Transfixed in her own realm, Romanian designer, Bianca Georgescu challenges common sense, creativity, and design. Her specialization is within handcrafted footwear and accessories using traditional materials, such as leathers and suedes, often finished with Georgesu flair — incorporating intricate embroidery, semiprecious stones, and a myriad of other unconventional elements.

Georgesu’s most recent collection, D-Cycled, is an intimate shared duty towards sustainability between consumer and designer. D-Cycled is about zero-waste and sustainable fashion. The denim heavy collection sources premium discarded and consumer sourced denim to create new, original, and fully sustainable designs. Please read the Jejune exclusive interview below to learn more about Bianca Georgescu and her work.

When was the Bianca Georgescu brand founded and where are you based?
Bianca Georgescu started her business in 2012, when she released her first collection – Qalicheh. Our brand is based in Romania, Bucharest.

How did you get interested in designing shoes?
I believe I became interested in this area because of my passion for research and experimentation of new materials and situations, in which you can place unusual materials.

Do you feel your Romanian roots has had an impact on your design ethos? If so, how? 
I am a Millennial, coming from a post-communist Romania, full of kitsch and facing globalization. In a country where corruption is on the front page of newspapers, and televisions are full of lackluster value, there is little opportunity for artists. But I regard this as an advantage that educated us to get around with little, to do much of nothing, to see value and beauty in simple, unexpected things.

Can you tell us a little bit about your D-Cycled collection, and what inspired it?
My desire to create a collection of sustainable products began to arise about a year ago, when I started doing research on eco-friendly materials. The inspiration was, in fact, a vintage denim jacket that I owned, that made me believe that denim can also have an after-life.

The collection is about sustainable fashion, but also about the feeling that you get from something that is made especially for you, a feeling that has long been lost due to mass production. Because the materials used come in (very) limited quantities, each product is unique.

What made you decide on denim to be the fabric of choice for your D-Cycled collection?When I began looking for eco-friendly materials, although there is an increasingly diverse range of such materials, I couldn’t find any that matched our needs. That is until I came across that old denim jacket and, while inspecting the material, I realized that it had all the qualities needed to create a great pair of shoes.

Where do you find your denim?
The prototypes were made from denim from our own sources, vintage shops and donations from friends. However, we offer anyone who wants the chance to bring us a denim item from their personal wardrobe, which we will later turn into a unique accessory.

All of your designs are handmade in workshops in Bucharest, Romania. Please take me through the design process of the D-Cycled collection, and why this process is important to you?
Indeed, all production is based in Bucharest, mostly in my workshop and in collaboration with some trustworthy craftsmen. Unlike other collections, each product from the D-Cycled collection is a challenge because they are all unique and thus involve an entirely new creative process, from the joining of materials up to the last seam.

Why is sustainability important to you? What made you decide to upcycle vs. other forms of sustainable production for fashion?
I believe we live in a time when sustainability should be a very important aspect to all of us. We pollute the only home we have – Planet Earth – we fill it with trash and chemicals and we consume way more than we really need. Up-cycling is, in my opinion, the greenest way fashion can go. Compared to recycling, the impact up-cycling has on the environment is reduced; down-cycling – namely to convert an object into raw materials, a fundamental part of the recycling process – requires a considerable amount of energy, indeed. Beyond this, my attempt is to reduce the need for new raw materials (especially the massive consumption of natural leather) while capitalizing on, and revitalizing, existing materials.

Have any celebrities worn the D-Cycled collection yet?
Yes, many personalities were intrigued by this collection and it made waves since it’s been launched.

Where can we find your shoes?
My shoes can be ordered online from our official website – www.biancageorgescu.com – but we are also on Instagram and Facebook @biancageorgescucollection. People from Bucharest can also visit us at our showroom near Cismigiu Park.

What is your motto in life?
Smile ☺ 

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