About the founder

Sæi was founded and is run by me, Ragnheiður Katla Geirsdóttir, often called Ragga Katla. I grew up in a sort of garment-making workshop and started designing clothes at a very young age, but soon gravitated toward costume design and later studied fine art in Los Angeles before finding my place in fashion design there. In the big city, I had access to an almost endless selection of fabrics and everything related to garment-making, all within 20 minutes of my home. It was like walking into a candy store, and the whole world opened up.

When I was just starting out in fashion design and began visiting factories in the city, I was shocked by the conditions in many of them. It was quite obvious that working conditions were inhumane and that pollution and waste were rampant. This was before the wave of awareness that came later. So I started gathering information early on and keeping records of suppliers offering more sustainable materials. At the time, there was only one well-known designer who specialized in sustainability, but today there are many more, and the range of quality materials has grown considerably.

After a long time out west, I began to long for home, but knew that moving back would mean I could no longer envision a conventional career in fashion design here in Iceland. In 2018, however, I decided it was time to move home. Since then, I’ve taken on a variety of jobs and, through my work with the Icelandic Fashion Designers Association, gained insight into the needs and challenges of Icelandic designers. It became clear to me that one important part of fostering a supportive environment for fashion designers is ensuring ongoing access to quality materials that inspire creativity. When I realized that others were struggling, as I was, to find better materials, I decided to take on this project. That’s how I founded Sæi.

Sæi isn’t intended solely for working designers; it’s also founded on the belief that if more people take up sewing again and express their creative side, it will positively influence the public’s attitudes toward clothing consumption and help strengthen the growing awareness movement.

I can think of no better feeling than starting, working on, and completing a project such as a garment from beginning to end, or changing and improving something to give new life to an item that would otherwise have ended up in the trash. With Sæi, I hope more people can enjoy that experience.