Sally Layton One of the indie lingerie brands high up on my wishlist, Seelanii Lingerie is a one-woman handmade brand created in 2020 by Kristen Fernandes. Working out of her home studio in Poland, she creates luxuriously artisanal underpinnings that range from decadent silk and lace sets to whimsical pieces in hand-embroidered linen.
Fernandes is a self-taught seamstress who started learning to sew and embroider by hand aged just 6, gradually moving onto more complicated techniques and garments in her teens. Naturally drawn to creating lingerie – which she likens to being a pastry chef, saying that intimates are “like dessert for the eyes – sweet, small and detailed” – she eventually learned how to make a bra through trial, error, and deconstructing a few to see exactly how they were made.
“I am a very technical person,” she told me, “I love the challenges that come with designing things that are so complicated to construct but also need to be beautiful and functional.” The idea for Seelanii came about once she had developed the confidence and skillset to work with high-end fabrics such as silk and Leavers lace, which she began sourcing from small local businesses.
Many Seelanii fabrics – most of which are made in Europe – are purchased deadstock and in small quantities, which makes the brand’s collections strictly limited edition. Typically, just 20 to 50 pieces get made. For Fernandes, this keeps the process feeling fresh and enjoyable, rather than having to sew the same thing over and over for years. Plus, she just likes the idea of only a few people owning them! Her ambitions are to stay quality-over-quantity, and maintain that close connection she currently has with her customers.
This is one of those captivating lingerie brands where every single look feels truly special, but a few particular stand-outs include the Elizabeth basque with its frilly arched cut and ruched silk garter straps, the 3-piece Elizabeth lingerie set which incorporates the same ruffled silhouette only this time in powder pink silk satin and with strings of pearls between the bra cups, and the berry-red Jagoda basque set with its double-layered silk and Chantilly lace fabrication and silk-wrapped closure straps at the back.
Most unique of all however are the linen sets. Although it took some testing to land on shapes that would work well with this atypical underwear fabric (which Fernandes describes as “rustic yet elegant”), the designs she settled on are simply dreamy. Breezy tap pants, adding an even airier feel to something already highly breathable. A versatile demi bra hand-embroidered with summery ribbons of poppies, rye and forget me nots. And my very favorite: a longline bustier, hand-embroidered with Queen Ann’s Lace flowers, which could easily be worn as a chic summer crop top.
Seelanii’s linen is OEKO-TEX Standard 100 certified, undyed for a natural ecru color, and perfect for those who care about biodegradability. (Garments also all ship in sustainable plastic-free packaging.) The hand embroidery work is done by fellow artisan Małgorzata Sztuka.
