Looking for the best Balkan-inspired gifts, Balkan apparel, or meaningful ways to celebrate your roots? You're in the right place.
Every design we create at Balkanish starts with something real—a memory, a family tradition, an inside joke, or a moment only the Balkan diaspora could understand. From the phrases we grew up hearing around the dinner table to the excitement of flying back home each summer, our collections are inspired by the culture that continues to connect us, wherever we live.
Each month, we put together The Founders' Picks—a curated collection of the pieces we're genuinely loving, wearing, gifting, and packing in our own suitcases. These are the hoodies, graphic tees, mugs, hats, tumblers, and accessories that best represent what it means to be Balkan(ish): carrying your roots with you while building a life somewhere else.
Whether you're shopping for yourself or searching for the perfect gift for a Serbian, Croatian, Bosnian, Romanian, Albanian, Macedonian, Bulgarian, Slovenian, Montenegrin, or Kosovar friend or family member, we hope this month's edit helps you find something that feels like home.
Because your culture deserves to be celebrated every day, not just when you visit home.
Welcome to the August Founders' Edit. ❤️
Danica's Picks:
Balkan Šljivovica & Sunshine Women's Crewneck
I know, I'm biased. I love all our designs... but come on. What's more iconic than šljivovica? I'll wait...
If you've ever sipped homemade šljivo on a hot summer afternoon or in the village after the sun went down, this crewneck is for you. If your dida, deda, or komšija proudly makes "the best rakija" every year, this is for you. And if you've ever picked fresh plums straight from the tree and thought, these are going to make some dangerous rakija, this has your name written allover it.
This is one of those sweaters you throw in your suitcase "just in case" it gets chilly and somehow end up wearing every evening. Perfect for bonfires, late-night walks, mountain air, or even just errands
Fair warning: people are going to ask where you got it. Get used to saying, "It's from Balkanish."
Balkan Beach Babe Towel
Let's be honest, every Balkan girl has secretly wanted to be a mermaid at some point.
Maybe it was after spending 12 hours at the beach, refusing to get out of the water until your parents threatened to leave without you. Maybe it was because you were convinced the Adriatic had magical powers. Either way, this design was inspired by that feeling.
This beach towel is made for the kind of girl who spends all day in the sea, survives on burek and iced coffee, and still shows up to dinner looking effortlessly put together.
This is one of our original hand-drawn illustrations, every detail was drawn from scratch to capture the Balkan Beach Babe energy.
Whether you're claiming the best spot on the beach or counting down the days until your next trip to the Adriatic, this towel was made to come with you. You can also find this design on our matching 40 oz tumbler.
If you were in Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, Macedonia, or pretty much anywhere in the Balkans in 2012, you know the song. You know the words. You know the feeling.
This cropped tee was designed to capture that exact summer energy.
"Moje Leto" became my soundtrack this year. It followed me everywhere from Belgrade to Novi Sad to the beaches of Greece—playing on repeat from morning until night.
But for me, that summer was never about summer flings or chasing boys. My real summer love was spending every day with my favourite cousins and friends, making the kind of memories you still laugh about years later.
Whatever your Balkan summer looks like, this crop top was made for it. From beach days and café hopping to late-night walks through the city and one more drink you definitely weren't planning on having, it's the perfect piece for a summer you'll never want to end.
Maria's Picks:
Romanian Summer Love Beach Towel
If you grew up in Romania in the early 2000s, there’s a good chance you started singing the title before you even finished reading it.
Every summer, that song seemed to be playing somewhere. On the drive to the Black Sea from a worn-out cassette tape, or blasting from someone’s casetofon on the beach while everyone was trying to squeeze one more day out of summer. To me, ASIA was, and always will be, Romania’s Spice Girls. And yes... I still know every word.
When we were creating this towel, I wanted it to capture that same carefree feeling. Bright, colourful, and full of nostalgia for the summers that somehow felt like they would last forever.
This towel isn’t just inspired by a song. It’s inspired by everything that came with it. Long drives, hot beach days, salty hair, sandy feet, and the excitement of knowing you’d wake up and do it all over again the next day.
Some songs don’t just remind you of summer. They remind you of being young.
The Balkans Are Calling Denim Hat
Let's be honest. The Balkans will always be calling my name.
I left Romania when I was 11 years old, but a part of me never really left. It's where I spent my childhood, where so many of my favourite memories were made, and where so many of the people I love still are. No matter how much time passes, going back never feels unfamiliar. It just feels like home.
That's exactly what inspired this hat. It's simple enough to wear every day, but every time I put it on, it reminds me that no matter where life takes me, there will always be a part of me that's being pulled back to the Balkans.
Whether it's the food, the language, the mountains, the beaches, or simply the people waiting for us, I think so many of us in the diaspora know exactly what that feeling is like.
That's the beautiful and complicated part of living between two worlds. No matter where you are, one of them is always calling you home.
One of my favourite parts about designing for Balkanish is taking something completely unexpected and giving it a Balkan twist.
When lobsters started taking over fashion this year, we knew we couldn't leave them as they were. So we gave ours a cocktail, taught him how to say "Noroc!", and suddenly he felt right at home.
I love that this bag doesn't take itself too seriously. It's colourful, playful, and guaranteed to make someone smile. It's the kind of bag I'd throw over my shoulder for a beach day, a walk along the promenade, or drinks by the water.
I hope it's the kind of bag people reach for every summer because it never fails to brighten their day. Some of my favourite designs aren't the most serious ones. They're the ones that make people laugh and think, "Only Balkanish would come up with this."
These six pieces are what Maria and Danica are loving most right now at Balkanish — inspired by the culture, humor, and little moments that make being Balkan feel like home, no matter where you live.
Whether you’re part of the diaspora or simply connected to the culture, we hope these picks make you smile, spark a memory, or feel a little closer to home.
Check back next month for the next Founder’s Edit.
