Backstage of Guest from the Feature

Monday mornings start with a cup of coffee as you stroll your way to the office. Though this was no ordinary day for the youngest Ukrainian talent, Anna K. The model-turned-designer started her journey from her first show at Mercedes-Benz Kiev Fashion Days as a 16 year-old.

While making further steps in her career - participating in London Fashion Week, dominating street style, and having Kris Jenner wears her dress – she had to keep moving forward. On February 15th, only at 20 years-old, Anna K presented her “guests from the future” dressed in space-inspired graphics. As the international publications, such as Vogue, Elle Italia, W Magazine, NY Times and others praise Anna’s pieces from the runway, it is important to congratulate the hard-work that went on to put the show together.

Walking through two spacious rooms of Milk Studious, one would see the preparation at its peak. The ultimate approach was minimalism – girly curls with rich blue eyeliner. Such aesthetic worked perfectly with combination of the quirky, child-like, fairy-tale inspired looks of Anna K’s new collection. Most importantly, stylists’ work did not take away, rather added on to the fun prints and details of the clothes.

The heat got turned up as the team was minutes away from the start. Shoes not fitting, zippers not zipping – typical moments of chaos that each designer faces right before the big moment. Once the team put final touches on the looks, adding on dangling accessories, Alina Baikova (@alina_baikova) made the opening steps into what became a show of success.

Lights fade in and the room was full of anticipation. Each strike of the drum from the song Hannusya by Dakh Daughters felt like a heartbeat – creating a sense of calmness for the team during such nerve-wracking event. As the song drew to its end, the uplifting beat by DJ Mia Moretti brought speed and hustle as the models rushed to change outfits. One look after another – put together in matter of seconds. Remarkable was the care that Anna put into each model. While having to walk the runway for the closing look, she simultaneously dressed and corrected each outfit, making sure everything was put together perfectly.

While being backstage, I was dipped into the rush and excitement that each team-member experienced. It’s important to note that while the work was done professionally, it was the work put together by a family. The support, the care and the common goal – these are important factors that made Anna K’s show a great success. As each girl finished her last walk through the runway, the backstage was full of excitement, smiles, and tears of happiness. Such cheerful mood added on to the overall overwhelming energy as everyone was jumping roof-high, screaming words of joyfulness like little girls. The sense of togetherness within the designer and her team was evident in the final walk as Anna and Alina lead the line while holding hands. The motto “Every girl is a model” reminds us that every girl, despite their profession, age and shape, is beautiful and is worthy of the attention. With the choice of the music along with having some of Ukrainian beauties be the faces of the collection brought a sense of pride for our country. It created a feeling of being home away from home.

Being mentioned on Vogue as part of New York Fashion Week recap article, listed along with well-known designers such as Micheal Kors and Proenza Schouler, marked only the beginning of Anna K’s bright future.