Interview With The Traveling Best-Friend Duo We're Obsessed With
Interview Photos by Joey Cupelli
We met up with ultra-chic fashion influencers (and best friends) Sania Claus Demina and Hanna Stefansson on Greene Street to chat about the evolution of their friendship–including the ever-growing number of amazing trips they've embarked on together–as well as the rocket-like trajectory each of their sites have taken since they started their blogs.
Read on to learn about their incredible styles, beauty routines, travel and blogging advice, and more!
We’re lovin’ your looks, what are you both wearing?
Hanna: Thanks! I'm wearing a long, beige denim jacket and A-lined dress, both by COS, shoes from Henry Kole, a bag from Jerome Dreyfuss and my favourite sunglasses from Ahlem.
Sania: Thank you so much!! I'm wearing a jacket from COS (obsessed with it!), super old trousers by Lindex my super fun shoes are by Alice Olivia and the bag is a bargain from Monki.
How would you both describe your styles?
Hanna: I think my style is kind of sophisticated, Scandinavian, colorful and fun. At least that's what I aim for. I once heard my style is the perfect mix between cute and sexy - I like that description as well.
Sania: I really like to mix high-street with high-end, it makes any look more personal. I often hear that my style is very 'international' - whatever that means? I like the sound of it though, haha! My wardrobe is dominated by shirts, knits, good trousers, lots of off-shoulder pieces, flare-arm sleeves and dreamy dresses. Most frequent colours: black, white, blue, pink, grey and dark green. I'm also a big fan of fun shoes!
Are There Any Trends You’re Currently Obsessed With, Or That You See Making A Major Comeback?
Hanna: I try not to think too much about trends, even if I know they influence me and what I choose to wear. If vintage Levi's 501 jeans count as a trend, I can easily say I'm obsessed with that one. They just go with everything and give the perfect mix of sexy and retro in a classy way.
Sania: Isn't it awesome when something you've always loved becomes a trend? For me thats definitely the off-shoulder trend at the moment. SO many amazing options - I'm stocking up! Also always been obsessed with pink, and it's everywhere this season.
How Did You Guys Meet And How Would You Describe Your Friendship?
Hanna: Feels like me and Sania have been friends since forever, but we actually first met one year ago while visiting a mutual friend of us, Babba, that lives in NYC. We started laughing in the Uber to the airport, and then we just never stopped. Last year we did seven trips together. Sania is so much fun, I'm so lucky to have found a freelance colleague and great friend.
Sania: It's a bit crazy, we've known each other for just a little more than a year and already traveled 9 times together (New York twice, Calpe, Berlin, Copenhagen, Barcelona, London, Aarhus and Bali!) awesome start of a truly inspiring friendship full of laughing. I love how much we laugh together. I'm pretty sure I'll live a few extra years thanks to Hanna, haha!
How was your New York trip?
Hanna: Perfect as always. This city is impeccable. And our friend Babba is the perfect host. We had plenty of breakfasts, workouts, fancy dinners, a private Kygo concert and even took a helicopter (!) to the Hamptons for the weekend. Magic.
Sania: Amazing, so many surreal moments in just one week!
You guys travel together a lot, what is your all-time favorite trip so far? Any places there that someone visiting needs to go to?
Hanna: Bali! Without any doubts. We both had a couple of unbooked weeks this winter and decided to go work in sunny Bali instead of cold Sweden. We worked during mornings and evenings, and enjoyed the sun and the beautiful surroundings during daytime. Uluwatu was my favourite.
Sania: What she said! Bali was breathtaking and such a special trip in so many ways. You'll find all our best tips on our blogs ;-)
Do you have any travel advice for someone looking to travel abroad?
Hanna: Hahaha. Don't ask Sania about packing. Maybe not me either. Both of us are really bad at packing luggage because we want to bring so much. But I've been getting better with packing my hand luggage, actually did a post about it before our Bali trip.
Sania: Hanna taught me with our trip to Bali that planning by looking through geotags on Instagram is a very smart way of avoiding tourist traps! To me it's very important to pack a portable steamer, as I hate it when clothes get wrinkles from laying around a suitcase.
What are your stories?
Hanna: I started blogging in 2008 when me and my boyfriend at the time moved to south of France. At first it was just a travel diary for family and friends, but then it became more of a fashion blog over time. I could never have imagined then that seven years later I would quit my job as a Marketing Manager at Uber to work with the blog full time. Crazy. And so much fun. I have no idea what future will bring, I truly believe in carpe diem (no joke) and right now I really enjoy this type of job. I would love to work more on creative direction and within fashion or lifestyle brands that I like.
Sania: I started my blog in 2009 because I couldn't find any website or book that would explain what fashion was. I knew absolutely nothing about the whole industry and world until only a few years ago. The lack of 'fashion for dummies' information was very frustrating so I started to do research and make my own short articles. Then got caught up in the evolution of fashion blogs which lead to my first outfit posts. In 2010 I received The Best Everyday Chicly Dressed Person of the Year by the magazine CHIC, and started doing a bit of work with them. In 2012, Martina Bonnier, editor in chief and fashion director of Damernas Värld and DV Mode (Scandinavia's largest fashion magazine) invited me in to her world of fashion, which was the real beginning of my career as a fashion stylist, editor and blogger. I'm also super excited to work as a fashion editor for The Edit here on Bloglovin!! All I know about the future is that absolutely anything can happen.
What are your morning beauty routines like? Any products you can’t live without?
Hanna: I drink a warm glass water with fresh squeezed lemon, wash my face, use a toner, day cream and primer. I've been using Kiehl's for a long time, but I just started using Glossier's products. Aesop is also an old favourite. I like to change every three months, heard that's good. During the Summertime, I just put on some mascara, cream rouge, eyebrow gel, lip balm and spray on some of my Summer scent – Pulp from Byredo.
Sania: I actually wrote a blog post about it, here. Products I can't live without: The Sensai 38° Volumising mascara and my Active Moist face cream by Dermalogica.
What song or album do you have on repeat right now?
Hanna: Common by Alicia Keys.
Sania: Keep It Close to Me - Yumi Zouma. Really loving the Discover Weekly feature on Spotify, they somehow magically always manage to put together great playlists that match my taste every week!
What advice would you give to an up-and-coming blogger?
Hanna: Do your own thing. // Sania: Hard work pays off!
Your photos are amazing! How do you both shoot and edit them?
Hanna: We help each other a lot with photos. I use a Canon 70D with a fixed 30mm lens from Sigma and edit colors and light in Photoshop.
Sania: Thank you!! I shoot most of my content with 28mm lens as I'm a shortie who likes a wide angle, haha! It's great that me and Hanna can help each other out with photos; so much craziness going on when we shoot = more fun memories together. I edit everything in Photoshop, just playing a bit with lights and colours can take a shot very far.
