Deema Abi-Chahine: These 5 Things
Interview + Photography by Luke Alland, using Leica's Q2 Reporter.
"There are some garments and clothes that just shouldn't have been made in the first place. But the ones that have integrity, have life, have something about them, either you fix that one, refresh that one, give that one a new lease of life or if it's very special, you can take the pattern from it, take inspiration from it, take bits of it and make it your own."
Camden born British-Lebanese shirtmaker Deema Abi-Chahine, is synonymous with the word style. With fits ranging from '40s jackets to '70s shirts. She seems to be able to travel through time using her wardrobe to give glimpses into certain parts of the past.
We sat down with her over a coffee to talk about all things vintage, and her 5 things...
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Thing 1: Zenith El Primero Chronograph Automatic
Luke Alland: The first thing we shot today was the watch. It wasn't originally yours, was it?
Deema Abi-Chahine: "Yeah it was my dad's. He loves watches and as I was growing up, we didn't really have much in common. Naturally though, I found that clothing was a good common ground because he likes to dress well and look good, with watches being a big part of that. I'd always found this one in his collection beautiful and had mentioned it once or twice.
"Then, for my 23rd birthday, he came to London and we went out to dinner with my mum. He said he just needed to go and grab something from the car and he ran out. He came back into the restaurant with his head hung low, so we asked if everything was alright and he said, "I was planning on putting on that watch that you love and then come back to the table to see if you'd notice it before giving it to you, but I dropped and I broke it." And still, it was the nicest birthday present."
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