designers
Coco Chanel, Michael Kors, Tory Burch, and more—explore who has influenced the world of fashion the most, and who might be the next big name.
The Brand
Hello, my name is Portia Smith, and I am a traveling designer based out of Atlanta, Ga. In 2019 I was in Baltimore, MD, working out of an industrial space for makers called “Openworks”. During the time of this transition, I recently closed my design studio to do some research in the fashion industry and to further develop my brand. Custom pieces and upscaled vintage clothing were the only projects I was committed to, which allowed me to flourish in pattern and fabric manipulation. With the education I obtained from master tailors and seamstress throughout the indusrty I began to think about the fabric that I had left over from my studio. This brought me to an idea to begin a denim project, I wanted to make a crop top and a skirt out of some denim I had in storage in Atlanta. Immediately I got my mom on the phone and I asked her could she send me the denim. She sent me a package immediately. What I thought was the continuous few yards of denim, ended up being scrap fabric leftover from previous projects. My mother mistakenly sent me a whole bag of the scrap denim I had left over instead of the folded whole fabric. I was devastated for about two days; at the time I didn't have a car in the city of Baltimore because I conveniently created a short commute from my house to work so I would not have any other distractions and there was not a fabric store in a close radius of the city. So, I began to sit and think.
By Portia Smith5 years ago in Styled
Cute cows, sharp tools, and successful careers
A ten year old girl without a care in the world sits in front of her TV and turns on a movie with a cow on its cover. The cow was cute, but the 2005 documentary certainly wasn’t. Eyes opened, stomach knotted, life changed, the girl makes a vow to never eat those adorable farm animals again. And she’s kept that vow to this day.
By Rakel Tanibajeva5 years ago in Styled
Break With Tradition
My lifelong creative project is my business, Psychomoda , A fashion studio and shop that I have built from nothing but my dogged tenacity , my basic tools of the trade, and my wonderful customers. On my premises , which is a small shop and studio, I design and make , all of the garments I sell.
By Alison Harm5 years ago in Styled
To my 9 year old self: your childhood hobby is now your career. Top Story - June 2021.
Picture this, my Asian dad who wanted his first born to be a doctor reluctantly handing over my first sewing machine. In that moment, he probably realized that the doctor dream should be passed on to my little sister because there was no denying my love for fashion design.
By Cabrini Roy 5 years ago in Styled
Where Two Oceans Meet
As a young girl, I recall my mother carrying a green composition notebook with her, sketching any garment or detail that someone would be wearing in 1990s Melbourne. She’d come home, rifle through her (it was not yet ‘our’) pattern collection for something similar enough, pull out the cutting mat, the pin cushion, the tape measure, the shears. My mum sewed all of my clothes. All of them. I loved it.To this day, this is still (one of the ways) how we both create.
By Inneka Moorhouse5 years ago in Styled
Love what you do
My passion is sewing and creating. I was born at 10lbs 13oz and have been a thick, or fat person all my life. It wasn’t until I started to embrace that I was different and could dress differently if I just created my own wears. Plus I’m an athlete so super thick thighs and arms with a bust size of 44DDD. This has made everything extremely hard to fit or to buy.
By Monica Cummings5 years ago in Styled
Modular Design Application in Lingerie Patterns
My name is Sydney, and it is a privilege to be able to talk in depth about my project and aspiring small business that applies the use of scissors. Since I was a teen, I struggled with body dysmorphia and a lack of body positivity. Through my Instagram account, I have documented and shared hundreds of nude self portraits and have found my artistic practice deeply intermeshed with the intersections of body culture and sexual expression and the internet. I find transparency around my feelings promotes more love for myself, and over time, have inspired many others to feel the same.
By Sydney Palmer5 years ago in Styled
Cutting the fabric of the future
My name is Danielle Elsener and I am a Zero Waste Systems Designer. I design and make garments that use 100% of fabric in their creation through intuitive pattern making. I love to create; to delve into the nitty gritty of construction and embrace the tacit knowledge that comes with years of manipulating material.
By Danielle Elsener5 years ago in Styled
Jewelry Gone M.A.D
KIA KOLOUR is a handmade jewelry brand who’s mission is to unlock the enigma of a confident woman. Our goal is to design powerful statement edgy/elegant pieces that compels women to come out of their comfort zones and be who they truly are. Some women hide behind a facade and pretend to be someone that they really are not, because she wants to be accepted within the crowd. She wants to wear the high end designer brands that her friends are wearing to fit in. Well, KIA KOLOUR wants to be the voice for the voiceless. We want our jewelry to allow women to feel secure, confident, and strong. We are THE women's empowerment jewelry brand.
By Lakeeia Smith 5 years ago in Styled
So far, my life has just been sew, sew great!
I may not have been born with a pair of scissors in my hand, but it didn‘t take them long to get there. I remember cutting out simple shapes of little girls holding hands, then unfolding them to reveal a magical string of paper dolls! This led to more sophisticated shapes of one-of-a-kind paper dolls, followed by extravagant wardrobes, consisting mostly of ball gowns!
By Carmen Jensen 5 years ago in Styled
Cut Up and Twisted
People often ask me how I came up with my business of making hand made cut up clothing - using just a pair of scissors and my hands, that story goes way back. As a Mexican and Pakistani girl growing up with a big family in El Monte, CA I was constantly dancing, entertaining, and creating art. I never thought I would be a business owner, but this path chose me. Out of college I was ready to start my career as an electrical engineer. I got a job at a big corporate company and was ready to fully adult.... or so I thought. Within a few months I quickly realized that the monotony of a 9-5 office job was not for me.
By Nadia Sharif5 years ago in Styled
No Older Than Five
In a waiting room of seven, a young boy held his pencil with an assured stillness,as he mindfully drew a creation on his paper. He was quiet and patient; which was quite impressive, because he couldn't have been any older than five years old. We all sat in this room seeing what fun our minds could create, searching for distraction from stillness, but this young man found peace in creating his drawing. Another fifteen minutes passed by and surprisingly he broke the silence.
By LaJeromeny Brown5 years ago in Styled
