Interview: Alexandra Carl
Alexandra Carl approaches fashion instinctively: a personal perspective where permanence, character and subtle gestures come together to create a distinctive way of dressing.
For Alexandra Carl, style is less about following a formula than knowing when to break it. A Danish stylist and creative consultant based in London, her work is shaped by a precise eye for clothes, but also by a fascination with what endures: the pieces we keep, wear again and again, and that ultimately become part of a personal story. It is an idea she has also explored in Collecting Fashion: Nostalgia, Passion, Obsession, her book devoted to the emotional bond between fashion and those who collect it.
In her approach to Signature, that sensibility is expressed through textures, proportions and subtle gestures capable of transforming a piece: a blazer tied around the waist, a knit draped over the shoulders or a shirt cuff peeking out from beneath a sleeve.
We speak to her about instinct, permanence and that elusive quality that makes the way we dress feel truly personal.
MDWhen you first look at the Signature collection, what catches your eye — and what makes you want to look again?
I’m always very drawn to textures so the leather and heavy wools definitely caught my eye ! I’m always trying to disrupt the palette and the expected so for me the touch of colours were a beautiful highlight in the collaboration. And a necessary feature.
MDYou have a very instinctive way of mixing precision with something more undone. Where do you find that balance in this collection?
I usually dress in a uniform and then tweak the last detail - it’s an instinct and a feeling you bring in the moment you wear the clothes.
I like details that tell a story - the blazer tied spontaneously around the waist / a knit thrown over the shoulders / a cuff of a shirt peaking out. These are narratives that contribute to the story of women’s daily lives I like to incorporate.
MDWhat makes a piece feel relevant to you now, without feeling defined by the moment?
What is relevant to me in clothes is always if I will wear / re wear and cherish for seasons and years ahead.
MDHow much of personal style is about the clothes themselves, and how much is about the way you choose to wear them?
Of course the clothes in themselves have to have a certain weight / confidence / construction but I’m always inspired seeing how someone can wear a simple suit or just a great denim and carry it in a way they seem like the most stylish person you ever met. I think anyone who wears their clothes with effortlessness and confidence is a style inspiration to me.
MDIs there a silhouette, proportion or detail in the collection that you would instinctively make your own? How would you wear it?
I collect outerwear so the trench coat to me is amazing as investment and specially to wear across seasons - the button detail on the sides makes it incredibly versatile and the scarf attachment is a beautiful detail.
“ I’m always very drawn to textures so the leather and heavy wools definitely caught my eye ! I’m always trying to disrupt the palette and the expected so for me the touch of colours were a beautiful highlight in the collaboration.”
MDIf Signature were less a collection and more a woman, how would you describe her — where is she going, what is she interested in, and what does she never need to prove?
She’s effortless and confident - Aware of style but never dictated by it.
