Friday, April 26, 2013

Designer’s Adventure in the World of Fashion

As a child, I remember sneaking into my grandparents’ bedroom to steal bedsheets that I would magically turn into a dress for my doll or for myself.

This was the start of my adventure in fashion design.

Attending the High School of Fashion Industries in Manhattan, I was given the tools and the knowledge to create garments that were a part of the class curriculum.

During the college years at the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) I graduated with a degree in Fashion Design, but knew that having a career in fashion was not as easy as it seemed. After having to work late hours as a fashion design assistant for some high end companies including DKNY, I got cold feet when thinking of a career in the fashion world.

As the years went by and having enough design experience to hold my own, I realized that designing clothing for a company was not in my agenda. I wanted more. Marriage, kids and my very own fashion business.

In 2002, after the birth of my 1st child, Ariana, my desire to open a design atelier came true. I loved being a mom, but also loved creating my own clothing designs. It didn’t take long before I started Karen Elizabeth Couture (www.karenecouture.com), a women’s & girl’s clothing line focusing on special occasion dresses.

It was now all up to me to design what I wanted and when I wanted. The only issue was that working as a designer from home and having to care for a baby, no longer allowed me the luxury to travel into the City to oversee production. Therefore, I decided to save the trips into Manhattan and sew the garments myself, once again subjecting myself to working long hours at night while my husband and baby slept.

In 2009, while balancing two kids (Ariana & Ilan) and a fashion business, I was offered a part time job as a fashion design instructor. It didn’t take much before I knew that teaching fashion design was what I was cut out for. Combining my love for fashion together with my love of teaching, work was easy. I finally felt a sense of accomplishment.

In February 2012, I opened Fashion Classes of NJ in Morganaville (www.fashionclassesnj.com) a design school offering camps and classes to kids ages 8 through adults. The courses consist of fashion sketching, pattern making, sewing, textile design, Photoshop classes and jewelry design.  At the end of the year, students participate in the annual fashion show which allows them
to showcase their hard work throughout the year.

Today, as I look back at my ‘fashion adventure’ I realize that those obstacles were just lessons to be learned. It felt like a lifetime before I reached the right path. Sharing my years of expertise with students of all ages has been the most rewarding path of all.

1 comment:

  1. Fashion design is the applied art devoted to the designing of clothing and lifestyle accessories. This art is influenced by cultural and social attitudes and has evolved over time and place. top Fashion Design colleges in Mumbai has come a long way from the designer clothes worn by them royalty of the ancient world to the haute couture products of the present .The Fashion Design colleges in Mumbai every year gives the expert designer who represent the India among the world.

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