and styles, also because it changed our workflow in quite a substantial way.

Albeit slower than what it used to be, we’re still imagining and trying new ideas and designs and we hope to be able to focus on these more in the near future. We’ve also just started to work on our wholesale in order to provide people with some physical locations where they will be able to see, touch, and try on our lingerie, but we’re still at the very early stages of development. For the very same reason, we’d love to come to the US and participate in some fairs and events where our customers can have a more personal shopping experience and get to know our items, our fit, and quality. So much to do, so little time... we’re working on it and can’t wait to see what the future brings!"

Anything else you'd like to add:

"Definitely wanna take the opportunity to thank you for having us on your blog and being a Videnoir supporter. For anyone interested in keeping up to date with everything Videnoir related, we recommend subscribing to our mailing list and keeping an eye on our social media channels where we keep posting info about new releases, custom range openings etc."

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"Also, as of now, the ONLY way to purchase Videnoir items is through our website. Don’t get fooled and be safe out there!"