At home with Camilla Modin Djanaieff, founder of PHI
Camilla Modin Djanaieff is the founder of PHI, a brand that produces knitwear in Italy using the finest recycled wool and cashmere. PHI hopes to inspire conscious consumption through its classic and timeless pieces, creating garments that are "made to last".
What is PHI's mission?
PHI’s mission is to promote conscious consumption. We make knitted garments made out of recycled merino wool and recycled cashmere.
Do you think we will consume less in the coming 10 years than we have in the last ten?
Definitely. We HAVE to! I think people will become more conscious about their consumption and will acquire more knowledge about how to shop and consume products in a conscious way. They will know more about the companies they buy from and I think we will value quality over quantity to a much higher degree than we are used to.
What does a sustainable wardrobe look like to you?
It has longevity in the garments. Timeless pieces that you wear many times and for a long period of time. For instance you can wear a knitted sweater 10 - 20 years and you can come back to it many times during your lifetime.
How can we limit fast fashion?
By not shopping fast fashion! I think fast fashion has to go if we want to live sustainably. It’s just not possible to have sustainable fast fashion, it’s in the name – fast. It has to be slow. In order to have slow fashion you need high quality and you need to think about the materials you use when you produce the clothes.
What do you yourself do to maintain a sustainable lifestyle?
I do a number of things, the biggest being that I don’t fly for leisure. I fly for work sometimes if I really have to. Other than that I eat 99 % vegan, I don’t shop a lot and when I do shop I tend to buy timeless pieces in really good quality that I can wear for a long time.
How can we as a society increase the value of a garment?
If you know how the garment is produced, by whom, and where it will affect how you value it. You treat a garment you know a lot about with greater respect than one you don't, and a garment of high quality with more respect than one of poorer quality. I think we have to treat everything in our life with respect. Be it food, clothes, furniture, people or animals. We have to see things in a different light and hopefully treat everything with more respect.
What can we do about greenwashing?
Talk about it, shed light on it and educate! People have to understand the whole process of making clothes. Our generation grew up not caring about where clothes came from, how they were made and out of what. Today people actually do care and there is so much more information out there. The hard part is knowing what information to listen to. But it can be simple: buy less, buy better.
Where do you produce your garments?
We produce our garments in northern Italy, one and a half hours from Milan. One of the factories is near Biella which is a beautiful little village in the prealps.
