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There are many elements to Konstantina Mittas that make her remarkable. For a start, the intrepid Sydney clothing designer comes across as supremely down-to-earth and self-effacing yet her garments take on a distinctly more dramatic and unpredictable edge. From the Winged Dress to the Distressed Tank and the Helena Corset, each Konstantina Mittas piece boldly redirects the body’s contours – hips, shoulders and derrieres (think crow wings, voluminous sleeves and draped bustles). The result is a strangely intoxicating mix of femininity, strength and, always, beauty. With just four years in the game and as many collections to her name (the fifth is in the wings), Konstantina says she feels blessed that industry bigwigs understand her vision, and like what they see.Harpers Bazaar is hooked on her “sharp tailoring” and “sculptural glamour”. Vogue Australia says she’s “one to watch”. And Urbis magazine hails her pieces as “artistic and architectural”. But ask Konstantina Mittas to describe her design style and she’ll attest she is too close to her work to articulate any signature aesthetic. It has, however, just 
dawned on her that she is pretty much following her playtime musings as a child.

“I was always making things when I was young and they were a bit super-hero and a bit escapist. So to be honest I haven’t really changed much. Isn’t that scary!” she laughs. “When I was young, I always used to pretend to be something or someone who 
had super powers. I was always in a pretend world.”

With no hint of a creative upbringing and no training or mentoring in design or sewing, Konstantina has intuitively carved her career out of air. She finds this realisation slightly off-putting.

“If I stop and think about it for too long it freaks me out!” Konstantina grimaces audibly through the phone from her atelier and retail store in Chippendale, Sydney. “I don’t know how I got to this point. I just have this knack. I just work it out. I can look at something and figure out how it should be. I’m not an actual patternmaker but I direct exactly how our patterns are done. I must be channelling someone.”

So how does a design career kick off without any training? Konstantina recalls a fortuitous night out on the town in Sydney in 2002. She had worked in retail or wholesale fashion for years but was unemployed at the time. On the hunt for a job, 
she decided to make a new outfit to wear to her next interview.

“I didn’t get the job but I went out that night and everyone wanted what I was wearing, so I just started taking people’s money!” she giggles at the memory. “How funny is that? 
I was actually in the toilets at The Establishment – that’s where I got my first clothing order.” So, what was the special garment? “I had made a belt and a tank top that had this crazy embellishment with denim – it was pretty out there.”

Konstantina completed the orders for her first customers and word quickly spread. Each time she sold a re-fashioned vintage garment she would return to the same $2 shop 
to buy more pieces to transform. “And that’s how I started.” She approached a couple of retailers with her pieces and the orders started flooding in. Because the clothes were vintage re-makes, Konstantina was desperately reworking, resizing and painting each piece by hand. “I physically couldn’t keep up so I started getting into woven garments – and now look what has happened!”

What has happened is that Konstantina’s self-titled label is strutting the catwalks at Australia’s biggest fashion events and is adorning the pages of Vogue, Oyster, Russh and other fashion bibles. Her label was originally picked up in America and nominated for Los Angeles Fashion Week’s 2005 Gen Art Show (Konstantina was the first non-American designer at the time to be invited to exhibit). Today, her label is selectively stocked in 
some of Australia’s top boutiques, including Blonde Venus and Bessie Head in Brisbane, as well as on sale from her own store in Sydney’s back streets.

To motivate her through the tough times, Konstantina looks to some of her greatest supporters, including her friends, Lyn Balzer and Tony Perkins, who snap exquisite photos of her pieces and design accessories for her range. “They just have so much faith in me and they think I’m a lot more amazing than I do, to be quite honest.”

Konstantina also raves about Bessie Head owner, Natalie Denning. “Sometimes when I’m totally exhausted and feel like I’m going to die trying to finish a collection, I always think of how disappointed Natalie would be, so I keep going,” Konstantina shares. “She has so much faith. She is so amazing. I would be nowhere over these past couple of years if it wasn’t for her.”

Konstantina knows it is very easy for stockists to simply buy and sell pieces. “But when it’s a range that is a bit different and you’re a designer who is trying to say something, it is the biggest compliment for a retailer to financially back your vision and your story.”

Delving deeper into what Konstantina regards as her greatest career achievements and challenges (achievement: creating beautiful fashion shows and look books; challenge: the constant financial pressure), it appears her success (and sanity) relies on her ability to not sweat the small stuff and to doggedly follow what she feels is true.

“I’ve managed to continue designing against so many odds over the years. But for some strange reason I know it’s what I’m meant to be doing. It’s like the universe won’t let me end; it won’t let me fall. That’s the only way I can describe it.

Interview by Frances Fragenheim
Photography by Lyn Balzer & Tony Perkins