Helena Christensen Talks Lingerie

HELENA
CHRISTENSEN has made her first foray into design, creating her
own lingerie collection in collaboration with Triumph – a move
that she describes as “very cool”. The supermodel has designed a
luxury range for the underwear brand consisting of three
differently-themed ranges – Poetica (sexy, Swarovski-adorned lace);
Ballerina (feminine Seventies-inspired glamour); and Dahlia, (soft
romantic separates).

“I was already their campaign girl, but Triumph suggested
evolving the partnership and collaborating together,” Christensen
told us. “It was such a great opportunity to work with such a
traditional, established company and have them support me in making
my own line.”

And no half-measures here – no simply putting her name to a
product – the model mum completely threw herself into the
production process.

“I designed it all myself, but obviously had a team working with
me to explain all the technical aspects – we put together mood
boards, sketches, fabrics, just anything that I felt inspired by,”
she said. “It was fascinating to sit with experienced designers and
see the background of the construction. There was a lot to learn -
I even went to Hong Kong to talk to the seamstresses and see the
samples, I was really involved.”

Christensen described the experience as “an honour” and a great
“responsibility”, and explained how she was able to draw on her
years of industry experience for help.

“I’ve been in the business for so many years as a model, and
you’re constantly surrounded by creative and inspiring people -
it’s a mind-blowing business to be in,” she told us. “But you
absorb all that inspiration, and you keep it inside – it really was
a very educational time.”

So while underwear design seemed a natural progression for the
supermodel – not only has she been modelling it for years, but she
also confesses to being an avid collector of vintage lingerie since
she was a teen – Christensen says that this most likely won’t lead
to her designing anything else.

“It’s not something I really have ambition to do,” she said. “I
was simply offered this opportunity and I jumped at it. You should
always take these opportunities when they come along. I definitely
have a new found appreciation for the work that designers do
now!”

And speaking of which, Christensen cites Alice
Temperley and Matthew
Williamson as two of the London-based designers that she
admires the most. 

“I’ve seen how they’ve grown over the years – they’ve built
these empires, I’m so proud of what they’ve achieved,” she said.
“You always get the cool new designers in England – they just have
this unique way of approaching design.”

Interestingly, the model mum also named one British designer in
particular that could well be able to tempt her back onto the
catwalk again – something which she says is a definite
possibility.

“[A catwalk return] is absolutely not out of the question,” she
said. “If anyone asks, it’s always flattering – like I love Vivienne
Westwood, so that could tempt me. But it would have to be of
the same style – I couldn’t appear alongside all these young
teenage models, it wouldn’t look right. It’s a business that’s
always evolving, so I would never say never.”

The Helena Christensen for Triumph lingerie collection launches
in-store and online in January 2013.

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