New Alliances

The creative process often requires me to seek out the expertise of skilled artisans in other categories of design. For instance, last season for the "Just Zip" collection I commissioned my dear friend Comfort B., a shoe ornament designer, to create the zipper flowers for one of my dress styles. Once I formulate a concept for the collection, I have a very clear idea of how I want to develop the "story". This season my vision centers around the dandy - a refined gentleman who places particular importance upon physical appearance. And since a hat is often an important element of a dandified look, I needed to find an accomplished milliner who could translate men's styles, like the fedora, into something enchanting for women. So I asked my girl Yvette from church, who wore some killah styles for our Easter production, if she would make an introduction to the person who created her artful chapeaus. This Saturday morning past, I sat face-to-face with Otis Damo'n Holley, the young man responsible for those hats. He showed me a slide show of several of his creations and I was simply floored by his talent. When we spoke, it was as if we had worked together for years. We discussed my ideas for Fall 2010 and I shared my sketches, fabric swatches, and exactly what I wanted this collection to convey. And we've settled on 2 different hat styles to adorn the models when we photograph the collection in January. I am very enthralled with the notion of forming new alliances and working with undiscovered talent. I cannot wait to see the final outcome and how all my seemingly disparate ideas will come together. But there is much work to be done before that happens. Gotta get back to the grind.


Peace & Fashion!