Bachelor of Fine Arts, Still Can't Draw
I grew up with a traditional academic upbringing and was never exposed to the arts until I started my college degree at Parsons School of Design in NYC. I have never been, and likely will never be able to draw well!
I utilise a different method of design that is signature to me and was developed through personal experimentation. I design with touch and dimension. My designs all begin with draping on a half-scale mannequin (it’s like a doll but for fashion designers). I create unique origami structures that are applied to the form and manipulated into garments. I personally take apart the drapes and then pattern and remake the designs before I pass them off to my pattern makers and factory.
Most fashion designers don't personally pattern and draft their designs but to me, this process is vital to recreating the best version of my idea. Ideas are always lost in translation when you are communicating your concept to someone else but by personally making the first prototype or iteration of the design, I eliminate those discrepancies. My pattern making technique is also drastically different from traditional tailoring as it fuses Eastern wrapping, binding and folding (origami) with Western tailoring. It can’t be replicated by anyone else and so my designs are truly one-of-a-kind and will not be found in any other store.