It's a good thing that English is Stina Sayre's second language. In Swedish, the word "cool" has a lot more interesting meanings than it does in English. In America, they think that being cool has only to do with being 16 and wearing low-cut jeans that show high rising thongs. But because Stina is from Sweden and a clothing and accessory designer, she doesn't get hung up on such narrow-minded stereotypes that are ill suited and demeaning for any sane woman with a sense of style, who happens to be over the age of thirty-five.

Stina is a former Swedish National Windsurfing champion. Her design career started then and there, in the freezing cold water. Riding the wind and the waves in the fjords was inspiration to create cool-looking designs in unexpected fabrics that she wanted for herself. Like using a sport fabric for an evening gown or seat belt webbing for a handbag. Soon after, other adventurous mermaids clamored for their own!

Solving technical problems in garment construction and breaking the rules in clothing design are Stina's driving forces. No wonder she got excited when she heard a NPR documentary about the guy who invented the crash test dummy and the fact that the Swedes invented the seatbelt. To honor these inventors, she ripped a seat belt out of her old Volvo and made a hat out of it! It didn't work very well-too tall, too weird. But after the ghost of the crash test dummy guy visited her that night, warning her not to drive her Volvo until she replaced the seat belt, he whispered one last thing into her ear. "Bags".

And the hat? It only comes out on Halloween.

Stina Sayre dresses and equips her family on the Island of Martha's Vineyard.

Visit us at our new design and show room

stina sayre design

13 Beach St

(Across the street from The Black Dog Taverns front door)

Vineyard Haven, MA 02568

508-560-1011