fanfan

OVERVIEW  
After graduating from Parson the New School of Design I started a small brand called “fanfan-accessories” in collaboration with two friends. The goal of this project was to revive hand fans as timeless fashion accessories through a new and fun approach. The inspiration for this idea revealed itself during the Oktoberfest, a traditional Bavarian Volksfest that is held annually in Munich, Germany. Originally from Munich we are all passionate visitors of this fun fair and therefore we knew how tough it can be to keep your cool inside of the hot beer tents.  We identified the opportunity for a fashionable and functional accessory which Munich girls could pair with the traditional German “Tracht”. The result was a limited edition of hand fans, inspired by Bavarian motives. This was a wonderful two year small scale project that allowed me to experience many responsibilities ranging from product development to creative direction, to brand management and strategy.

THE LANGUAGE OF THE FAN
In the past, hand fans were used not only as cooling instruments, but also as convenient communication devices, mainly for transmitting love messages. The relaxed atmosphere of the Oktoberfest is known as flirting paradise and hence we decided to reinterpret a set of the forgotten hand fan gestures through a series of modern photographs. Our little “School of Flirting” was then translated into Bavarian dialect and enclosed to every hand fan. Thereby we invited the new owners to interact with their product in an unexpected and fun way.