Meet: Berry Malinowska
Welcome to the world of Berry (Dominique Malinowska), a vintage fashion muse and magazine publisher, born in Poland and living in London. We get an insight into Berry's '70s inspired life and the story behind her publication "The Disco Mag" - an independent print publication featuring retro and vintage content!
Tell us a little about yourself - who you are, where you’re from and what sets your soul on fire?
My name is Dominique (but I also go by my Instagram nickname, Berry), and I'm an all-around creative, stylist and content creator. I grew up in Poland and moved to London at 17 to study Creative Direction for Fashion with dreams of landing my dream job as a fashion editor at a major fashion magazine. Since then, the city, the people and all the opportunities drew me in, even though my career dreams have entirely shifted. I'm incredibly passionate about many things and constantly have new small obsessions that I can barely keep track of, but the main common factor is my love for vintage and the past, which definitely sets my soul on fire. In a sense, I'm a bit of a professional daydreamer.
WHATS YOUR STAR SIGN?
I'm a libra! Even though I'm not an expert on star signs, I know that libra's can be very indecisive and non-confrontational (I'm genuinely zero drama), and to be fair, that's me 100%. Though I've heard, we're meant to be quite extroverted as well, and that's definitely not something I can say for myself hah. I do love my alone time.
HOW WOULD YOU DESCRIBE YOURSELF IN THREE WORDS?
Funny enough, I can never answer these sorts of questions about myself. But according to one of my closest friends, it would be: hardworking, open & adventurous and thoughtful.
YOU ARE THE "MOTHER" OF THE PUBLICATION, @THEDISCOMAG. TELL US A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE DISCO MAG, AND THE STORY BEHIND IT.
The Disco Mag is a collaborative publication focusing mainly on the era of the 1970s and anything groovy or vintage. Within the magazine, we touch upon fashion, culture, music, photography, DIYs, and basically anything that fits the theme of the '70s. We also focus on nostalgic elements and getting inspired within our offline lives. This is why we focus a lot on interactive content like quizzes, short, fun features, something you'd bond over with your best friend at a sleepover when flipping through the teen publications of the 00s. We simply missed what magazines used to be like when we were younger and decided we had an opportunity to try and replicate this feeling.
I've always loved print and fashion, so I definitely saw myself working for a magazine one day. Maybe partially because, with the rise of social media & blogs, something about magazines still felt a bit old school. And then, during my last year at the London College of Fashion, I had the opportunity to develop a concept for my final major project. Naturally, my first instinct was to create a magazine about the 70s without any expectations whatsoever. So The Disco Mag was born, I collaborated with amazing creatives over a period of 3 months, and the feedback was so positive that with everyone's encouragement, I decided to print 200 copies and see what happens. To my surprise, it actually sold, which is why The Disco Mag exists until this day.
WHO IS YOUR BIGGEST FASHION INSPIRATION?
I'm not sure if I could pick one, but Cher is definitely a strong contender. Her Sonny & Cher outfits were iconic, and I do love a major disco sequin vibe! I'm also really drawn to seventies menswear and tailoring. My friends love to call it "the pimp look", but I just can't help myself when I see a dagger collar and a suit.
YOU'RE A ‘70S STYLE ICON! WHERE DOES YOUR LOVE OF ‘70S FASHION STEM FROM?
I think my dad was the first person to give me hints of the 70's obsession very early on in my life. He's always talked of the 70s, how he was djing in clubs, wearing platform heels and all that shebang. To top it off, we only listened to ABBA CDs on repeat in the car, so my love for the era was guaranteed at this point.
WHAT DRAWS YOU TO THE YOKO MINI, AND HOW WOULD YOU STYLE THIS ICONIC NLB PIECE?
I love the '60s silhouette, it reminded me of something Twiggy would wear, and then the colours give such a dopamine boost! I'd wear it with knee-high boots, maybe a colourful patent moment or brown suede.
SHOP BERRY'S LOOK: Yoko Mini Dress - Sorbet
WHAT ARE YOUR THREE FAVE ACCESSORIES THAT NEVER FAIL TO ELEVATE ANY OUTFIT…
Neck scarf, '70s sunglasses and a chain belt. My holy trio!
FASHION ASIDE, WHO IS YOUR MUSIC MUSE?
I think this might be obvious, but ABBA 100%! Their music never fails to give me a mood boost. If I could only go to ABBA parties, I probably would.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR DOMINIQUE AND @THEDISCOMAG?
This year both will be very much intertwined as we begin to work on our third issue. We had a bit of a hiatus through all the lockdowns due to production issues. Equally, our lives also had undergone significant 360 changes, so we decided to take things slow. After two issues which we've done independently, we decided to let go of the full creative control and focus more on being a collaborative publication where we give space to our talented contributors to share their work with our international community. We're still keeping the theme hush hush while we develop the full brief, but as a small hint, expect more psychedelic vibes.
Follow Berry's Journey.
