We, as the Designer Interviews ("DI") had the distinct pleasure and opportunity to interview award-winning, most creative and innovative Sofie Di Bartolomeo ("SDB").

Sofie is a multidisciplinary designer, after a degree in industrial design, she completes a Master degree in textile design abroad, this leads her to move in Germany to work as a designer for one of the first companies specializing in fashion tech, where she will be part of the creative team, researcher and developer for the innovation area, expert in 3D printing and assistants’ coordinator. She then decided to become a freelancer to carry out personal projects, run workshops to teach the application of technology in fashion, work as a product and visual/graphic designer for temporary projects, for private individuals but also for different startups around Europe. Currently established in Rome, she works as a full-time design consultant for the design of accessories and part-time as a visual designer for different startups.

Sofie Di Bartolomeo Designs

We are pleased to share with you original and innovative design work by Sofie Di Bartolomeo.

Designer Interview of Sofie Di Bartolomeo:

DI: What is "design" for you?

SDB : Design for me is the relationship between aesthetic and functionality.

DI: What kinds of works do you like designing most?

SDB : I really like designing wearables, projects related to material manipulations, textures, and surfaces.

DI: When do you feel the most creative?

SDB : I feel most creative when I'm working on something that I'm passionate about or when I woke up in a great mood and the sun is shining outside.

DI: Which aspects of a design do you focus more during designing?

SDB : I focus a lot on the small details that in my opinion makes the difference and that gives a sort of a soul to the project.

DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when you design?

SDB : I need to admit that I feel a bit stressed when I am designing but also full of energy, and more concentrated than usual, it is a nice feeling, it also makes me feel realized.

DI: What kind of emotions do you feel when your designs are realized?

SDB : I feel extremely happy and satisfied, probably also exhausted if I am been working on a project for a very long time, but overall only positive emotions.

DI: When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?

SDB : I usually look at how much is the aesthetics coherent with the functionality, I think when this relationship is balanced the design can only be a good design. Then there is also the emotional aspect, that I personally believe it's very important, this aspect is given by the materials, the colors, the textures that were used.

DI: Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?

SDB : My biggest source of inspiration has always been the Japanese culture and design, the care for the simple and clear shapes, lack of exaggeration and the consideration for the emotional aspect of the design. The inspiration for my work arrives quite often randomly, it might be a small detail, a shape, phrase, to triggers something in my head. I feed my creativity by looking at other people's work, or through magazines and by traveling and enlarging my horizons.

DI: Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?

SDB : I live in Europe, I don't feel attached to one country in particular since I have lived in many different European countries. I noticed and experienced that every country has its own distinctive way of doing design, therefore more than being affected by it I have been inspired and surprised by this variety.

DI: What are 5 of your favorite design items at home?

SDB : For sure the cutlery belongs to some of my favorite design items inside the house, together with teapots and mugs. Mostly things that you can find in the kitchen because they are that kind of object that always attire my attention when I go to visit someone, maybe it is because I like cooking, therefore I pay more attention to those objects.

DI: Could you please share some pearls of wisdom for young designers? What are your suggestions to young, up and coming designers?

SDB : A classic suggestion is not to fall in love with a project, it sounds trivial but I have been in that situation once, I was too convinced and too in love with my design that I was not able to see things from different perspective, to go one step back to change something, that is not what a good designer should do. Once I was able to see my projects from an objective point of view, to listen to other people feedbacks to question my decision, designing became more challenging and therefore the satisfaction at the end of a work is really deserved, and it is also the best way to learn and grow as a professional. Another suggestion is to travel, to make different experiences in life because the bigger your horizons are the bigger your creative impact will be.

DI: Designing can sometimes be a really time consuming task, how do you manage your time?

SDB : For sure I try to avoid breaks. When I design I need to be immersed in the project, so usually, I try to eliminate all the distraction, shut the phone and so on. I must say that I also need to fix strict deadlines because I noticed that I work a bit better under pressure.

DI: How long does it take to design an object from beginning to end?

SDB : It really depends on what am I designing, if it is a pattern for a textile, a graphic or a product, for sure not just a couples of hours, especially because it always happens that there are some modifications to be managed during the process, so to really say that a project is officially finished it always takes time.

DI: What is the most frequently asked question to you, as a designer?

SDB : "do you need to be creative to be a designer?"

DI: What type of design work do you enjoy the most and why?

SDB : I really enjoy working on innovative ideas, whenever there is a very conceptual project that needs much research and requires the use of new technologies, software materials, etc.

DI: Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?

SDB : Usually, I develope my design independently, but sometimes I also do collaborations with other people. I have worked on several projects together with a team.

DI: How can people contact you?

SDB : Emails are the best way to contact me.