Melina Dzinovic Melina Dzinovic, , aka Melina Harris, born 1980) is a Bosnian fashion designer based in Serbia known for her womenswear label "Hamel". Her designs often include body hugging statement dresses that have become popular with Hollywood A-listers.

Background

Džinović was born Melina Galić in

Bihać Bihać is a city and the administrative centre of Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of river Una (Sava), Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, in th ...

Bosnia-Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to the north a ...

Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...

to Elma and Sulejman Galić. She grew up in

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, Croatia. In 2014, she married Bosnian singer

Haris Džinović Haris Džinović (born 26 September 1951) is a Bosnian folk singer, composer and lyricist. Džinović is one of the best known singers of Southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe is a geographical sub-region of Europe, c ...

and they have two children. They were together for eleven years before getting married. Divorced in 2024.

Career

In 2016, Džinović presented her clothing line at a

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

fashion show. That same year she made her American debut, showing a collection at FUNKSHION: Fashion Week

Miami Beach Miami Beach is a coastal resort city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. It is part of the Miami metropolitan area of South Florida. The municipality is located on natural and human-made barrier islands between the Atlantic Ocean an ...

. In 2016, '' People Style'' magazine also named a "Hamel" gown one of the year's "best dresses from the back", meaning the outfit looked good from behind. In 2017, she presented a runway show in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, where Brazilian ''

Vogue Vogue may refer to: Business * ''Vogue'' (magazine), a US fashion magazine ** British ''Vogue'', a British fashion magazine ** '' Vogue Adria'', a fashion magazine for former Yugoslav countries ** ''Vogue Arabia'', an Arab fashion magazine ** ' ...

'' editor Donata Mirales Melina called her "...a super talented designer" and featured her dresses in the magazine. The "Hamel" brand is sold at about 50 locations around the world. In 2018, Džinović's collection was seen at

Paris Fashion Week Paris Fashion Week (, commonly ) is a series of designer presentations held semi-annually in Paris, France, with spring/summer and autumn/winter events held each year. Dates are determined by the Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode. Pa ...

, resulting in 25 additional buyers stocking her clothing line. With regards to her style, the designer has stated "I always like fringes and see-through fabrics, and I always love the details, so it is difficult for me to make 40 pieces of simple dresses." Although tight-fitting, her outfits are known for covering up figure flaws, as well as being wrinkle free and travel-ready. Džinović's clothes have been worn by

Sofía Vergara Sofía Margarita Vergara Vergara (; born July 10, 1972) is a Colombian and American actress and television personality who received five nominations each at the Primetime Emmy Awards and the Golden Globe Awards. She is one of the highest-paid a ...

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Pamela Anderson Pamela Denise Anderson (born July 1, 1967) is a Canadian-American actress, model and media personality. She rose to prominence after being selected as the February 1990 ''Playboy'' Playmate of the Month. She went on to make regular appearan ...

Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the "Princess of Pop", she has sold over 150 million records worldwide, making her one of the world's best-selling music artists. Cultural impact of Brit ...

Ali Larter Alison Elizabeth Larter (born February 28, 1976) is an American actress and former model. She portrayed fictional model Allegra Coleman in a 1996 ''Esquire'' magazine hoax and took on guest roles on several television shows in the 1990s. She m ...

, and

Kate Beckinsale Kathrin Romany Beckinsale (born 26 July 1973) is an English actress. The only child of actors Richard Beckinsale and Judy Loe, she debuted in the series premiere of the 1975 daytime drama ''Couples.'' In 1993, she made her theatrical film deb ...

, as well as

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

who ordered several dresses. Džinović has traveled to

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

to do personal fittings for actress

Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American actress and film producer. Known for primarily playing femmes fatales and women of mystery on film and television, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1990s. She is the ...

. Local Serbian celebrities like singer Ceca, Kristina Kija Kockar and TV presenter Jovana Joksimović also wear Džinović's "Hamel" label.

References

External links

* http://hamel.rs {{DEFAULTSORT:Dzinovic, Melina 1981 births Living people Bosniaks of Croatia Serbian fashion designers Serbian women fashion designers Businesspeople from Zagreb