D.O.N good design

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Designer Alejandro Ordoñez of the House of D.O.N

On the heels of Paris Fashion Week, designer Alejandro Ordoñez carefully arranges some handcrafted shoes he is going to showcase during the last days of Autumn in the French capital. Radiant from hat to glossy toes, at the opportunity to present his work to potential buyers and ‘fashionistas,’ Ordoñez was asked to come to one of the world’s most coveted fashion fairs on the referral of a friend, German Princess Elna-Margret zu Bentheim.

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Born in Bogotá, Alejandro Ordoñez, now in his late twenties, grew up surrounded by engineers and was encouraged by his parents to follow in the footsteps of tradition. He did. But not exactly, what they were expecting. An opportunity arose to study Mechanical Engineering away from Colombia at the Technical University of Dresden, and Ordoñez seized the opportunity, enrolling himself first at the Goethe Institute, in the same Saxon city, in order to be able to communicate with those, who despite recent unification with the West, still lived on the “other side.”

Ordoñez was set to become a rocket scientist when he was granted an internship with the European Space Agency (ESA) designing specialty bolts used in particle acceleration. But engineering as a career didn’t seem on the cards, even though he was fascinated by the potential of making things materialize. “I am always trying to see what I want to see” states Ordoñez.

It was in Moscow, during a trip to visit his sister, that the idea of fashion design came up in a conversation. Ordoñez had been designing pumps for espresso machines, but the idea of shoes and clothes, so far had escaped him. “It was very random,” states the artist who crafts all his leather shoes in a workshop known as House of D.O.N.

Virtual and based around word-of-mouth, Ordoñez is energetic when describing his first steps in the world of fashion. Wanting to stay in Germany, he wrapped up courses in mechanical engineering, in order to enroll at the Esmod Berlin International University of Art for Fashion. It was there, that “rage” became a close friend and driving influence. “Teachers wanted explosions of art in fashion. They weren’t interested if someone was actually going to wear it,” he laughs.

Ordoñez spent a total of nine years in Germany, in which he was “absolutely happy” studying and designing.

He landed another internship, this time with New York-based designer Brian Reyes. Having gotten his start at Oscar de la Renta in 2006, Reyes quickly became one of the names to watch on New York’s catwalks. But the Reyes moment fizzled when the rising designer went broke and was forced to stop all production. Ordoñez then moved to Jill Stuart, where “he learned the sellable aspect” of the competitive industry.

It was the helping hand of German royalty though, that helped seal Ordoñez’s immediate future. As the owner of the fabrics company Unrath und Strano, Princess Elna Margret put Ordoñez to work where he learned hands-on techniques which would help him set up in Colombia and build his own name and brand.

Sarcastic at the status-driven demeanour of his countrymen, who address each other as noblemen – or “don ” – the trilingual designer got the ‘House of D.O.N’ off its feet with shoes and tailored outfits for appointment-only clients. Not wanting to project himself too far from his base, nor too seriously in an industry known for egos, Alejandro takes pride in the fact that every item of clothing, especially his handcrafted shoes, originate from a personal approach to both colour and style.

Ordoñez invests in fine fabrics for his creations, but shies away from pushing clothes in an age of fast fashion and price-only buyers. Hence, his shoes are quickly becoming the House of D.O.N’s signature items, and given the fact, that each pair has a unique “must have” attraction.

As much as it is about crafting high-end fashion, House of D.O.N is about building things of beauty. For the designer it comes down to “construction.” Having accomplished much in his “race against time,” Ordoñez will make headlines in the years to come, because his design sense is grounded in simplicity, and a gentleman’s take on tradition. That would be the Dresden tradition.

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