Interviewed by: Cindy Jean
Every year Stevenson University hosts a fashion show that showcases the work of the senior designers. One of the designers that I had the pleasure of interviewing is senior Chantel King.
Why did you become a designer?
Answer: I became a designer because I liked the creative aspect of it. I don’t like being the same or wearing the same things as the people around me. Through design I am able to be different and stand out from the crowd
What are your muses/inspiration/influences?
Answer: Not really. I don’t have one specific person that I look up to or that inspires me. One thing that does inspire me is art and music.
What made you take fashion more seriously and make a career out of it?
Answer: When I was younger I never knew any fashion designers. Most of the designer that I saw or knew of were well known in the fashion industry and were famous so I never thought it was realistic for me to want to be one. After being accepted and coming to Stevenson I then realized that it was possible to make a career out of fashion design.
What is your brand? And how has your brand evolved?
Answer: I don’t have a brand yet but I am now starting to consider making a brand for myself.
What skills according to you are necessary for a successful fashion designer?
Answer: The skills that are needed to be a successful fashion designer are you must be a people person, outgoing, adaptable and accepting because everyone’s style is different, so you want to be able to design and be influenced by anything. You also need patience because it is very time consuming.
Question: What challenges have you faced as a fashion designer?
Answer: One challenge I face as a designer is feeling like there is not enough hours in the day.
Is there anything specific that you would label as your biggest challenge thus far?
Answer: My biggest challenge so far is trying to find my own niche to fit into. When I first started designing I wanted to do sportswear and performance wear and then I wanted to do dresses but while doing that I realized I didn’t want to do that and now I am just trying to figure out what exactly I do want to design.
Describe your creative process?
Answer: I don’t have a concrete creative/design process but I first start off by sitting down with a glass of wine along with a pen and paper and just start sketching. I also always try to stay relaxed while designing.
How do you stay up to date with fashion?
Answer: The main way I stay up to date with fashion is through Instagram. I follow different creative people and through them I get inspired with my work.
Tell me about your senior collection?
Answer: The Theme for the senior collection was transgression. When I thought about transgression the first thing that popped up in my mind were the music festivals. At the music festival’s the fashion there is definitely transgressive. It’s very different and some people think it looks very costume-y but that was what I wanted to focus on this year, I wanted to focus on festival wear.
How long did it take you to complete your collection?
Answer: I am still currently working on my collection but I started in August of last year. I am on outfit 4 of 5.
As a designer how do you know when a collection or piece is complete?
Answer: I don’t know yet because I have already restarted my collection before. I don’t think it is every really complete because through time you will and can change your mind about the color scheme and or fabric that you want to use.
What words or inspiration do you live by and how does that contribute to your ethics?
Answer: I do have a quote that I really like but honestly right now I can’t think of it.
What would you like to achieve before the end of the year/after graduation?
Answer: My goal is to actually have my brand done and get my name out there. I want to create a logo and figure out exactly what I like to design