Vika Gazinskaya was born and raised in Moscow. After studying Fashion Design at university in the Russian capital she spent several years working as a Stylist at L’Officiel Russia. She presented her first collection in 2007 after winning Russian Silhouette; a Russian fashion design contest. An incident from her childhood perfectly sums up her designs which verge on the fantastical. When she was eleven the Soviet Union collapsed and she was able to buy her first long coveted Barbie doll. "I was playing with Barbies until I was 14. My friends were dating boys, and I was playing with Barbie and making this world for Barbie beautiful."