Fahrani Empel (aka Fa’vela Punk) leads an exuberant life. Born and raised in Indonesia, “Fa” claims that since she started modeling at the age of 13, she’s never spent more than three months in one place. She’s a continental drifter/actress/eco-warrior who changes her colorful hairstyles more often than her address, and has lost count of how many tattoos she’s acquired along the way. Another thing to add to Empel’s ever-expanding résumé is eyewear entrepreneur.
Two and a half years ago, she teamed up with business partner Miles Pitt to launch her sunglasses label, Cast, which has gained a following of bold-faced fans including Lady Gaga, Rihanna, and Grimes. Most recently, Cara Delevingne was spotted wearing Cast’s statement-making “You and I Are in Love” shades, its now-signature style with round acetate frames that is also favored by Gaga. Empel recalled seeing Gaga in those glasses for the first time. “I had just spent, like, a hundred days in the jungle [campaigning against deforestation in Borneo] and saw pictures of her in Thailand on the news. I really cried. It was such a major moment for me. I was so proud. It was like, ‘Wow, they’re actually on her face,’” she said.
Each season, Cast adds new designs to its repertoire in addition to updating best sellers in different colorways. As for Empel’s creative process? “I make a photocopy of my face so it’s the actual size, and then start sketching over it.” In general, she gravitates toward a conceptual look and geometric shapes. In addition to the aforementioned circular pair, Cast offers its popular “Moon Dust” shades with mirrored hexagonal lenses and a new style called “Tranquilo Tigre.” Everything is handmade and produced in small batches of one hundred at a time. Between all the editorial pulls and handing them out to her hands, Empel claims to own only three pairs of her own sunglasses.
Forgoing standard models, Cast tapped none other than the ATL Twins (along with Empel herself) to star in its latest Fall lookbook, which debuts here on Style.com. “I read about them in that Vice story a few years ago, and I was so intrigued by how white trash and dirty they are. They have their own opinions, and I absolutely love what they stand for. They own it,” said Empel. “What I didn’t understand about the ATL Twins until I met them was how much they actually care about their image—even though they come off like they don’t give a fuck. They’ve created this whole story, but they’re actually really smart and are paralegals by day.” As for their posing abilities? “They definitely know what they’re doing in front of the camera.”
Cast’s Fall ’14 collection ($240 to $250) will be available at casteyewear.com and at select boutiques.
No comments:
Post a Comment