anything goes with emma chamberlain - a clothing designer's mind, a talk with emily bode (revisit) [video]

Episode Date: January 4, 2024

[video available on spotify] today i'm going to be interviewing one of my favorite, if not my favorite designers. she is the founder of her brand bode. maybe by definition bode is a men's wear brand, but bode is very much more than that. bode is a luxury brand with this sort of casual, vintage, eclectic edge. her brand is truly the epitome of vintage-inspired clothing, like she fucking nails it. bode makes it feel like you plucked it out of a store in the fifties. the brand really is helping to preserve the magical, beautiful craftsmanship of the past that's kind of slowly dwindling out of our day-to-day life. and bode is really one of one. i present to you emily adams bode aujla. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, it's me, Emma. And right now, I'm on a holiday break. I'm taking a few weeks off to spend time with family, rest my brain, and sleep as much as possible. But in the meantime, I'm rerunning some of my favorite episodes from this year, just in case you haven't heard them yet, or just in case you want to hear them again. So I hope you enjoy this episode rerun, and I'll be back with new episodes on January 11th, 2024.

Happy holidays. I love you. I appreciate you. And I'll talk to you soon. OK, enjoy the episode. Today I'm going to be interviewing one of my favorite, if not my favorite, designers. She is the founder designer of her brand Bodie.

Maybe by definition, Bodie is a menswear brand, but Bodie is very much more than that. Bodie is a luxury brand with this sort of casual, with this sort of casual vintage eclectic edge. Her brand is truly the epitome of vintage inspired clothing. Like, she fucking nails it. Bodie makes it feel like you plucked it out of a store in the fifties. You know, the brand really is helping to preserve the magical, beautiful craftsmanship of the past

that's kind of slowly dwindling out of our day to day life. And Bodode is really one of one. I present to you Emily Adams, Bode, Agila, the creator of one of my favorite brands, Bode. Okay, I first found Bode at, it was a Vogue event 2019 Paris Fashion Week. But you were at? Yeah. It was a cocktail event. But then there was like sort of like a shop, I don't know if it was like a shoppable area,

but it was like kind of like a showcase of everything. And I found you'll know this shirt. It was like all the little foods, and it was like a button up. Oh, with the calorie counts on it. So, so good. I remember I saw it and I was like, I've never seen anything like this looks vintage.

And it was like this whole like aprons or the one that I reproduced was on a hankertrip. And to me it was just like so hilarious because it's so good. How many calories are in like coffee and carrots and really bizarre foods. But it's colorful and it's in a cotton oil. So it's like super thin and people kind of went crazy for it because Harry wore it for something. Yep, I remember this because I bought the shirt. And so, okay, listen, so I bought the shirt pre-Harry. Okay, everybody, listen up, pre-Harry,

I bought the fucking shirt because I saw it at that event and then like two weeks later, I saw it opening ceremony. I was like, oh yeah, they're gone. God, I'm so depressed. But that was a good shirt. Amazing. Was it like, oh yeah, they're gone. God, I'm so depressed. But that was a good shirt. Amazing. Yeah. Was it like, I mean, obviously when so many like Harry styles,

where's a piece of your clothing, I think part of you is probably like, fuck yeah, that's awesome. But then also part of you is probably like, oh shit. Because you know, a moment like that where somebody who has so much influence like Harry Styles wearing something, it's going to skyrocket things in a way. Was that? Well, we're quite scary. Yeah, I mean, we're quite intentional with like our run. So I don't know about back then, but today, it's like, that's one of like 50 or one of 200 or one of two or one of one. He's just such an incredible renaissance man that you know anything he wears

you know I love when he wears our clothes and you know I truly value like our relationship and so that's really inspiring to me especially him. I'm really curious about like you as a young person. Do you feel like the love for clothes came first or the love for crafts came first? I think I would have to say crafts because as a kid, I mean, as much as I was definitely a fashion obsessed kid, you know, I used to do like runway shows for my uncle

and on like, you know, I have like videos of that like visiting him in the South of France, like, you know, strutting down. Yeah, dream. I like that. That was definitely a part of my childhood for sure. But I think the first understanding of aesthetics or just building like your world in general came through craft. And I really think largely through dolls and probably through like doll furniture and, you know, making little things for that world. So I think that's where I think that's where it came from for me. When do you think your point of view, your strong point of view really started to blossom, you know, when it comes to aesthetic things and creative things, and you know, even I've heard

you discuss in videos and things about, you know, how you love collecting things and you're such a collector. And you do have such a distinct vision that is so consistent. And I'm curious when that sort of became solid. Like when was that really solidified? Was it when you were super young like 12 or is it you know even more recent? I mean I do think I had a very distinct vision of you know the worlds I wanted to live in the kind of the imaginative environments from when I was a really little kid you know, the worlds I wanted to live in, the kind of the imaginative environments for when I was a really little kid, you know, the, I found a notebook that I think I must have

been like five or something, maybe a little older, but I was trying to explain that like this dress came with this colored sash and this colored dress came with this color and I would have like these little drawings and so I was always interested in that idea of making things, but also of selling things and having objects and a vision available for other people. Well, it's interesting because a lot of people, I feel like just sort of discover, they're sort of calling later, and they never saw it coming.

I mean, you saw it coming, I think. Like you knew, this was like, your, this was just destined from day one. That's really special. What was like your go-to outfit as a kid? I've always loved vintage. My mom saved all of her vintage. So it's not that necessarily my mom's,

cause of course, she was a kid or vintage now, but she also was buying vintage with her sisters. So I have things that they had thrifted and bought at flea markets and things that they had saved. And I love that they had saved those things, but I can now cherish and wear. And I've worn them throughout phases of middle school and then in high school I wore it.

And then now the T-shirt isn't no longer huge on me but I have it. That's so cute. I love that. Moving on to a little later in your life, college. So you went to Parsons, which is it's a design school, correct? I personally, I didn't go to college. So I'm always so curious about the impact that college has on especially creative people because did going to college help you become more creative by giving you sort of the technical tools to really, you know, create whatever you want? Or do you feel like in some ways it might have actually kind of put you in a box in a way and made you feel, because I think at school, you know, you're obviously taught a curriculum, right? That can sometimes kind of make you feel confined in a way. What was your personal

experience with going to, you know, in art school? Well, for me, because I come from a place where I personally love institutional learning, I thrive in those environments, whereas it's definitely not for everybody. Interesting. I think that, you know, especially when I talk to young people who are deciding their trajectory or what they want to do, I often believe in an older model that's not really around so much anymore, which is like the apprenticeship model. If you know for sure that you want to go into this thing and you don't necessarily thrive in a more institutional educational environment, then you should apprentice or intern somewhere that you see fit. But for me, Parsons, I did the dual degree program.

So I did a bachelor's degree in philosophy and a bachelor of fine arts in fashion. And when you enter into the program, at least for the fine arts degree, you have a set of, I guess it's foundational learning. So like you mentioned, it's like providing you the skills to then make decisions. So it's like foundational skills of color theory and yeah, basic woodworking, things like that. Do you do you find moments when like maybe you're you're working on a project and you end up going a direction that's the complete opposite of like what you learned in school?

Like it is a course. Yeah. In art school, one really valuable thing I feel like I learned which what you said reminds me of that, is like you have to learn to be able to throw something away. Because as somebody who is making stuff from such a young age, everything was so precious that you'd make. And then if you broke, and obviously I come from a world in which I love preservation

and saving things. So if something got destroyed, it would really affect me or loss. Yes. That's one of the first things that you learn at art school is like, they'll do this kind of little exercise where you draw something for like three hours and then you have to erase it. Oh. Yeah.

That is so. And you don't know that you're going to do that. So I remember the first time that happened in my, you know, one of my drawing classes, I was like, no. I would like to know that. I would like to know that. So I remember the first time that happened in my, you know, one of my drawing classes, I was like, no, I would like to understand what you're trying to teach me, but like, do I really have to do this? Yeah. But, you know, those kinds of exercises then help you for even, I think of that one often, you know, at Bodhi where we do an embroidery layout and you're like, oh my gosh, or it's finished. And someone did it by hand,

or they laid out all the buttons for something. And you're like, oh, you have to un-pick all that. And it's like, but you're gonna make it better. And totally, it's the same idea of painting over a painting. Yep. It's like, it's heart wrenching, but you know, 100%. Moving on to starting bootyode. Men's Wear. I love this.

What made you want to start Bode with menswear? Okay, so when I was a kid, I didn't necessarily know that I wanted to be a fashion designer. I think I just knew that I wanted to work in fashion. I have a video of me from high school saying I wanted to be a stylist. I think I just knew that this was like the industry. I wanted to work in fashion. I have a video of me from high school saying, I wanted to be a stylist. You know, I think I just knew that this was like the industry. I wanted to work in. But by the time I was in college, I really felt like more challenged designing for someone outside of myself. I had a professor that tasked us with doing a menswear project. He truly was

the first one to be like, you're actually really good at this. It's like, come so naturally to you. Like maybe this should be your track. And it made sense. Once it had kind of come to fruition, it definitely made sense. I loved, you know, dressing my high school boyfriend, making clothes for everybody that wasn't necessarily me because to make something for myself felt really simple, and I wasn't as interested.

I was definitely more interested in making for the other, whether it was a specific character or a guy. Personally, I'm super, I love masculine clothing silhouettes. I prefer them most of the time. I just, I like the boxier fit. I like maybe even the oversized, whatever. Personally, are you more drawn to masculine or feminine silhouettes or just both in whatever you like?

I was intrigued by doing workwear silhouettes, traditionally men's workwear silhouettes, because I wanted something that felt like extremely timeless. I mean, the whole launch of Bodhi or, you know, why I started it was to create a line of clothing that you could technically like, or essentially take a picture of somebody and not know what time period they were from. Yes. Whereas it's definitely a lot harder to do that with women's silhouettes. Yep. And that was interesting to me that with men's where you could really hone in on this idea of like a timeless silhouette or timeless narrative and then have clothes that would last

forever or that people would want to wear forever. I'm curious though what you think, what makes something timeless? It's different for everybody. Yeah. But for me, it starts from the material. We use like natural materials, you know, whether it's cotton, linen, or wool, and a lot of times, you know, those are traceable. There's definitely a sustainability component to it, but also, you know when something is made of a certain material, or has a certain finish to it, like what era it's from,

or when it could have begun to be from. That doesn't mean that we don't use something like with like visco, serrions, we definitely have that in our collections, but I'd say the foundation of our brand is natural materials. And that's why, you know, doing certain projects with certain suppliers and supply chains have been like so important to us because after all, we are aiming at the preservation of craft but also prolonging the life cycle of our clothes. And I think that's easier to do and to wrap your head around when you're dealing with natural materials. Are you ever sort of like, I want to do something futuristic? Do you ever have like a

moment where you're like, wait a minute. No, I want to do, I want to do something like, does that ever cross your mind or are you, because I'm, I'm similar to you where I love vintage. I love all, you know, all things sort of nostalgic and all things that have history. That's personally what I'm attracted to too. But then every once in a while I'll have like a weird fit where like I want to dress like I'm in Mad Max or something and I like don't know why and I want to look like I'm an alien or something. So I'm curious if you ever have that sort of like this like creative outburst where you like hold on, I want to break this whole mold or do you feel like you're you're in this world and you're so happy in this world that you're never like restless.

I don't think I really venture outside of it. No, but that's like good. It's hard to tell because I feel like when I talk to my husband about this sometimes he's like, I love it, like I never saw that coming in the collection. Like, you know, I love the way you make the, but I think the key is that that especially with having a brand, you're put in a box not by yourself,

it's by the perception of the people that are the two are. Absolutely. So it's really interesting that they might say, oh, that's so bodied, but then, like the trousers you're wearing are plain cashmere polo. Is that bodied still? Like how do we get people to feel that like all of these different worlds fall into the body world?

And you can do it as a brand. I don't think you're beholden to like a specific kind of vision. Do you ever feel pressure from, you know, the fans of your brand to sort of create in a certain way? Do you, do you experience that or do you feel like you just? No, of course. So you have to remember anybody who makes things and we tell ourselves us all the time because we get comments not just from customers,

but like from stores and buyers. Oh, yeah. Press. And if they knew what was best for your brand, then it just doesn't logically make sense. Because when I launched BOTY, these shirts made from these textiles and these silhouettes and this heavyweight textile or, you know, the lace shirts, for example, none of that I was told would succeed. So and yet it did.

And you have to remember that, or I guess you have to trust your own instincts and trust your own gut on that. Because it's really easy to be like, oh gosh, this person has worked at this like incredible historic department store for 15 years. And they worked here like 20 years before that. And it's really tempting to listen to those people

and to your top client who, you know, where's the clothes so well or, you know, has 80 pieces of booty. But at the end of the day, they're buying it because you made those decisions and you started that vision. So you have to take it with, you know, with a grain of salt. Do you wear only your own clothes? Like, because honestly, I would, if I was you, if I knew how to make clothes,

I would not wear, I would just make what I want to wear. Do you, do you wear your own clothes? I do wear my own clothes, but I wear a lot of vintage. I'm not necessarily buying all of these to wear though. I am also buying limb for inspiration, but I'd say on any day, I mean, I try to wear a body every day too, because I think it's really important.

Totally. And even, I tell our employees to, it's not just because I love seeing you in the clothes, but we learned so much about the clothes. Yes. Like, oh gosh, I love the red lining on the inside of our shoes. It definitely comes off on your socks,

and like, who's the noise I had? And it was like, you know, because to me, I'm like, doesn't annoy me because I love the lining. You know, but you learned so much about wearing the clothes. And I think it's the best way, especially when you're starting out, it was the, I think it was the most organic way for me to grow my business.

And it was how I got really organic press and totally from day one, you know, from wearing my own clothes. How do you feel when you see people wearing the clothes? I mean, customers, but also celebrities too. That would be kind of interesting to see like what celebrities, although celebrities aren't special, they're also just like the regular customers

of fuck celebrities. You got what I'm saying. Yeah, how does it feel to see people wearing the clothes? Oh, it's the best. I mean, I truly think it justifies what you're doing. Totally. More than even like winning a competition or an award, running into people wearing your clothes,

especially not in your neighborhood. Oh, yeah. It was one thing to, we opened a store on Hester Street in like, so downtown New York, you know, you might go over to this coffee shop and you see a guy and then you might, or if like, I recognize the client, that's super inspiring, but it's when you're like driving on a random street in a day of pain. Oh, I can't even imagine. And like, there's a guy in a coffee shop wearing a shirt.

It's bizarre. You know, it's amazing. Yeah. Especially, I think, a turning point for like, the celebrity thing for me was You know when I first started the only way for people to really get the clothes We're like Bodhi like through our office, right? Or maybe through like a handful of stores maybe there were like eight stores and now that there's so many stores We're kind of like wait, so they didn't even go through like the press office like this person just like shopped it You know, yeah, and that makes you feel really good because people are actually buying it, especially when even when you're event dressing, you could easily just ask for a press piece or a loan. But if you're event dressing for red carpet and you actually bought it from a random store

and who knows where, that's pretty incredible because it means that they've truly fallen in love with the clothes. So you have a lot of vintage, you're very much a vintage collector. Do you feel like you get your inspiration? I mean, I'm assuming you get it from everywhere, but would you say like sort of treasure hunting

and finding these antiques is the main source of your inspiration? Or would you say you also are like watching the movies and reading the magazines? Like, are you like going back in time across the board or are you just more into the antique side of things? Like I know, I guess my question is, are you sort of in this world fully,

like it's your entertainment? It's your, because I know some people sort of fully dedicate themselves to sort of their aesthetic or their theme. Like are you- Are you- Yes, yes, I'm curious if that's like, if you know the Spider-Man movie comes out like,

is that a little bit too, I can't see that. Yeah. Can't see that's like, if you know the Spider-Man movie comes out like, is that a little bit too? I can't see that. Can't see that not not. You know what I mean? Definitely not. No, I, I, you know, my design practice is object-based like for sure, you know, 10 from tangible product. But I, I love older movies.

You know, that was one thing that really shocked me after doing some student crit teaks at a couple of colleges was I actually feel like that is not as much in, I don't even want to say in trend, but when I was in school, it was normal and encouraged to look back at history, but like primary resources. So whether it was books or movies or newspapers or going to exhibitions or working with catalogs. And this was the first time that I had ever done like senior crits where people weren't necessarily doing that. Which I thought was kind of a shame

because I learned so much about my place in the world and who I am based on the history, not just like my own family history, my personal history, but by the histories of others and the cultures of others. So going into designing a collection, I have the objects themselves that are super important to the inspiration process, but it's also the narrative. So it's interviewing somebody, usually it's somebody who I can physically interview. Sometimes it has been, you know, a family narrative that I'm referencing. But so that's like the intangible concept behind it or the overarching concept. And then I pull in all of these artifacts and antiques and objects from another, wow, place. So obviously that sort of creative process that you have to do twice a year, I'm assuming, or even more, because there might be times when maybe you start it and then you're like,

and then you, you know, a lot of work, do you enjoy the fashion industry? Like obviously I feel like there's, you can love fashion and hate the industry. I'm curious how you feel about the industry. And maybe you have mixed feelings as we do about most things in life. But, you know, what's your sort of feeling about the industry itself? I mean, we definitely sit within the fashion industry. We show on the Paris calendar. But but I mean, that being said, we are definitely not as much of a capital F fashion brand as a lot of brands that we might like sit with in Bergedorf Goodman. You know, when I launched Brody, it was virtually unheard of that you could sell one of a kind product on like an essence or a match is or that didn't exist. You know, I, you know, there were definitely brands who had done it,

who had made product from antique materials, but it wasn't in the way in which we were doing it. I made the choice to be a part of the industry. You like, yeah, I made the choice. I wanted to show on Paris Fashion Calendar, you know, from starting on the New York Fashion Calendar. I wanted to sell on Paris Fashion Calendar, from starting on the New York Fashion Calendar, I wanted to sell in these stores, because I loved that I could have dreamt that I was gonna be selling in like,

sacks and burgdorf, as a kid and Barney is and then that we actually made it happen. So that's like a big part of who I am, you know, is like hitting those goals. Absolutely. I also think what's so even more sort of satisfying about it, I can imagine is you didn't do what anyone else was doing.

Touching upon what we talked about earlier with like taking advice from other people, when I launched, I remember this extremely important menswear guy coming to my studio. And he was like, there's no way these shirts are gonna sell, they're too heavy, you know, cause I was making clothes out of, oh, I still do.

Domestic textiles. So it's like tablecloths and yep, and they're boxy and they, you know, because I was making clothes out of, oh, I still do. Domestic textiles. So it's like tablecloths and yep, and they're boxy and they, you know, they drape as a certain way and they're short and they're crottony. It's like, there's not a customer for that. Right. And they're totally is. And it's like, I, you know, that's an instance in which like, you can't always listen to people because they just didn't know it yet. Like, it wasn't a part of what they had ever sold before. So of course, they couldn't imagine selling it. I don't know if you can succeed and bring something new to the table,

unless you kind of flip off literally everyone who's succeeded before who comes to you and says You got to do it like this like I don't think you can listen to anyone because I think the second you start Kind of listening to everyone then you disappear Into the abyss of what's already been done in a way of course, and it's just but it's so hard like so hard. It's almost like the hardest test of, you know, like staying true to what you want to be creating. It's why I think it's so hard. Right. And what voyd are you trying to fill?

You know, I think it's a really important question to ask. You know, I felt that it was really hard for guys to buy clothing, especially to buy vintage clothing and have it fit them or even last certain amount of time. And that was another impetus for launching the brand was filling this void of like, I have guy friends that loved wearing vintage, but it was like, yeah. And definitely a lot harder to shop vintage as a male. And so, you know, filling a place in the market was, you know, it was a really good exercise to thinking like, how could I create a successful business?

Like does this already exist, you know, in the market? I'm curious to hear your thoughts about, you know, sort of the internet's impact on the industry as a whole. I mean, there's this whole new phenomenon about like no outfit repeating. Like, nobody outfit repeats on social media. And that's the complete opposite of your ethos, you know what I mean? But do people like exclaim that? Like, I don't read all sorts. Or, you know what? To be honest, no.

It's like a sign of, okay, okay. It's not a people, I'm well, listen, it's like a social role or something. Yeah, it's become, I mean, there's a lot of people now that are sort of like completely going backwards and like rejecting it. But even, you know, growing up in the age of social media as I did, it started when I was like 14 and all the sudden, the girls that were all like

were posting on Instagram or were like going to the dance and it's like, I can't wear that because I've already worn that. And it was something that sort of stemmed from social media somehow. I don't know, maybe it's like seeing celebrities constantly in a new outfit, never in the same outfit. And then my generation was like, okay. So now, you know, a lot of us are unlearning it. Me too. I think like one way for me to say how I've experienced that

is with like event dressing. Yes, I noticed that. It's a sad thing. like you can't wear, I mean, you can, you can, but you don't traditionally wear the same dress unless it's like years apart, you know, to events. If you're gonna do red carpet and if you're gonna do, if you're not doing red carpet, you can wear whatever,

you know, we're the same dress you wore to the other one. But celebrities get weird sometimes because you're like, I'm not wearing that because she wore that and then people would be like, for sure. That's that's kind of what I've thought of, like, you know, it's, which I do get because then it's like everybody's making a collage on Instagram, like who wear better and then it's a nightmare.

Well, some people do it purposefully too. Yes, because they do the who wear it, but and they know they'll do the who wear it better. Which is kind of fun. And if they know that they're the who wore it, but in they know they'll do the who wore it better. Which is kind of fun. And if they know that they're going to wear it better, it's all, but you have, yeah, that's yeah, caddy. That's the women's wear world that like I'm not so into. Yeah, it is, I mean, it's crazy because like a men's are like men's clients, you know,

we have, we dress a lot of people for their weddings. Those guys are wearing their wedding suits like every event after their wedding forever. Yeah. And I mean, even with like Aaron, like he wears his wedding tucks all the time, you know? And like, that's totally normal. But I think that's more of like a basic tucks.

So I think it's like if you have like a perfect black dress, maybe you can get away with it. But yeah, it's that's more of like a basic talk. So I think it's like if you have like a perfect black dress Maybe you can get away with it But yeah, it's an interesting concept and you're right. I'm sure social media has only like fueled that I guess I yeah, I guess I don't post enough on like my personal Instagram to really even think about Did I wear that? Yeah, but it goes through my head for events. You know, I passed you in the Met Gala line and I was like, I should say so.

No, wait, you were there. Oh yeah, because I did red carpet. And then I was like, oh man, she's like literally in interviews. And I was like, I'll see her in a little bit. To be honest, I get, I'm so blacked out in that setting. I'm like, I'm not sure. Like I'm just like full robot mode. Right. Who knows how

pleasant that would have been. I think I'm in a much more pleasant state of mind here. You also always forget that not of even of course your interviews are being filmed, but like everybody on the carpet is being filmed about to go on the carpet also. Oh, well that was new. Oh. That's never so they decided to move the camera from the top of the steps to the bottom. So everyone's in the back being filmed. Caught some drama. Yeah, yeah.

Well, what's next for you? What's next for you? What are you excited about? I'm really excited for women's wear. That's pretty exciting to me. Huge. Because we're gonna learn so much like this first season, you know, some things might like fail terribly or some things might sell out

really quickly that like they didn't expect. And that's always really exciting because I worked retail for so long like throughout college and after college and that learning experience is so valuable to a brand. And I'm excited to see what happens there. It's going to be huge. And I mean, do you think designing for women's wear is now designing for you? It's probably more so the women in my family. It's like my mom and her sisters when they were young.

At least that's what this last collection was. And I think that's the entire identity of the Bodhi woman is my mom and her sisters. I love that. I'm going to be wearing all of it. Good, I can't wait. Thank you for coming in and flying here for me. I mean like... Oh my gosh, of course. I'm honored. Of course, I'm honored.