Designer Sofia Holt on her memorable time in Vietnam and her future plans in Sweden
T
he Swedish designer Sofia Holt recently left Vietnam after 7 years in the country. In a recent post on the Facebook page of the Embassy of Sweden in Hanoi, she talks about some of her highlights during her time in Vietnam, impressions, and thoughts about similarities and differences between Sweden and Vietnam, and what she misses the most from Vietnam. The following are excerpts from that article: “It feels cold in Sweden even at +15C, but it’s fantastic to be back and rediscover Swedish wildlife and all the habits I’d forgotten about, meet family, listen and talk Swedish, dust off autumn clothes and sleep with a thick duvet without a noisy AC,” she begins.
36 ScandAsia • November 2021
“I came to Vietnam in 2014 to design furniture and decoration for a company with shops in Saigon and Hanoi. After a while I started to freelance with projects of fashion, illustration, concepts, furniture, and crafted items. On the side, I held creative workshops for adults and last year for the Swedish Embassy on Pippi Långstrump’s 75th anniversary.” Some of her highlights in Vietnam include a concept to bring new life to waste pants from the German fashion brand DAWN, exhibited at Berlin Fashion week 2019. 17 illustrations showing sustainable travel for EXO Travel. A collection with Vietnamese LIBÉ to motivate young women to a balanced lifestyle. Illustration of the VN-ENG bilingual children’s book ‘The Lost Sandal’, and perhaps
