I remember with great nostalgia the artistic moments staged by my sister and I as children and the perseverance with which we "worked" to make our costumes perfect. First, we would turn to our grandmother's closet full of "treasures", where they rested, meticulously arranged, filled with lavender sachets and scented soaps (sometimes even the repellent mothballs or bouquets of dried wormwood), various fabrics (of very good quality and not only, because it was not easy to acquire fabrics in those days). Of course, if we were caught in the act, the situation was not very comfortable.

But since we had acquired the ability to touch a sensitive chord, we were still allowed to play with a certain burgundy material (which we found on all the blankets in the house, which we found slippery, cold and, most importantly, very… satisfying. We would gather it at the waist, tie it with a cord, put various other clothes underneath and try to achieve the desired result: a very wide skirt, from which only the tip of the "cords" would protrude (necessarily a triangle-shaped effect. Exactly like in the (black and white) drawings in our storybooks, in which the princesses were graceful, with wasp waists, from which waves of silk and "spinning" ruffles seemed to spring out (a mandatory condition for princess dresses), with long hair flowing down the back in waves, or tied in a ponytail braided. We didn't quite get the perfect dress, but we didn't give up for a few good years, exactly those that we will never forget. And I never stopped dreaming that I would manage to have, at least for my little girls, a dress that would make their eyes sparkle with emotion and immense happiness.

Around the age of two, my eldest daughter began to show a special interest in "dressing up" in certain "pimpesă" dresses, including around the house. From her height of 75 cm, she would try to open a massive drawer full of colorful scarves, stuff them into the elastic of her stockings and parade around the house, dragging the airy and uneven train behind her and singing enthusiastically, "Hai suuuuuus, înt-o vita de uuuuuus!" (Winnie the Pooh), like an anthem of all cartoons, including "pimpesă". Then, from time to time, she would come into possession of a dress from a famous brand, which gave her the status of a fairy tale character (the faces, officially, although the resemblance to the respective character in the cartoon was vague), temporarily, to be sure, either because she was disappointed by the poor appearance, or because it only lasted one wearing. For the important events in our lives, however, I made sure to always dress them in dresses that made them feel special, appropriate for the occasion: long and ample, extremely swirling or short, classic, made of soft velvet and lace or fine handkerchief, carefully embroidered.

And as the wheel turns, when both of our little girls passed the age of their first steps and, especially since the youngest became a wonderful partner for show play, my closets began to be raided, and their dresses, never wide enough, airy enough, "swirling" enough or colorful enough.

It took me a while to realize how hard it is to find clothes that are suitable for the special occasions in our lives, all the occasions, and not just for girls. And the moment that convinced me that I had to try to change something was a children's party with about 3 little Cinderellas, 5 Snow Whites and 4 Tinkerbells, each more ragged than the other, with no connection to the original characters. If the animator didn't shout at them (in turn, a very sad, apathetic and faded Rapunzel), you would hardly have realized why they were dressed like that?! Of course, little girls want to be princesses, to play princesses, to feel like princesses, but it's not easy to achieve this dream.

At first shy, then more and more determined, I started thinking about a dress for my little girls to play in the house or yard, a magical, real princess dress. A dress that they could wear to enter an enchanted world, without resembling a specific character. Obligatory long and wide! The shoe should only be visible when they walk. It should not be loaded with unnecessary glitter (initially it didn't have any at all, until the little girl pointed it out to me), it should not have a bare back, it should be made of decent fabrics (not natural, because of the price, but used generously... in terms of fabric) and, simply... it should be stunningly beautiful.
This is how the first Sipet de Mădef princess dresses were born, intended for play and named as such: Play Dress or Color Longing. In a gorgeous December, our first (play) models became the most beautiful outfits for certain celebrations, parties, weddings and baptisms. Or breathtaking gifts. Thus, Sapphire Sparkle, Lilac Smile, Emerald Princess, Stânjenel Princess, Miss Peruzea, and Fire Princess entered the homes of our friends, moving beyond words the little girls who discovered them in the story-filled bag. I cried reading the wonderful messages of gratitude from our new friends, written after the little girls fell asleep with the dress next to them or hanging on the closet door next to the bed, necessarily in the immediate vicinity. When many mothers told me that the dresses from Sipet de sidef are the ones they wanted every day of their own childhood, when I know how much joy it brings to have a wish fulfilled by your beloved little man, when I see how many mothers are on the same wavelength as me and refuse to conform to imported standards, with little girls dressed up, made up, lipsticked and nail polish applied, shod in high heels and pushed to useless castings, I can only hope, including for a better world for our children. We are not many, but we can become. The circle is widening and I can only be grateful for that.