Between Jordan and London | Insight into Yasmine's Brain
IN BETWEEN JORDAN AND LONDON YOU’LL FIND YASMINE, WHO COMBINES GORY AND CUTE AESTHETICS IN THE MOST UNIQUE AND ADORABLE ACCESSORIES YOU CAN FIND…
Currently advertising and selling her collection of handmade creations through Instagram, the young artist showcases her extensive skills and distinctive style. Including bandanas adorned in mini clay and resin pumpkins, a jar of eyeballs on a necklace or strawberry earrings, Yasmine caters to different styles and interests. As a new venture she is still experimenting with different materials and methods of production, but ultimately she’s always inspired by her own sense of what looks good.
By Olivia Melkonian
HI YASMINE! CAN YOU TELL US A BIT ABOUT YOURSELF?
Hello! My name is Yasmine, I’m 21 and I’m from Jordan. I currently study Global Politics and Japanese in London, but I’ve always been interested in fashion and art.
WHEN AND WHY DID YOU DECIDE TO START MAKING THESE ACCESSORIES?
I started making them around March of this year. I can’t remember what made me want to start making them, but I had been experimenting a lot with different art mediums and wanted to play around with clay- this eventually led me to making my eyeball necklace! After that, I kind of had this drive of wanting everything I wear/own to be my own creation, so I started learning how to sew and began experimenting with other materials.
YOUR CREATIONS ARE COMPLETELY UNIQUE – DID YOU BEGIN MAKING THEM DUE TO THE LACK OF SIMILAR ITEMS AVAILABLE?
Thank you! I think a big part of my thought process when coming up with new ideas is “has this been done before?” I don’t necessarily think that it was the driving force that led me to start making accessories, but it’s definitely something I think about a lot during the creative process.
HOW CAN PEOPLE PURCHASE FROM YOU?
I’ve been using instagram to list and promote my creations. You can find me at @yasminesbrain and @y8smine!
WHY HAVE YOU CHOSEN TO CREATE SUCH ACCESSORIES?
Because it’s fun and they’re pretty, I make things that I would want to wear.
HOW DID YOU FIND YOUR STYLE?
I’m really into horror, gore and scary things, but I’m also really into soft, delicate and pretty things as well. I’m into mismatching and color coordinating – if you look through my sketchbook it’s kind of a jumble of different ideas and concepts. I don’t think I’m limited to just one particular style, I kind of go for what I feel like going for. I know I should probably keep it limited to one target audience, but I really just want to make what I think is cool, and if you think it’s cool too then that’s a plus!
CAN YOU DESCRIBE SOME OF YOUR INFLUENCES?
I have a folder on my phone of all the things that influence and inspire me! Most of it, I’ve come to realise, is screenshots from movies/shows’ set designs. Some examples are Alice in Wonderland, Totally Spies, Black Swan, Cat in a Hat. I also follow some really cool creators on Instagram that inspire me endlessly like @nicolemclaughlin @bananapapaya_ @alexandrasipa.
HOW DO YOU CREATE YOUR PIECES?
I like to start out by visualizing and drawing out a plan on my sketchbook. With the bandanas, I knew the overall concept that I wanted to go for, but I didn’t know what materials to use yet. After planning it out in my sketchbook, I came to the conclusion that clay would be the best fit! The strawberry/pumpkin/orange bandanas are made with clay that I moulded into shape, and after baking them I like to go over them with resin. It’s a long process, it’s very meticulous and time consuming but it’s also very fun.
DO YOU HAVE ANY FUTURE ENDEAVOURS YOU CAN REVEAL TO US?
I actually have my next couple of collections planned out and I’m currently working on my next drop! It’s going to be similar to the fruit bandanas in the sense that it is quite “girly” and pretty. Like I said, I am fairly new to this, so right now I’m just really taking my time with learning how to use/work with certain materials so that maybe in the future I can start incorporating more complex pieces into my collections – maybe dabble more in sewing and fashion! A big passion of mine is also creative direction and styling, so I think you will see a lot more of that in promotional posts to come!
You can shop from Yasmine on Instagram at @yasminesbrain.
