I no longer recall how I came across Duchess Milianda on Instagram. But when I saw her gorgeous photos of ornate, historic-inspired dresses with beautiful fabrics, I stayed. This week, she granted me the honor of an interview to discuss the story behind her work and passion.
The fashion designer, whose real name is Milena Zientkiewicz, hails from Poland. And, as amazing as it seems, she’s completely self-taught. “I was 14 when my parents moved to a village near my town. They were spending all their time and energy finishing a house they were building.” With no one to keep her company and the internet not working, Milena’s passion was borne of sheer boredom.
“I was very bored, so I tried sewing historical gowns out of old curtains. At that time, I used clothing pegs instead of pins and a very small, almost like a toy, sewing machine I won in a photo contest. I cut out slices of fabrics, put them on me, and sewed together by hand or this awkward sewing machine.” Milena says she always feels weird when people ask her how she got her start because she learned it all on her own. “I had no internet and I just did what I imagined could be a good solution.”
The Style
Milena describes her work as “all feminine styles of Baroque, Rococo, eclectic”. She mentions that her biggest fashion icon is Marie Antoinette. “I love [her] for her style, love of beautiful things, and stubborn character. In her times, it was quite unusual for a queen to provoke with appearance just as Marie did. She didn’t want to follow etiquette and provoked with her stays and different hairstyles that should be a domain of kings’ mistresses.”
Milena notes that most of her inspiration comes from this small section of history. She adds, “I also love empire furniture in Napoleon’s style.” Some of her passion has come from her own travels and firsthand encounters with this era of art. “Antique tapestries and jacquards are very unique testaments to how talented and hard-working people have been in the past. In Edinburgh I came across a tapestry made by Lady Hamilton that was called ‘The Lady and the Unicorn’. It was a very popular motif that has been used commonly throughout centuries.”
Witch-Inspired
For Harry Potter fans, there are even a couple of designs inspired by elements from the Wizarding world. (The Gryffindor common room aesthetics from the films were partially based on these same unicorn tapestries.) Milena considers herself “a good Slytherin, if something like that could exist”. She has created both Slytherin and Gryffindor projects so far, but still has a few more Potter projects up her sleeve. She adds that of her own designs, the Slytherin and Memento Mori styles are her personal favorites. “[They] took me a lot of time to finish, and I like these aesthetics.”
Memento Mori Green 
Memento Mori Red 
The Hunt of the Unicorn (Slytherin) 
Most designs are easier, she says, but on some “I think for months before I’m happy with the effect”.
Blood, Sweat, and Tears
It’s clear that Milena works extremely hard, and the personal rewards are worth it. “When I was an early teenager, my parents were enthusiastic about my passion for sewing dresses. I remember spending all days from morning to evening, rarely eating, working only on my dream historical dresses. I didn’t want to waste a single minute doing anything else and after a few days of crying, shouting and trying to do a perfect dress, I was finally able to present my look to parents. I was very proud and happy to dress how I loved and historical garments and interiors became my obsession at that time.”
But following her passion hasn’t been without its challenges. “Living in a small village made me very lonely, and my only contact with the world was running a small blog with pictures of my outfits. At that time, my self-esteem was devastated by my acne, so even if I’d had an opportunity to be friends with someone, I would probably pass. After finishing school at the age of 19, my parents and environment put very big pressure on me to do something meaningful with life, go study or look for a job. I have never been happy in my life doing anything other than following passion to historical fashion or modeling. My parents wanted me to become independent, so I tried taking different studies. For a few years after I stopped sewing, I felt miserable and depressed.”
A Happy Ending
Fortunately, the story has a happy ending. “I had been in contact only with few people over the internet who lived very far away from me, and I was in a very dark place in my life. As time passed and my loneliness was extending, I made an online friendship with a person who was working as an electrician in Scotland. He also had a very difficult past, and I think he wanted to help me figure out what to do in my life. He moved back from Scotland to Poland to my hometown, and he started his working career in the fashion industry. In a few years, we started sharing pictures via Instagram and launched our own shop, which allows us to focus on things we both love: fashion and antique style of interior design.”
Their next dream is “to dedicate ourselves into restoration of shelters for women suffering from home abuse, orphanages, and homeless people who would like to start a better life.” They’ve both been in the situation of not being able to figure out what to do in life and where the future might lead. So “it will be a very good experience for us to help others as we can”. I sincerely hope this generous dream comes true for them.
Milena’s favorite hashtag is #rococo. And her own Instagram feed is full of American and British historical garment reenactment models. But “mostly I enjoy looking at @corsetry_romance because she looks like a good person”, she adds with a smile. (Having followed her myself for a while, I have to agree!)
Be sure to check out Milena on Instagram for more beautiful photos and videos. And definitely visit her website if you think you might want one of her gorgeous pieces for yourself!
Do you have a special passion or hobby that you’d like to be interviewed about? Leave me a comment below, and we can talk about setting one up!
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