Words and Photos by Donna Borges
Hanna Borges, the brains behind the punk-inspired DIY brand BAD LUCK, can be found where music and fashion meet. This year, she celebrates five years of her brand with a show at Oblivion on April 24th.
Where do you find inspiration?
I find inspiration in my daily life. Looking back on my designs from the past year, I’ve been heavily inspired by the photos in my phone. To my audience, it might just look like an image screen-printed on a shirt, but to me, it’s a memory and I like that I can look back on my designs and remember a specific point in time.
Sometimes the inspiration just finds me, for example, the inspiration for my latest piece, the mary tee, came when I was reading a book and it said that it’s bad luck when your rosary breaks because it means someone is mad at you. Reading this line shocked me because not even a month earlier the rosary I was gifted for my first communion broke sitting untouched on my dresser, so obviously I had to put it on a shirt.
Above all, my biggest inspiration is my cat Amber. She’s on two designs and probably many more in the future; I love her.
How do you feel music, art, and fashion intersect in your creative process?
I consume so much music, art, and fashion that I feel like anything I make is just an amalgamation of all these things in my brain. I grew up going to diy garage rock and punk shows and the imperfection of playing something live with maybe not the best equipment or acoustics has allowed me to embrace the rough edges and imperfections in my own work.
You’ve been partnered with Sluttony for a while now, designing and making custom handmade merch. How has it been working alongside a band? Is this something you see yourself doing more of?
It’s been amazing working with Sluttony! I couldn’t have asked for a better band to be my first partnership. I feel like our styles already overlap so it’s been really easy to tie in Sluttony’s vibe with BAD LUCK’s motifs. I’m actually working on a new design for them right now, so keep an eye out for it this March!
I would love to do this for other bands! Like a limited edition run with other bands would be really cool.
Since you’ve been building BAD LUCK for 5 years now, what is your advice to other artists who want to start their own brand but maybe don’t know where to start?
My advice to other artists is you’ll never know what it can be if you don’t start! If you don’t have a lot of funds to start, don’t let it deter you!
I started BAD LUCK using very cost effective methods, so you don’t need fancy or expensive tools to make great art. Go to secondhand craft stores, they have so much good stuff and could even inspire you to try something new.
I’d also recommend selling at markets to get your name out there. Vending at local shows and markets has helped BAD LUCK grow so much and it’s beneficial to see customer’s reactions and feedback.
What are your hopes for the next 5 years of BAD LUCK?
My hope for BAD LUCK is to keep growing and experiment with new techniques–maybe try to make some cut-and-sew pieces. I’d love to collab with more bands, brands, or artists and throw more shows. My most ambitious goal is to have a storefront for BAD LUCK, so fingers crossed this can become a reality in the next five years!
Check out BAD LUCK’s 5th birthday drop of 50 one-of-a-kind pieces; available first at our show this Friday, April 24th! Click here for tickets.
