(:

Check out the interview I did with Notorious Magazine held by the very sweet Dominika Wasilewski <3!! Thank you so much for two wonderful hours and lots of girl talk! Hope you like it !

I  met Sophie Andersen on a beautiful sunny March afternoon in one of Vienna’s most impressive and notorious coffee houses, the Savoy, only a stone’s throw from the famous Naschmarkt. Bleary-eyed after partying hard the night before, but still absolutely fabulous with her crazy blond mane and huge green/grey eyes, she arrived a few minutes late frenetically apologizing for her scandalous lack of punctuality which made her even more charming. We talked about fashion, inspiration and passion for beauty. Authentic and humble but very vocal about what she wants. Read the interview and see for yourself!

If you were to describe yourself and your work in a few sentences, what would you say?  

I’m very ‚black and white’ – very minimalistic – so are my clothes and my work. On the other hand, I’m a perfectionist and I have much love for details. I would describe my personal style as: ‚homeless chic meets Lady Gaga meets art teacher’.

Where do you draw your inspiration from? 
The Web is definately my greatest inspiration. I love spending time on the internet, searching for staff, browsing content and debauching in the infinite see of  photography. But I also feel inspired walking down the streets or taking the subway. You see so many different people of various origins, cultures, languages and religions. An abundance of exquisite fashion tastes and preferences. These places are perfect when it comes to analyzing current fashion movements and emerging styles or looks.

You have an extraordinary brand name – what’s the story behind it? 
Since I can remember, I always admired my mother’s maiden name ‚Andersen’. When I turned 18 I decided to change my real last name, which I really didn’t like, to Andersen. By the way – best decision of my life! ;) ‚Sandersen’ is the initial of my first name Sophie combined with my last name Andersen. I wanted something international, catchy and easy to remember ...

Tell us about your love for fashion. 
I always knew what I wanted to wear and what I’d never put on my back. I used to cut up my clothes sometimes, tried to alter the cutting and the designs to fit my own ideas and preferences. In time it became more and more apparent that working in fashion would be the right path for me. I began studying Fashion Journalism at the Fashion and Design Academy (Akademie für Mode und Design) in Munich while maintaining my enthusiasm for fashion design, styling and photo shoots. Today I have my own lil fashion label – it’s crazy!

Are there any famous men or women in fashion who you admire? If you were to choose, which fashion designer would you most like to work with? 
I love love love Elin Kling ! She’s a swedish, and – in my opinion – a very talented fashion blogger. I also greatly admire Terry Richardson, Kate Lanphear, Clémence Poesie, Abbey Lee Kershaw and street-artists such as Zeus or Banksy. I would love to work with Jeremy Scott! He’s amazing and has really genius ideas. I share his love for crazy t-shirt prints and I like the symbolism in his work.

Your tights and t-shirts collection is absolutely fabulous – tell us a bit more about it. 
I’m really glad you like it. I’m still a bit uncomfortable with compliments – gotta learn to accept them in a graceful manner ;) Actually I started working on it out of personal necessity – I thought there was no exciting basics available in stores. That’s when I started experimenting with spray paint. What I like about street art and graffiti are the dirty, raw surfaces it produces. It’s kinda special.

Is it just you, or do you cooperate with others on your fashion project? Who do you work with? 
Until now I was able to work independently, had no sponsor of a sort or external help. Sandersen is only me. However, I do have a marvelous team of creative workers, who support me whenever I need something. Thomas Unterberger for that matter is a photographer I very often work with. I trust him and cannot imagine my work without him bein’ around. He’s also one of my closest friends.

I’ve seen you also run your own blog. Why blog? When did you start and what was your initial motivation? 
Well, it’s still very dilletante – not to say noobish;) but I’m working on it! I started blogging for only one very simple reason – I wanted to give it a try. I am myself a huge blog fan and a regular blog reader. There are some blogs I’ve been monitoring for years now.  Fashion blogs are particularly exciting and inspiring – so many fresh ideas. And the possibilities are boundless. So I thought to myself: Hey, maybe I can do it too! Blogging is definately fun!

Any favourite blogs you read on the daily basis? 
love aesthetics, tuulavintage, bleachblack and cupcakesandcashmere are my absolute favorites! Check them out sometime – I’m sure you won’t be disappointed!

Do you take risks with your work? Some of the prints on your shirts and tights might be read as some kind of provocation. 
I think that risk is important. My point of view/mindset is not everyone’s piece of cake however.  Being an artistic creature you experiment with the controverse, the taboos, like sex or drugs. Still you have to watch your mouth to some point if you wanna sell your product. But that’s not what I’m interested in in the first place. If someone brings an idea for a shoot – some cocaine lines for that instance – and it looks good in a photo, I say: ‚Let’s do it!’.

Maybe I wanna provoke in some indirect way. But I’m a kind of person who always encourages people to say what they want, think and feel. Especially women believe very often that they need to be that perfect, innocent dream girl. I want rather to motivate them to say: ‚I need sex today!’ without feeling like a slut, ’cause that’s not what they are.

What are you obsessed with, or addicted to? 
I’m obsessed with jewelry, rings in particular– I never leave the house without wearing at least one. I’m so used to wearing them constantly that I feel kind of naked whenever I forget about it – weird, isn’t it ? 

Fashion and style come from the inside. Do you agree with this statement? 
Yeah, basically I agree – style comes from within. But there’s of course the inspiration and influences we draw from the outside. Also you gotta kinda feel it – one way or another. A strong dose of self-consciousness and self-confidence in appearance is definetely a must in order to present a fashionable look to the public. Without it, it’s simply not the same.

How many pairs of shoes do you have in your closet? 
Haha You really wanna know? I counted them, It’s 82 pairs! I had to shut down my credit card lately – 82 pairs are definately too much! But on the other hand, I don’t own a car or an appartment.

What are your plans for the nearest future? 
Well, I plan on finishing my studies in Munich and graduating from the AMD. After that I’d love to work on extending my brand (jewelry, jeans, shoes etc.). My greatest dream is to move to London permanently, live and create fashion from there. Maybe that’s because of my grandparents’ British roots. I feel somehow connected to this city and its amazing flair.

Munich –Vienna: do you prefer one over the other? 
Vienna is and always will be my mostly beloved city.

Where do you create your clothes?
Meanwhile I have my own studio by the Danube. Here I can open the windows and turn on the music! I began my fashion adventure in the cellar of the appartment building I grew up in. After every work session the staircase for hours smelled like spray paint – my landlord hated me for that!;) And funny thing: when you look at me like that – blond and all dressed up –  you’d probably never think that in my studio I run around wearing a huge black sprayer mask, with paint in my hair and all over my face:).

Thank you so much  for a lovely chat!