The best way to create a credible fashion line is by working from experience. That doesn’t necessarily mean that you’d have to be deeply experienced in sewing or ironing, but that your design inspirations have to come from aspects of life that you really know well, a culture you are firmly rooted in.

Now, imagine a woman and a man being brought up in Sweden but living in New York, with a background in modelling, blogging, designing and art direction, creating their dream label and—after launching it successfully in the States—moving it to Stockholm to open a beautiful, minimalist studio there. That’s what Totême is, and that’s what I’d see as the epitome of being rooted in the culture you are designing for.

Elin Kling and Karl Lindman’s collection breathes the no-nonsense but cosy attitude of Scandinavian style while always offering an easy possibility to dress up for occasions or meetings. An aspect that very much defines the New York idea of fashion. This collection will easily sustain frequent travelling or long work nights but will never be defined through functionality alone. It’s the display of luxurious quality and effortlessness that comes to mind when laying eyes on a Totême piece for the first time.