Images by Samantha Casolari

If you follow fashion, here’s what you probably already know about Kimberly Ovitz: She hails from sunny Southern California. She interned at J.Crew, W magazine and Chanel before graduating from Brown University and studying at Parsons. She designs a drapey, minimalist collection that’s wearable and cool—and she’s the offspring of legendary Hollywood poobah Mike Ovitz (a.k.a., the guy who founded Creative Artists Agency before leaving to helm Disney).

What you might not know about Kimberly Ovitz: She recently relocated to New York City and hired a whole new team to help “relaunch” her brand. She’s the proud mother of two adorable English bulldogs, Matza Ball and Lox. She just introduced a lower priced, eco-friendly line called O by Kimberly Ovitz. And she spends her off-duty hours volunteering at animal shelters and fostering at-risk dogs.

Lauren David Peden: So how has your label evolved since its inception?

Kimberly Ovitz: Because we moved to New York, we’re doing what I call a “relaunch.” I have an entirely new team, so the strategy is different—everything’s different. Everyone’s in-house now. We used to have outside sales and an outside PR showroom. I have a new president who’s fantastic. I have a new production manager, so half our manufacturing is totally different. And everyone—every member of the team—is just kind of like a star right now. I’m excited to see where that leads.

Lauren: That’s a lot of growth.

Kimberly: Yeah, it was only three people in LA and now we’re about ten. We’re trying to really reposition [the brand]. We have the new O line, which is a really affordable jersey line that we’re trying to get sustainably made. I’m constantly trying to merge my passion for animal welfare with what I’m doing with fashion. When I first launched the brand, in Spring 2009, it was completely different than it is now. I’m trying to focus more on where the inspiration comes from, because I feel it isn’t known where my inspiration comes from…like the contemporary art world and how much that influences me.

Lauren: Alright. Let’s go back a bit. What’s your earliest fashion memory?

Kimberly: I would have to say in elementary school, when I was into the grunge thing. I wore torn jeans and Converse and a plaid men’s shirt every day. That went in a circle because it came back recently—but I was like nine or something…

Lauren: And what about that spoke to you?

Kimberly: I just remember knowing, even at that age, that I wanted to have a “look” and that was the look I was going for. Then, each year I would explore different styles. I remember in eighth grade I did this thing where I wore boys’ skater pants and showed my Calvin Klein briefs. I wanted to make sure everyone saw the name. I don’t know why I did that; it was horrible. Seventh grade was my Clueless year, from the movie. I went through different phases and I think all of that exploration kind of formed where I am now.

Lauren: And how did you come to intern with J.Crew at 14? That’s really young to be interning.

Kimberly: I had met Emily Scott, who used of be the owner, and I kind of looked up to her as this woman I wanted to be. And she saw the passion in me, I guess, and she offered me an internship and had me work with Jenna [Lyons], who was the senior women’s designer at the time.

Lauren: What kind of stuff were you doing?

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Kimberly: She would have me sit in on fittings, do color stories for her, do my own kind of mini-portfolios so I could get experience doing that. It was actually one of the best internships because I was involved in merchandising meetings, so it showed me how the corporate world works—that side of fashion—at a really early age. I was fortunate because I think they saw that I was so passionate that they let me go into every little pocket and see every world at J.Crew at that time. It was great.

Lauren: Very cool. And then I know you grew up riding horses. How did the equestrian lifestyle impact or affect your aesthetic as a designer?

Kimberly: Well, that’s kind of what I was saying has changed, because when I first started the equestrian influence was much more prevalent in the brand. But my mindset changed and it’s just more about this warrior woman with this relationship with her horse. More of a wild horse than one tacked up riding. But, yeah, it influenced [my early work] because I grew up with it. I think anything you grow up around, you inherently are influenced by. It’s the same with art.

Lauren: Right. I know your father collects minimalist art; so how did that affect you?

Kimberly: I was really fortunate to grow up around all these masters of art and he surrounded me with it. I knew artists’ names when I was, like, ten years old. So, like I said, when you grow up around something and you learn it at such a young age it’s in what you do. Also, I had an affinity for it, as well, and ran with it.

Lauren: And which artists in particular struck a chord with you?

Kimberly: That’s a huge question (laughs).

Lauren: Because there are so many?

Kimberly: Yeah. There’s so much that has inspired me throughout the years. It’d be like… What could I compare it to? It’d be like asking what my favorite, favorite ice cream is… No, that’s not even a good comparison (laughs). I would say different artists inspire me at different times of my life, definitely.

Lauren: I know that Jasper Johns was an inspiration at one point…

Kimberly: Yeah, I think that was Fall 2009. Different things happen in your life that bring up these artists that then click. I guess that’s what happens for me because it’s such a huge palette to draw from. I became preoccupied with him at that moment, with what it meant for me and what was going in my life. Like, for example, White Flag and the way that he redefines images that you have preconceived notions about and provokes you to redefine them for yourself, rather than connecting the American flag with patriotism—you look at it again. At the time, that idea was very inspiring to me.

Lauren: And I know more recently [in Spring 2012], you were inspired, if that’s the right word, by the tragedy in Japan and an architect there?

Kimberly: Well, obviously the tragedy was so impactful on everybody, so I was just doing more research on it and found this Japanese architect, Shigeru Ban, who had created temporary housing out of impermanent materials during the Kobe earthquake in 1995, to help with the relief efforts. I thought that was a really cool, inspiring concept [so] I researched his stuff more and connected the two ideas: the idea of rebuilding and man versus nature—and the ability to recreate after destruction. All of these ideas mesh together and I think that’s what’s cool about what I do: I get to research something new every season. That’s what’s inspiring to me.

Lauren: So you launched in 2009. There are so many lines out there. What did you want to say as a designer that wasn’t being addressed or that you weren’t seeing?

Kimberly: It was something that I’ve wanted to do since I was young, so it wasn’t about comparing myself to other lines. But as I got older, it got more clear to me the niche I wanted to fill. Right now, it’s more about doing what I believe in. The design is minimally done and very wearable and approachable, but [I’m] also doing things in a modern way, which means trying to either be sustainable or partnering with charities so that a lot of what you’re doing is not necessarily for profit. I really like the model of what Tom’s Shoes is doing and what Warby Parker is doing; that’s really inspiring to me as a business owner. I think that’s something that would differentiate me, along with the inherent style. My taste is different than everyone else’s taste, and that’s what I’m going to bring to the floor.

Lauren: And why did you decide to relocate from LA to New York?

Kimberly: I just felt like there were so many more resources here, and I felt a little bit out of it in LA. I didn’t feel like I was capitalizing as much as I could for how serious I was about what I was doing. So that’s really it—and I selfishly wanted to be here (laughs). I just have spent so much time in LA, growing up there; I was ready to turn the page and experience something different. You only live once and I wanted to go somewhere new.

Lauren: I hear that. And how has it been?

Kimberly: It’s been amazing—I love it.

Lauren: Are there any challenges to living and working here that you didn’t anticipate?

Kimberly: Not really… I’ve been here before. I really enjoy it. It probably makes it easier that I live two blocks from where I work.

Lauren: And why did you decide to switch from a presentation format to a runway show last season?

Kimberly: The new team and I just felt like we were ready. We had just moved to New York and it felt like the right time.

Lauren: And any big plans coming up?

Kimberly: Yes, we are working on launching a few handbags [in 2013], which is really exciting.

Lauren: And are they leather?

Kimberly: Yeah, they’re leather but we’re researching and trying to figure out ways to do it that are in an animal-friendly manner.

Lauren: That’s a challenge.

Kimberly: Yes, but I’m up for it. It’s a challenge that I’m in the process of researching right now.

Lauren: Very cool. And would you walk me through your creative process?

Kimberly: The inspiration comes somehow naturally through life, and then we put up a board and add textures, pictures…anything that grows the inspiration and makes it more in detail. Then we go through fabric and start sketching and then we drape. It’s kind of a mishmash of how it happens, but sometimes you’ll sketch something and you’ll think it’s going to turn out a certain way and then you’ll drape it and it comes to be something totally different or a mistake becomes amazing. So you never know…

Lauren: And what you can tell me in terms of inspiration or what you were thinking about for fall?

Kimberly: It’s very dark.

Lauren: Is that something you’re feeling yourself?

Kimberly: No. What’s ironic about it is I’m actually in the lightest place I’ve been in awhile (laughs). But it doesn’t stop me from my inherent point of view and liking to provoke.

Lauren: I’m curious, has having the last name Ovitz been a challenge in terms of starting your own business, or does it open doors that otherwise wouldn’t have been opened?

Kimberly: I think that there are positives and negatives. It’s a double-edge thing. There are a lot of opportunities that I feel very fortunate to have had and people I’ve gotten to meet. The way I see it is, doors can be opened but you have to prove yourself after that. I mean, everyone has their own battles, you know? It’s a different battle for everyone and I’ve never really seen that as a battle, per se, but…

Lauren: Well, I wasn’t meaning it as a battle but I wondered if there are people who have a preconceived notion of you based on your last name?

Kimberly: Sure, people always do that. Sure.

Lauren: And how do you handle that?

Kimberly: People are always going to think what they think and all you can do is do what you do and do the best you can do at it, and if that changes their mind, great. If it doesn’t, then you move on.

Lauren: OK. And how did you get so involved with the ASPCA? Was it before you had the dogs or after you had the dogs?

Kimberly: It was after I got the dogs, because I found out I got them from a puppy mill and I was really upset about it. Then I started to research it more and more—I’ve always been a huge animal lover, but not to the extent that I’m involved now—and after I did more research, I found out how much inhumane treatment of animals was going on. It just lead me further and further… It was like a domino effect of helping rescues and volunteering at shelters and doing events to raise money and partnering with different people. I’m actually working on [hosting] a foster night with the ACC.

Lauren: How does it work with a foster puppy?

Kimberly: If you want to foster and try and get it adopted, obviously you can do it on your own, networking, but what I try to do is partner with local rescue groups in New York. [They] basically partner with you to get the dog from the ACC and then help you get it adopted.

Lauren: What’s the ACC?

Kimberly: Oh sorry, Animal Care and Control of New York. They’re on 110th Street. They’re a kill shelter and it’s just really sad; there’s no space and they kill for no reason. So the rescue groups are great. They help you by doing adoption events and whatever it may be, so you’re not alone, stuck with a dog. I sometimes take on a little more than I can handle with them, but I don’t mind. It’s a good stress.

Lauren: So how does it work? You take the foster in and they help you try to find it a forever home?

Kimberly: Exactly. You basically take care of it before it finds its forever home. So if you have the space, we need more fosters!

Lauren: How many dogs have you fostered?

Kimberly: I don’t know… I can’t keep track. I do it all the time. During the hurricane [in August], I got this amazing shepherd dog because they had to evacuate the animal shelters and my good friend was with me and she fell in love with it and adopted it. So I’m hoping to continue that pattern. I’m kind of crazy about it. I go every weekend to walk the dogs and clean up the poop and everything. Sometimes the dogs don’t get out all day, you know? It’s sad. Oh, and my mom adopted one of my fosters.

Lauren: She did?

Kimberly: Yeah. I’m just constantly trying to spread the word because I know there’s not enough awareness about it.

Lauren: Well, I didn’t even realize there were kill shelters in New York.

Kimberly: Yeah. It’s because they don’t have enough funding from the government and they have a lack of space. If they had more money, they’d be able to offer better medical treatment to dogs and create adoption programs. There’s so much they could do but they don’t because there are so many other problems in the city. But I still am a huge believer of Gandhi’s quote that the greatness of a nation is based on how they treat their animals.

Lauren: I love it. Okay, and what’s next for you in terms of fashion? Your working on bags, O by Kimberly Ovitz is shipping for spring… Any other plans?

Kimberly: Honestly, the sky’s the limit. I just want to grow the brand. I finally have an awesome team and I love coming to work every day; it’s a cool feeling. I’m really excited to see the outcome and benefits from all the hard work we’ve been doing. I’m up for anything!

Johnson Hartig

Libertine burst onto the fashion scene back in 2001, with a collection of quirky-cool reworked vintage duds designed by quirky-cool duo Johnson Hartig and Cindy Greene. Supported by the likes of Anna Wintour, Karl Lagerfeld and John Galliano, Libertine won the Ecco Domani Fashion Award in 2003, was nominated for a CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund in 2004 and did limited-edition collaborations with Converse, Target, Goyard, Muji Be@rbrick and Damian Hirst.

Johnson and Cindy parted ways in 2009 and Johnson continued Libertine on his own, with a newfound focus on modernized prints and patterns that made for a more sophisticated, cohesive collection. Today, the line is carried at Bergdorf Goodman, Maxfield, Linda Dresner, Saks Fifth Avenue and Bloomingdale’s, along with dozens of stores in Asia and Europe, including Joyce, Isetan, Colette and Harvey Nichols. Additionally, Johnson won the CFDA Lexus Eco Fashion Challenge in 2011 for his sustainable silkscreened collection, the results of which will debut on the New York catwalk during Fashion Week.

Lauren David Peden: Is this year Libertine’s tenth anniversary?

Johnson Hartig: It was ten years in September, yeah. Amazing.

Lauren: Well congratulations—that’s quite a feat.

Johnson: That is quite a feat. I didn’t appreciate it fully until someone said the other day, ‘You know, you just don’t give yourself enough credit. To run a successful, profitable business for ten years is really something.’ Cindy and I both suffered from fear of commitment, so we always took it very slowly and only took on as much as we really knew we could handle, so it never seemed very overwhelming. I guess there were moments but it’s been, for the most part, such an enjoyable process and just kind of level. Cindy and I, of course, had our little bit [of drama] when we separated, but now it seems like we’re better friends than we ever were.

Lauren: And how is the line different now than when you started?

Johnson: When we started, very few people had seen silkscreening on vintage clothing. I’ve always loved American folk art and the darker side of American history, so we incorporated a lot of that into the ideas for graphics. I remember when we first printed an American eagle on a shirt… Wow, this is kind of punk rock—that we’re taking something so iconic and turning it on its head. But quickly the whole aesthetic was adopted by so many other people that I learned by the third or fourth year that if we’re gonna stay ahead of this, we gotta really keep on our toes. The last two and a half years since, I’ve been doing it on my own, I decided I want to take it in a whole new direction, so I was doing graphics that weren’t representational. The first [solo] season I did these dots, I didn’t do any kind of a presentation or show but I did do a video that’s on the website. I’ve continued with that. It just seems newer, it seems fresher, it seems more modern. The line is less historical and more contemporary feeling—just modern and cleaner. I was fearful a little bit, but the Libertine audience been so responsive and we’ve garnered a ton of new devotees.

Lauren: And as a whole, the line is still based on vintage clothes?

Johnson: Yes.

Lauren: Do you deconstruct them always?

Johnson: No, sometimes we don’t. I have decided recently that next season I’m gonna start deconstructing the blazers, which we’ve always deconstructed less. So we’ll see how that plays out.

Lauren: Why?

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Johnson: I don’t know, it’s just a feeling I had within the last couple weeks that I’d like to see something with a cleaner back. So we’ll see. I’m not sure it’s gonna work and that our customers will approve. It does alter the fit of the jacket. It kind of tightens and shrinks it up a little bit, so it might not work. And then we do produce our own button-down shirts, which we could never find enough of, and we did some sequin jackets.

Lauren: The coats were amazing—the black coats from fall and the women’s skirts with the graphic patterns.

Johnson: Yes, I’d been to Turkey for the first time, Istanbul, six months prior to that show so I was very inspired by it.

Lauren: The mosques?

Johnson: The mosques and tiles and all that, so it was kind of a modification of an Islamic tile.

Lauren: Did that sell?

Johnson: Yeah, the crazy thing is after I show the buyers all want the first appointment and I think the whole show sold within a couple hours.

Lauren: What percentage of the collection is one-of-a-kind?

Johnson: I’d say about 90 to 95 percent.

Lauren: You’ve built a thriving business on one-of-a-kind pieces.

Johnson: It’s kind of amazing, and sometimes I think I don’t give myself enough credit.

Lauren: It’s hard when you’re in it. You just put your head down and you do it and it takes somebody else to remind you. So tell me, what’s your background, do you have formal training in design?

Johnson: No. Well, in painting and drawing. I studied fine art at Long Beach State in California, but I always wore vintage clothing and I always messed around taking things apart, trying to figure out how they were put together. I remember as a teenager never wanting to wear new shoes. I would always look for Florsheim Wingtips and I loved the idea that they were already messed up and worn in—and the same thing with clothes, really. I still do love that. There’s something about the familiarity or maybe spirits of people past. I just love it. I love antique furnishings, too.

Lauren: Well, you worked with interior designers, right?

Johnson: I worked with Randy Hatch in Whittier. He had exquisite taste and was a real Anglophile, and he was responsible for me getting involved with The Attingham Trust study week, which I did in Yorkshire for ten days. And he taught me an enormous amount about antiques and decorating. I remember as a kid rearranging my parent’s living room when I was seven years old, bringing in roses from the garden. I was always very concerned with the way things looked.

Lauren: And how has that affected or influenced your aesthetic as a clothing designer?

Johnson: Well, I’ve never really thought of myself as a designer because I don’t know anything about constructing clothing. I’m someone with a good eye that puts things together and adds things to other things and the combination just happens magically. But it’s hard to compartmentalize. It’s just all in me and it prevails over my world, my vision, my eye and training.

Lauren: Speaking of your eye, yours was my favorite presentation last Fashion Week. The clothes, the way you presented it…the models had energy and they were having fun and they weren’t robotic automatons walking down the runway looking glum cause they’re making $10,000 a day. I sometimes feel like, ‘Come on, really? Fashion is fun!’ Yes we’re in tough times but fashion still could be a little bit fun, and you did that and made a statement, too. It wasn’t like you were ignoring the realities of the world.

Johnson: Thank you, because from what I saw I thought it was the funnest presentation I’d seen in New York in the last five years. It was really a super fun happening.

Lauren: That is exactly what it felt like. I was so excited about the clothes and just to be there having that experience. It was like being at a rock concert where you’re just with those people in that room at that moment. It felt special.

Johnson: Yeah, it felt super special. Honestly, one of the best things that happened out of that was my assistant and I were packing everything into the truck to take back to the hotel and this guy came backstage and said, “Can I help you guys?” I said, “Yeah, sure.” And he said, “You know, I’ve never been to a fashion show in my life; I don’t know anything about fashion. I only came tonight because one of my friends is the co-owners of Exit Art.” But he said, “I have to tell you,” and this was, like, a totally straight construction guy, “your show blew me away, and I know that probably means nothing coming from a guy like me, but I haven’t been that excited about something.” I thought, ‘No, it means everything coming from you. That’s fucking awesome.’ It just felt so empowering. It was funny because I had this idea that I wanted the show to look like that. I remember [my publicist] saying this might not go off as well, but I thought, ‘I just want to try it.’

[The waiter comes and Johnson chats with him about his upcoming trip to India.]

Johnson: I think India is gonna change my life. I hope it does—that’s the idea. I’m going this kind of awesome way that my business manager suggested. I hired this firm out of Boulder, Colorado called Asia Transpacific. They organize every detail from someone meeting me at the airport to the hotels, tours and a driver for the whole ten days. So it’s a pretty lovely way to travel.

Lauren: Are you going by yourself?

Johnson: By myself.

Lauren: Nice. I want to talk about how politics and current events influence your work, like the whole “Tax the Rich More” t-shirt, and you’ve done the World War II dazzle boat prints.

Johnson: Uh huh. Well, I guess it inspires me, in that it’s an integral part of me. I care about these things.

Lauren: Do you consider yourself politically active?

Johnson: Yeah. And I’ve always been one to fight for the underdog. I think probably because growing up gay I was an underdog.

Lauren: Did you see that Jonah Mowry video that was making the rounds? He’s an eighth grader now and he’s talking about how he’s been bullied every day.

Johnson: Yeah, it’s fucking hard growing up gay and I don’t think anyone that’s not gay knows that. I mean, every day, every day waking up thinking, ‘Am I gonna get teased? Am I gonna get beaten up today?’ It was rough. But watch that video that’s called Two Lesbians Raised a Baby and This is What They Got from Iowa.

Lauren: Yes, I did.

Johnson: Breathtaking. And I think that we have one of the most articulate, smart, caring presidents in office now that we’ve had since Clinton, maybe. But he just doesn’t stand a chance. I feel like right after the inauguration, he was led into this room and the old boys said, ‘That was a lot of fun, but let us tell you what it’s gonna really be like.’ It’s just awful because I feel like in a way—and I don’t want to get too political, because I’m sure a lot of the Libertine clients are Republican, but I’ve got to say it—everyone responded to that “Tax the Rich More.” I think it was a couple weeks later that Warren Buffett came out with that New York Times article saying, “I’m not taxed enough. I’m taxed less than the average American.” It just makes sense. I’m just tired of big business running our county. Libertine started during Bush and I’ve got to say I was in a very low-grade depression for those full eight years, every day thinking, ‘Why aren’t we waking up and having revolution on the streets?’ I felt, this is my way of saying, “Fuck you.” It was kind of awesome, like Libertine was a powerful little movement. So “Tax the Rich More” was kind of tongue-in-cheek but I thought, ‘It’s a simple way for me to make a little statement on these t-shirts and this skirt.’

Lauren: And you’ve been doing statement t-shirts since the inception.

Johnson: Yeah, but they weren’t political. They were just kind of more fun messages. I don’t know, I just feel so discouraged by the state our country is in. We do have this man in office that really, really cares and he can’t get anything done. We were educated in these institutions that were funded by public money and are transported on public roads, so we all have this obligation to give back. I make a very nice living. I wouldn’t call myself rich, but I think I would be in the top one percent and I’m more than happy to pay my fair share of taxes if everybody did. I’m not gonna feel good about doing it if billionaires are paying eight percent tax and I’m paying 40. It just doesn’t add up. I’m feeling super hopeless. I felt very excited about the Occupy Wall Street movement, but then I didn’t feel like they were organized enough and I felt like half the people there didn’t really know why they were there. This is just a feeling, but I felt like it should have been more focused.

Lauren: Well, I don’t think that’s realistic. Everyone keeps comparing OWS to the radical movement of the ’60s, but we’re looking at that in hindsight, 40 years later. Occupy Wall Street’s only a few months old, and there are so many different aspects to it. It’s going to take time for it to coalesce. People expect them to come out fully formed and it’s not realistic.

Johnson: It’s not realistic, but when you’re dealing with these companies who’s livelihood and continuance depends on it, I think action does need to happen really fast. Obviously we’re a nation that has a very short attention span. And after a couple weeks, people are onto the next thing. I do feel like nothing will ever be the same after this movement, because this movement hasn’t died; they’re morphing and populating, so it still seems very exciting. It’s the first time that something that I thought should have happened during the Bush administration every day is happening.

Lauren David Peden is editor of The Fashion Informer and contributing editor at Rue La La. The former copy director of Vogue, she writes for numerous publications.

Video by Lina Plioplyte.

They say that necessity is the mother of invention, and in the case of jewelry designer Pamela Love that edict has been born out tenfold. After studying film production and painting at NYU, Pamela was working as an art director and stylist but couldn’t find jewelry she liked—for herself or her shoots. So she began crafting her own heavy metal talismans (hearts, claws, skulls) that managed to feel both incredibly personal and instantly iconic. Pamela’s totemic jewelry quickly became a hit with fashion insiders and her labor of love became a full-time job.

Since launching her collection in 2006, the wild-maned artist has collaborated with designers from Marchesa and Zac Poen to Frank Tell and Rogan Gregory, worked with Opening Ceremony on a capsule collection inspired by the Spike Jonze film Where the Wild Things Are and crafted custom pieces for True Blood.

Pamela was named a CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist in 2010, and earlier this year she was nominated for a CFDA/Swarovski Award and won the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation prize. This past spring she became the first American designer to create a collection for Topshop—resulting in gypsy rock pieces inspired by South American and Native American design—and her jewelry was just featured in NAHM’s Spring 2012 runway show (Pamela’s own presentation was held at Milk Studio). This month, she was in the City of Lights as one of ten past CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund nominees featured in the “Americans in Paris” showroom, which was aimed at introducing emerging US designers to a broader audience.

Lauren David Peden: So are you from Florida or New York?

Pamela Love: I’m originally from New York but I grew up in South Florida, a town called Coral Springs.

Lauren: Oh, okay. And I know you started your career working for Francesco Clemente after college…

Pamela: I did some stuff in between then, but yeah.

Lauren: What did you do in between?

Pamela: I worked a lot of different jobs. I ran a vintage clothing store. I did window displays for retailers, worked at Barneys for a little while as the trunk show coordinator for women’s designs…all kinds of things.

Lauren: So how do you go from studying film to designing jewelry?

Pamela: Well, I was mostly interested in set design and art direction, and I was also minoring in painting—I was a painter. So it all just went together, it was all sort of visual. After I graduated, I was really interested in doing set design and production design and, for me, the concept of doing that for film was more difficult than doing it for a store or window display or installation. So I became interested in that idea but not so much the moving image, not doing it for film.

Lauren: And how did you segue into jewelry?

Pamela: The jewelry started as a hobby with a friend of mine. We were both doing merchandising and display and she was interested in jewelry and I was interested in jewelry so we started making pieces together. She ended up getting a job that was pretty time consuming and didn’t really have the time to do it anymore, but I was hooked. I started apprenticing with a couple of jewelers in the Diamond District and just learning as much as I could about it. I started my own line and it was pretty simple at first, just a few pieces. I didn’t really have that many stores and it just slowly picked up.

Lauren: How do you go about apprenticing? Do you just knock on doors until you find people to apprentice for?

Pamela: I was in the Jewelry District with my mom looking for chain and she just asked these guys—it was really embarrassing: “Can my daughter work for you?” So I ended up working with them for free and learning from them. I didn’t learn everything but I learned a lot; enough to sort of get started. Every day I’m learning new things.

Lauren: What was the first piece that you made?

Pamela: I think the first piece that I made entirely from scratch was a human heart necklace. It wasn’t the human heart locket that we sell now. It was a very different version of it that I don’t think we actually sell anymore, but it came out nice. I carved it in a blackout in my apartment and it was pretty funny because I carved it in the dark entirely from feel and not from actually being able to see it.

Lauren: So not even candlelight?

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Pamela: Well a candle, but you know when the lights came back on I was like, “Wow, this actually looks pretty good!” (Laughs) Obviously I cleaned it up more from there. It was something to kill the time in the pitch black—that was in 2006.

Lauren: Many of your pieces seem like talismans to me; they use a lot of symbolism, whether it’s a claw or a heart. What about those things speak to you?

Pamela: I think jewelry is something really powerful and very symbolic. For me, it was about taking these things that have really strong meaning or are iconic and creating things that can last forever. It’s a funny question to answer because I’ve kind of been moving away from that sort of representation a little, so it’s kind of going back in time and answering a question as I would have three or four years ago. Now I’m trying to focus on things that are less representational just because that’s the direction I’m moving in. I don’t know if there’s any rhyme or reason behind it; it’s just what I’m feeling.

Lauren: So how would you say that your line has evolved aesthetically from the start until now?

Pamela: I think it was a lot more representational in the beginning. It was a lot of symbols and things found in nature—animals, claws—and now the shapes are a lot more abstract. I’ll reference things, but it’s not as literal. The size is a lot bigger. There area lot of other materials incorporated: resin, leather. I’ve been working with a lot of color, which I never did before. I think it’s just evolving to be a little more abstract, a little bit more fun maybe and just not so morbid. I never met for it to be morbid in the first place, but that’s just sort of how it was interpreted.

Lauren: I was going to ask you that; was it a life and death thing or was it not really conscious?

Pamela: I don’t think it was meant to be morbid. These are things I was interested in at the time. They were very iconic and very beautiful. I think it just came out that way. Now it’s still tough and it definitely can be edgy and dark, but I think it’s also fun and whimsical and it’s definitely evolving into something else. I don’t know that I can really explain it.

Lauren: I love the fall collection with the iridescent shards that kind of look like a cityscape.

Pamela: Yeah, a lot of people said that—they look like little cities.

Lauren: So what was the inspiration for that collection?

Pamela: I had taken a trip with my friend Skye [Parrott] to Texas. We drove across the entire state and we went to these crystal caves that were a couple miles long underground. The colors were just amazing and the shapes were so incredible. You slowly run out of oxygen while you’re down there; they tell you to walk really slow and take breaks. That was a huge inspiration for me—the trip and just the idea of playing with color. I really wanted to take the girl that I had created for the previous season, which had a tribal, dark, sort of tough kind of feeling—I wanted to take that girl into the future and spin it on its head. She’s still tough and dark and magical, but taking her from the past and bringing her into the future.

Lauren: I know you’ve done a lot of collaborations with different designers and artists. Is there one that stands out as a favorite?

Pamela: I love all the different collaborations that I’ve done. I really loved doing the Opening Ceremony Where the Wild Things Are collaboration, just because it wasn’t a traditional fashion collaboration, it was something totally different and to be able to reinterpret that book and the movie and create jewelry out of it was pretty amazing. It was really childlike in a lot of ways and I love that. It was super fun to do and just to work with Opening Ceremony is always great, and to support Spike Jonze and that film was really nice. We’ve done a lot of different projects. I loved working with Zac Posen. It was one of my first collaborations and the first time someone really gave me the freedom to just go crazy. The collection was just so out there and it was a lot of work and was really stressful, but I really love how it came out. So I think that was definitely something I was really proud of. And we just did a lower priced line for Topshop. It’s inspired by ideas from my main line but more feminine, maybe more mainstream. I think it’s a little bit of a younger girl but it’s definitely something that I’ve been wanting to do, so I’m pretty proud of it.

Lauren: Were there any challenges in designing for a more mass audience?

Pamela: Oh sure—just to have to design at a lower price point. You know we make everything here in New York City, so everything tends to be a little pricey. We definitely had some challenges in trying to manufacture things the way I would want to manufacture them and staying true to my beliefs but still being able to cut the costs enough to be able to sell at a price point that everybody can afford.

Lauren: Now would you walk me through your creative process?

Pamela: There’s no real typical creative process. It’s different every season. It’s about just gathering images that I’m interested in at any particular time and then putting them all together on a board and saying, “What’s the common thread here?” These things are totally unrelated to each other but for some reason I’m responding to this. Sometimes it comes from a book I read or a film I saw or a photographer I really like—it’s always different. For me it’s about telling a story about a person. It’s not just like, ‘I’m going to make jewelry!’ It’s very much about telling a story of the person who’s wearing the jewelry and kind of creating their world. It’s different every season but definitely starts with gathering images and sorting through the material and sketching and carving.

Lauren: Do you still do all your own carving?

Pamela: I do as much of it as I can. We’ve definitely gotten a lot busier and we make a lot more pieces now—I have a wonderful team of jewelers who work for me. Also, not everything is wax carved anymore. When I first started everything was carved out of wax, but I’ve been experimenting with a lot of different techniques.

Lauren: Like what?

Pamela: Just different ways of fabricating jewelry. Carving wax is only one way to do jewelry. We do a lot of direct fabrication, directly out of the metal now and just working with different materials—wood, resin. It’s not so black and white anymore.

Lauren: How did you achieve that iridescent metal?

Pamela: Oh, it’s a special plating.

Lauren: What other artists or designers are you feeling right now?

Pamela: I’m always kind of focused on painters and sculptors. I love this painter Kristin Calabrese; she’s really amazing. Obviously Francesco Clemente. His work is always evolving and it’s always inspiring to me. Lee Bontecou is one of my favorite artists in the whole world. Louise Bourgeois, Louise Nevelson…a lot of sculptors, a lot of female sculptors. Georgia O’Keeffe is always really inspiring to me, not just her work but her style and the way she lived and her philosophies. As far as designers go, you know, there are just so many amazing young designers right now…amazing jewelry and accessories designers. It’s so hard to say, but one of my really good girlfriends Yara Flinn has a line called Nomia that I really love. I love what the girls from The Lake & Stars do. I love lingerie and I really think they take it to the next level and do something artistic with it. I love Lindsay Thornburg and I have so much respect for her. I love that jewelry line ManiaMania out of Australia, and Philip Crangi I always continue to be inspired by and love. I [also] find so much inspiration in some of the older, more established designers—like I’m constantly looking at Robert Lee Morris’ work.

Lauren: I’m old enough to remember when he had his first store.

Pamela: When he had Artwear, which wasn’t just him. It was collective [with Cara Croninger and Ted Muehling]. I loved it because it was about art; it wasn’t just about fashion. It was an art space and it was all these jewelry designers coming together and having a space like a gallery. It’s that feeling of New York at that time that is so wonderful and I wish that we could recreate that now. I think things like that are happening but you really have to travel outside of the box to find them. That idea was always really inspiring to me and he continues to be a huge inspiration. I also love [Alexander] McQueen and [Jean Paul] Gaultier, Vivienne Westwood… All things you would expect me to like (laughs). I’ve been watching a lot of Jan Švankmajer. He’s a Czech animator—his animations are really amazing and inspiring. Alejandro Jodorowsky is always inspiring to me, I think he’s really great.

Lauren: And you still drum?

Pamela: Yes.

Lauren: How did you get into that?

Pamela: I started drumming in high school. I was singing—I wanted to sing in a punk band and be a rock star, I guess. But I was singing in a hardcore band and hurt my vocal cords and couldn’t sing anymore, so I picked up the drums because for me that was the instrument that I responded to the most. I was like, ‘Well, if I cant sing anymore I should learn how to do something else.’ So I started playing the drums but stopped for a really long time, then started again much, much later and actually just started a band with a couple of my friends.

Lauren: What’s it called?

Pamela: We don’t have a name yet.

Lauren: How many people?

Pamela: Well right now it’s four—guitar, bass and drums—but we’re thinking of adding a fifth. It’s a guitar hippie band, I guess.

Lauren: So who’s singing?

Pamela: My friend Bev. She’s amazing. She used to be the singer of this metal band called Battletorn and she has a vintage clothing store in Williamsburg called Fox & Fawn, which is awesome.

Lauren: So do you think you’ll play out or…?

Pamela: Oh, why else would we do it? It just takes some time to write everything and get everything together. We’ve only been doing this for a few months, but it’s nice. My other band broke up just because we were all so busy so it’s nice to finally get back into it. It’s been like a year and half or two years since we broke up. I haven’t actually played drums in a year and a half—it was kind of depressing.

Lauren: So do you have a drum kit at home?

Pamela: Yeah, the practice space is at my house.

Lauren: And I know you’ve talked about traveling to the Southwest. What do you think is different about the energy there—or do you think it is different?

Pamela: I don’t know if the energy is different for everyone. It is for a lot of people, definitely for me. I grew up in Florida surrounded by the ocean and surrounded by borders and suburban sprawl. There’s no empty space in South Florida at all, except for maybe the ocean. So there’s something so magical to me about the opposite. It’s about this expansive land that goes on forever and the landscapes and the canvases, the kind of sonography you start to have when you get into Sedona. I don’t even know why or what it is about it, but to me that’s like magic. That’s where I feel the most comfortable. A lot of people that grow up in New York or in the middle of the country want to go to the beach on a vacation, but for me it’s just the opposite. I grew up on a beach. I want to be in the middle of the desert. I don’t know if there’s an energy there or something there that’s really real that makes it feel so different or if it’s just me; but I know a lot of other people who feel that way too, so… They talk about vortexes, but I don’t want to get weird and kooky and say I believe in that but I do a little… There are those vortexes in Sedona.

Lauren: I think if you’ve been there it’s hard not to believe it.

Pamela: Well, I spent some time in Sedona and it definitely feels special. The land in New Mexico is amazing. The emptiness is really nice and the Native American culture and the Mexican culture and people who are so much more connected to their roots and to their spirituality and to the history of their culture and to the crafts and artwork that go along with that.

Lauren: Would you tell me about the jewelry that you’re wearing?

Pamela: I’m not really wearing that much. This is one of my rings; it’s an Obsidian arrowhead. This is a turquoise ring that I actually got in Sedona. And this is a little vegetable ivory skull—it’s not real. My friend Allison [Nowlin Ward] made it. She has a line called Madame Fortuna and she makes these really beautiful vegetable ivory skulls.

Lauren: What is vegetable ivory?

Pamela: It’s a nut called tangua nut. You can carve it like ivory and it looks like ivory. It gets dirty and old the way ivory does but it’s not ivory, which is great because I certainly don’t believe in utilizing something like that. Then this is just a little antique snake ring; I’ve had it forever. This is a little arrow ring I’ve had for…God knows how long—just a lot of vintage stuff. And then this is a piece from my Spring 2011 collection. It’s the smallest of the tribal spike necklaces. And then this was a necklace that my grandmother wore everyday. It says, “mazel,” which means “luck” in Hebrew. When she passed away, I inherited it. This is a little tiny ring that my dad got me when I was a little kid. I used to wear it on my pinky and I kept losing it. It kept flying off my pinky and I kept freaking out because my father passed away and it’s one of the only things I really keep on me from him, so I just put it on a necklace and have them together. It’s important to me.

Lauren: How important is it to you that people who buy or wear your jewelry feel that way about it?

Pamela: I want the jewelry to be important to the people who buy it, but I don’t want to dictate anything. I feel like the people who buy it feel that way about it, and I think jewelry is important in that way. It makes you feel special… It has a feeling to it, it has a weight and a significance to it, and that’s why I do it. I think the people who are interested in my stuff would say the same and if not then maybe I need to do my job a little better.

Lauren David Peden is editor of The Fashion Informer and contributing editor at Rue La La. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times, Surface, Time Out, SHOWstudio, Plastique, Vogue.com UK and many other publications.

Images by Bailey Roberts

Tom Scott is one of the most inventive knitwear designers going. Not content to simply churn out workday pullovers and classic cardigans, this Pennsylvania native has made a name for himself by approaching patterns, yarns and stitches the way a scientist might approach a lab full of raw materials: with curiosity, intelligence and a willingness to experiment—to build things up and break them back down, again and again—until he achieves perfect sartorial alchemy.

Playful and soft-spoken, Tom—who worked at Ralph Lauren before launching his own line in 2001—is also well-known for his New York Fashion Week presentations, which stand out for their sly wit and creativity. Whether they feature vintage mannequins spinning records at a decommissioned dry cleaner (Fall 2009), sweaters strung from the ceiling in a gallery tableaux curated by artist Ab Rogers (Fall 2008), models in various states of disarray at the Chelsea Hotel, with Jack Daniels bottles and “Dear John” letters at their elbows (Spring 2010), or a co-ed gym class held at a high school in the West Village (Spring 2011), Tom’s Fashion Week outings—mounted with the help of his longtime stylist/creative director (and Dossier contributor), Haidee Findlay-Levin—are a highlight of every fashion season. So, too, his lookbooks (also done in collaboration with Haidee and photographer Stephen Rose), which always tell a story as unique and evocative as the collections they showcase. And before he begins every collection, Tom spends a month or so putting together a small, beautifully crafted inspiration book full of quirky collages and (often laugh-out-loud funny) text.

In addition to helming his own label, Tom worked on John Malkovich’s Uncle Kimono collection from 2005 to 2006, designed for TSE in 2009 and did several capsule collections for RAOUL in 2010. He was awarded the Ecco Domani Fashion Fund prize in 2007, nominated for a Woolmark Award in 2008 and was chosen for the CFDA Incubator in 2010. Last year, he introduced home goods (think: knit chairs and furry cushions). The designer’s latest project is launching e-com on the Tom Scott website, and he recently debuted his first Resort collection, inspired by the idea of the waning American Dream melded with African prints.

Lauren David Peden: So I know you’re from Pennsylvania, but how did you first discover fashion?

Tom Scott: My family all does textiles. My father was a carpet weaver and my grandmother was a lace maker. So that’s how I was first exposed to textiles. But fashion I didn’t really find until I moved here [New York] because I studied textile design and knits at school but it was more “arty.” And I didn’t actually make clothing in school; I just literally knit swatches of fabric. It was all about technique of stitch and structure.

Lauren: You went to school in Scotland?

Tom: In Scotland and in Philadelphia. I first went to Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science and then I went to the Scottish College of Textiles; it’s part of Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh.

Lauren: So your family is Scottish?

Tom: Yes, my father’s family is Scottish; my father’s from Glasgow.

Lauren: And your grandmother was a lace maker here or in Scotland?

Tom: First in Scotland and then here. She left school when she was 14 and did this funny course in Scotland—it was called a needle-worker’s training course or something—for two years, and then when she moved to Philadelphia she worked for a company called Quaker Lace for forty years. She made fabric, and she even used to make bobbin lace. Do you know bobbin lace? You twist the bobbins around to create these lace patterns. She was really an amazing woman. I used to love to watch her make things. She had really bad cataracts, too, and she could do it just by memory. I used to spend summers with my Scottish grandparents so I was around her a lot. I really liked to create and [liked] hanging out with her and making things. So that’s how it kind of started, really.

Lauren: And what is it about knits in particular that really speaks to you? I mean, aside from the family stuff.

Tom: I love the sense of immediacy of it; that’s the first thing. Because you can make something quite fast, so I can get an idea if I’m going to like something or not right away. I really understand the stitching—the stitch—so I understand how to make the fabrics, and that’s interesting to me. So that’s number one. And number two is I love the sense of experimentation. I like to play around. When I went to college, you could do knit, print or weave. It was a textile design degree, but you had to choose one of the three to focus on. And the teachers wanted me to do weaving, but it just took too long because you had to wind the warp and thread the loom and everything, and it was, like, two weeks before you could start making fabric. With a knitting machine you can just sit down and start going.

Lauren: So your impatience contributed?

Click “Read More” for additional images and text.

Tom: Yeah, I guess I’m a little impatient. But I also just really understood knitting, like I got A’s in all the knitting classes and I remember being, like, “How weird I understand all this knitting stuff?” That’s why I ended up doing it, because I just really grasped the idea of it so I thought it would be fun to experiment with what I could do. That’s really how it began; just experimenting on the machine and playing with stitches. And that’s how I started my line. When I first started, I just did accessories. It was all about developing stitch and shape on the machine; it wasn’t about clothing as much as it is now.

Lauren: So walk me through your career. Did you start the Tom Scott collection before you were at Ralph Lauren?

Tom: When I first graduated from college, for a year I just did freelance textile design and that’s how I got a job at Ralph Lauren. They saw and really liked my work, and they kind of created this position for me. So I worked there for seven years, and I started my line maybe four years into it, around 2001, and left there in 2004. After I left Ralph Lauren, I was doing some consulting jobs for another accessories company, which was more of a mass-market company. I worked for them as a part-time creative director for four years. And then I did TSE for one season. But I also did other projects, like I worked with John Malkovich on his menswear line for two seasons, which was super fun.

Lauren: I bet. He’s a character.

Tom: Yeah, super fun. He’s really into clothes and has a really cool eye. He used to come over to my apartment and sit at my kitchen table with me. He’s cool; he’s almost exactly the same in film [as] in person. So he did this Gustav Klimt collection, and the season before that he just had some wacky ideas. We did this sweater that was red and it was really oversized with pockets, a men’s sweater, and he called it “The Fucking Commie Sweater.” I used to love that I got to take it to the factory and it was like “The Fucking Commie Sweater” and they’re Chinese so….(laughing). I still have a lot of the prototypes of things I made with him. They’re all really quirky, in really weird colors. But it was fun. That’s the first time I ever did menswear.

Lauren: You launched your own menswear two seasons ago, right?

Tom: We’ve been doing it roughly for three seasons, but not a full collection. We just kind of integrate it [with the women’s line]. I wanted to start making things that I would want to wear. We did a sweater for spring that has my initials sewn into it but they’re upside down.

Lauren: Like your logo?

Tom: Yeah. It’s funny—it’s like a letterman’s sweater. I always like a little sense of humor. I think you should be able to laugh at clothes, right?

Lauren: Yeah, absolutely!

Tom: So that’s kind of how I started. The first season I did this little rinky-dink lookbook and we shot it on my friend’s girlfriend, who was a singer, and that’s how we started selling it. Ikram bought it that very first season. I had a meeting with them in a hotel room in the Chambers; they wrote an order right there. I mean people like that I’ve been selling to for ten years, almost since she opened her store. I remember [the buyer] I used to work with at Ikram once called me and was like, “You didn’t do anything for spring?” and I was like “No, no, I didn’t…” (laughing) I didn’t really know what I was doing. And she was like “Well, make some t-shirts and I’ll buy them!” and so I came up with some t-shirt ideas and sent them to her and she wrote an order for 30 t-shirts. So that’s kind of how it started. It just felt very organic and I had no idea about doing a real collection. And then as I started doing it I started feeling like, ‘Oh, I have an idea for this,’ and that’s how it started going into full clothing. I started making accessories that had sleeves or a weird scarf thing that you could wrap around.

Lauren: So you started at the neck and worked your way down?

Tom: Yeah, kind of. I started playing around. With other stores coming in—like Susan and Barneys—they wanted to have bottoms to wear with some of the tops or wanted to make a full look. So it just naturally evolved and now we do around 70 styles, including accessories.

Lauren: I want to talk about your presentations in a minute but first, would you walk me through your creative process, using some of these books.

Tom: Sure, sure.

Lauren: Now, have you always done these inspiration books?

Tom: Yeah. A big part of the way I studied at school was a lot of paperwork and research—it was all about research. We could do research any way we wanted; it was very freeform. So some people painted. For me, I love collage, and I’m a total collector of paper. I collect napkins from restaurants, sandwich wrappers from Paris… I have this weird attachment to papers and books.

Lauren: And what is all this? What is all this text?

Tom: [Opens a book] So this collection was for Spring ‘07. It was inspired by [Michelangelo] Antonioni’s Red Desert and the idea of controlled chaos. You know Monica Vitti in that film, she kind of goes crazy halfway through the film; she kind of loses her mind. But there’s this sense of control and she always looks really amazing… So it’s kind of that sense of what’s on the outside versus what’s on the inside. I’m always interested in that idea. I think it relates a lot to clothing and [what you’re presenting] outside and how you really are on the inside—that kind of duality. This is Bruce Nauman, who does all those amazing video pieces. I always liked his spirit of individuality. This text is from this really funny etiquette book that I bought at a flea market and it’s about what women should wear. It says: “Colors that may or may not be worn by brunette or gray hair” and it’s a chart, so it kind of charts your hair color (laughing). And then [there’s] this whole sense of layering. I kind of went through a few seasons of this idea of underpinnings and underwear, but I love this whole sense of layering so I played around with that. The format of the books has changed quite a lot since I started making them. They’ve got a lot cleaner, and recently it’s more just image-based. I think I just got tired of making collages every season. It’s too much the same thing. Often I like to play with text too, like upside down. My logo is upside down. I like a lot of times the way text looks upside down more than straight.

Lauren: Why is your logo upside down?

Tom: It kind of happened by accident. I printed something and it came out that way and thought it looked more interesting—my name is so simple. But it’s also nice because a lot of my clothes you can wear more than one way, so it sort of refers to that as well.

Lauren: So what is your creative process like?

Tom: It really starts with the idea and then the fabric. Usually I just start working through concepts in my mind. It’s never just one thing; it’s usually a whole collection of ideas I’m thinking about that moment. I make the book first. Although now that I have this bigger studio and a showroom [at the CFDA Incubator], I set up this blackboard and I’ve been doing a huge collage on the wall of all those ideas. It’s a different way to work than I’ve done before. So I usually start that way—with this collection of ideas and images and concepts that I work it out in the book or [blackboard] or in whatever format I’m using—and then I’ll start pulling a palette and materials from there.

Lauren: So what are these other books?

Tom: This book was the hair book, the hair culture book. So this, we even used hair ties to tie it.

Lauren: I love it! And this is the presentation [Fall 2010] that was shown at Beauty Bar?

Tom: Exactly, yeah in the beauty parlor. So this one’s really cool. I love the beginning of it, with that weird hairpiece. I actually have this weird fascination with hair and wigs. I don’t know why but I always have. So this was a book I found on eBay. It’s a book from the 1920s about how to take care of your hair called Hair Culture.

Lauren: And where did you find the other images?

Tom: Books… I also love to look on Flickr because you often find these very quirky, cool things; all different sort of images. This collection was really an experiment in texture and stitch. I used to work predominantly with shape more in jersey or simple fabrics, but now I’ve become more interested in stitch. You know, I like to challenge myself every season or to make the collection a little different.

Lauren: What have you done that you’ve been surprised at how well it did? Was there any one piece that you were like “What the what?”

Tom: Recently it’s, you know…how basic people want things. In this collection [Fall 2011], we did bright basics like this hot pink, very simple boxy sweater and little cardigans. People really like basics. You know, they like the concept of a collection but when it actually comes down to ordering, we find that a lot of people really like that basic piece; it’s very American. I’m learning. Every season from now on, we’re going to have ten very simple sweaters that still have my little detailing to them but that are quite simple and basic—and accessories, too.

Lauren: That’s smart. It’s what people wear every day.

Tom: I started my collection as accessories so it’s funny how big a part accessories are, especially for the fall collection—like the gloves. And this season, we’re working with Saks.com so the accessories buyer came and did a whole separate buy and it’s good for us. It’s something that I think we can really grow. I want to do more accessories because every store orders accessories from us, you’ll know they’ll add on. So it’s a big part of the order.

Lauren: And what’s the fall collection about?

Tom: For spring, I had been interested in this whole idea of Americana so that collection was an experiment in that. It’s all kind of tongue-in-cheek, but taking elements of very classic utility clothes and somehow making them girlier, sort of feminizing them. And fall was the exact opposite. I’ve been feeling a little bit more, I don’t know…bipolar lately, almost like every season I want it to be completely different. So for fall we called it “Dressing for Pleasure” and it was inspired by deviance and living on the fringe.

Lauren: And how did that play out in the collection?

Tom: The collection was a lot more form-fitted. I wanted it to be kind of rich and dark. The main colors were black and navy, all I kept thinking about was black and navy, mixing them together. And then we added a really hot pink—a really bright, shocking pink—which we did really well with. And we did four pieces this season with a Japanese knitting machine company. They are seamless; the garment is knit all at once with a machine. I like to construct the garments in interesting ways. But it’s something that the wearer can really appreciate because when you put it on you don’t feel any seams so it’s nice. And I’m really interested in texture and pattern more and all these different embellishments. Also, for the first time I did prints. Two prints that were both inspired by static on television.

Lauren: I know a lot of your pieces are unisex.

Tom: Yeah I’m very interested in that. I probably told you this before but I love this idea that you and your boyfriend could buy something and share it. I love that; I think it’s very modern. Especially in New York where we don’t have much space so it’s better for you to share your clothes.

Lauren: And I know a lot of your stuff is dual-purpose or triple-purpose. Why is that important?

Tom: I think it’s nice to have options, isn’t it? It’s quite modern to have something that could be more than one thing. It’s playful but practical. You know, I think it’s important and actually I am quite practical, I think, with the way I design. And the way I live is practical, so it obviously has an effect on the way I design.

Lauren: Alright, so tell me how did you meet Haidee? How’d you guys start working together?

Tom: I always really liked her work and she was friends of friends of mine, so I just contacted her and that’s how we began working together five, six years ago. And then we became really good friends; Haidee is one of my dearest friends. Also Steve [Rose], who is a photographer, I’ve been working with him all that time, too.

Lauren: So you do all the presentations and lookbooks together?

Tom: Uh huh yeah, we’re like a little family. We’re kind of telling this story over time, you know? I mean, the aesthetic has changed, which is good—I think that’s healthy— and obviously the photographs and the way we do the books and things have changed a little bit. But yeah, I’m very loyal and I think when you have that kind of chemistry with people, you know, why change it? People are always changing who they’re working with, but I think that just confuses things. It’s kind of nice to tell this continuous story. I want what I do to have a handwriting.

Lauren David Peden is editor of The Fashion Informer and contributing editor at Rue La La. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times, Surface, Time Out, SHOWstudio, Plastique, Vogue.com UK and many other publications.

Images by Samantha Casolari

Meet Tess Giberson in person and it’s immediately apparent that the designer is smart, funny, thoughtful and low-key. See her collection in person and it’s immediately apparent that she’s also something of a badass, with a strong subversive streak that asserts itself throughout her work, in ways that whisper rather than shout.

Take, for instance, her leggings from Fall 2010, which tweaked the ubiquitous trend by rendering them in an extra-long cashmere knit mesh that managed to be subtly sexy rather than obvious or vulgar. Fast forward to Spring 2011, when she offered a backless jacket and upside-down vest/skirt, both of which were as wearable as they were conceptual. And for this coming fall, Giberson, who studied fashion at Rhode Island School of Design and plied her trade at Calvin Klein and TSE before launching her own line—riffed on the idea of “collage” vis-à-vis shirt dresses finished with torn chiffon ruffles and a homespun crocheted jacket toughened up with skinny leather sleeves.

As with all of Giberson’s designs, these are pieces that look terrific from a distance but are best appreciated up-close-and-personal, when the wearer (or observer) gets to fully savor the details—a patchwork panel here, a trompe l’oeil vest there, an artfully placed strap designed to showcase a collarbone elsewhere—that elevate her work above the standard fashion fare.

Earlier this month, the 39-year-old New Hampshire native and her business partners (Domestic Operations Director Vickie See and Global Sourcing and Production Director Harriet Lau) opened a Tess Giberson flagship store on Crosby Street in Soho, where the designer’s clothing is sold alongside jewelry from her friend (and fellow RISD grad) Ninh Wysocan and books and CDs from her artist/musician pals. The space also boasts installations by Giberson’s husband (and frequent collaborator) Jon Widman and artist Carol Bove, whose art also featured heavily in Giberson’s Spring 2011 presentation at 303 Gallery (Giberson, a 2011 Fashion Next designer, showed her fall collection at The Box at Lincoln Center this past February).

Not surprisingly, Giberson’s work has also been exhibited at galleries in New York, Paris and Tokyo and in 2003, she was nominated for the Cooper Hewitt’s National Design Award.

Lauren David Peden: When did you know you wanted to be a fashion designer and when did you first fall in love with fashion?

Tess Giberson: My mom probably would say much earlier, but for me I knew it when I went to RISD. Originally I went to RISD because I thought I wanted to be a jewelry designer, and in the fall you start going to the studios to choose what your major will be. When I went to the apparel studio it was just instant—the smell, the look of the machinery… Everything about it was appealing to me.

Lauren: And had you been into fashion and clothing before?

Tess: Yeah, because I used to draw and it was all about the clothing. So when I was little, all the drawings I would do were almost all clothing; the people kind of were just the mannequins for it. But I was really detailed with the miniskirts, striped shirts—sort of like my ideal outfits.

Lauren: So did you study fashion design at RISD?

Tess: Yes. It was three years. RISD is four years, but you go into three years for your major. Everything about it I loved. I had gone to another school originally and taken some time off, so when I went to RISD I was already 21 so I was really focused on what I wanted to do. I was just completely obsessed with learning as much as I could while I was in school.

Lauren: I did the same thing, actually. I dropped out the first time and went back when I was 23. And having been out in the world, you’re like, “You know what…”

Tess: It makes you realize it’s so valuable being in school. You’re like “I love this; it’s not going to last very long!” (laughs). You don’t have any distractions except for just doing your work.

Lauren: When you graduated, how did your career go? I know you’ve been at Calvin Klein and TSE. But did you start with your own line?

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Tess: No. When I first got out of school, I was in New York for about two weeks and a freelance job came up at Calvin Klein. I just went and was doing boards and [being a] general assistant. I really liked the design director. He and I got a long very well.

Lauren: Was this Francisco [Costa] or before Francisco?

Tess: No, Robert Rigutto. It was the men’s collection. So it just happened; he wanted to keep me around and the sweater designer left. Even though I was right out of school, I’d been there for six months and he was like, “Hey I’ll train you. Do you want to be the sweater designer?” It was also probably because I was a bit older; I was 25. So I was just thrown right into it, which was great.

Lauren: How different is sweater designing than regular designing?

Tess: It’s just more specialized. It was a small team—there were five of us in the men’s collection so everybody did a little bit of everything. But I was fortunate that because that opening came up, I was able to really learn this [skill]. You know sweater designers, it’s just the technical details that are more specialized and learning about the stitches and gauges and all of that.

Lauren: And then from there you went where?

Tess: I was at Calvin for two years and it was a really good experience, especially being the first position [after school]. I think it really built my foundation because it’s so systematic and it’s like, you go to Calvin Klein and any floor you go on in the building, you know you’re at Calvin Klein. From the desks to the flowers to the paper clips. Everything is very organized, and I really love that. It appeals to me. But the process of how to put a good line together, working with the factories, everything; it was rigorous but also it was the Calvin way to do it. It was great training but after two years, I knew I wanted to do my own collection. And I just felt that I was still young enough to take that risk. I didn’t have a family, I didn’t have any financial obligations. I felt like I had to do it then instead of waiting too long. So I left and I freelanced for two years because I really wanted to have time to develop what my aesthetic was and to really experiment before putting it out there. So that’s what I did. I freelanced for different designers and I was doing show production—all things where I would go in, work intensely, and then be able to work in my studio. And then in 2001, I started my own collection.

Lauren: And how old were you?

Tess: I was 29. So I was still, you know, pre-babies [Tess has two children: six-year-old Ezra and three-year-old June].

Lauren: And what was the aesthetic of the first collection?

Tess: I really wanted to put a lot of handwork into it and to experiment with the materials, the fabrics. It actually had nothing to do with sweater designing. Even though I’d done that at Calvin, my own collection was more woven-based and I did my own patterns. And I did a lot by hand, more because that worked with the resources I had and so to get things that were really interesting, it was better to do it myself and to manipulate the fabrics and take it apart or build it up than to have to buy fabrics that were already embellished. And from that, I just started developing a vocabulary of this very intricate and conceptually focused collection. I had done that since college; I’ve always worked on things that were more about an idea, like a word.

Lauren: So what were some of the early collections?

Tess: The first collection was about protection. And it was just thinking about mark-making and talismans, and putting those pieces, those marks, into the clothing. So I had a jacket that had fragments, or strips, on the back that felt like a protective layer. And it was just experimenting with that idea through the collection. Then I did a series that was a three-part series dealing with community and the effects things have on each other. So the first one [Fall 2003] was called “Structure No. 1.” I had ten outfits and each model had an outfit on [top of] a white slip. I had this wooden structure—it was a circle of wood with poles on it—and each model came out and took off their clothes, took off the outer layers of the clothes and started building up the structure, making a shelter. So after each of the ten models had done that, they wrapped white fabric around it so it went from ten individual looks to a community of ten white slips. That’s an example of the way that I would work. But it was always important that even though it was concept-based, the clothing was very wearable because I always liked the practical side of it, too. And I did one [in Spring 2004] that was called “Each Touch is a Fasten.” That was ten models again and it went from white to black. Then each outfit would have a fabric or color that would connect to the next outfit. So through the ten looks, there was this gradation of fabric, texture, color and as the models came out, each would connect—like unfold something and actually connect it to the next—creating this whole chain. It kind of looked like a paper doll fold-out. It was about trying to find something that was a problem that I had to figure out how to do and show this through a presentation and still have wearable clothing. That was just the kind of thing that I loved to do.

Lauren: And then how did TSE come about?

Tess: TSE I think was a real blessing for me. I’d been doing my collection for five years and as much as I loved doing it, I was doing everything myself. And I wanted to do things on a bigger scale but because I was doing everything myself, it was limiting in what I could really do. Even though I was getting a lot of support and growing, I knew there was some big change I needed. I had just had my son, which is a good time for transitions (laughs). A friend of mine had been styling for TSE and she mentioned that they were looking for a new design director and passed my work along. It was really fast. I think it took about a month from when I found out about it; it all came together very quickly. And I said it was a blessing [because] it just gave me the perspective I needed to step aside from what I had gotten so close to doing; to step back from that for awhile. And when I was there I saw things on a bigger scale. I was able to work while thinking about different markets and I could still do the fashion shows and still work in a conceptual way. The shows weren’t conceptual in a way I was used to, but at least the process of building up a collection I could still do my way. I actually had a lot of freedom within my design room, so it was a really good experience. I grew a lot as a designer through that time. I started in 2005 and was there until 2008.

Lauren: So you left there 2008 and re-launched your line in 2010?

Tess: When I first left, it was in January of 2008 and a friend of mine who was a friend of Vickie [See]’s introduced us, knowing that I really wanted to relaunch my collection and knowing that Vickie was looking to start something of her own. Because her family owned factories [in China] and she’s always worked doing product development and production within her family’s factories, though she wanted something that was hers. So when we met, we instantly connected and started working on the business plan right away. And we did this very, very detailed plan—wrote out the whole thing, had the visuals, it was… I’m still really proud of it! But then we started shopping around for investors and 2008 wasn’t really a good time (laughs). We pretty quickly realized it was not the best time so we just said, ‘Let’s wait on this a little bit.’ Meanwhile, I was just starting to do some freelancing. And then in 2009, Harriet [Lau], who I worked closely with at TSE (she was the director of production for the parent company), left after having been there for 20 years and she got in touch and asked if I wanted to start something. She’s based in Hong Kong and really specializes in knitwear. All these things came together to make it clear that I had to do this again. So Harriet and I started putting together very a small collection, just to get something together. We launched it in Fall 2010, and right after that collection I met back up with Vickie and we pretty much continued where we’d left off. And so the three of us are now partners, each offering our [unique] experience. Everyone knows what they’re doing and it’s a really good partnership.

Lauren: Is the collection all made in Hong Kong?

Tess: No. Knitwear is made in China and we’re actually moving all the wovens back, doing them domestically in New York, which is very exciting. Starting with Fall 2011, it’s all being produced in New York, which is a great thing. It’s what I believe in. We can control the quality more, and it’s just nice to bring it back home. And then outerwear is being produced in Vickie’s factories because they really specialize in that.

Lauren: And how has your aesthetic as a designer changed or evolved since the first time you had your own line to now?

Tess: It’s definitely changed. When I was doing it the first time, I think it reflected how I was dressing at the time. It was a bit… It was just a different time, I guess I’d say. I was younger and had a different aesthetic.

Lauren: So how has it changed?

Tess: The pieces are much stronger, more focused on tailoring. I really am thinking more about the woman who wears it: a strong, confident woman. So how to project yourself in a way that you’re strong but also sexy. And I guess I’m designing more for a woman now; before it was for a younger girl.

Lauren: As you had said earlier, your collections often begin with a word, like “shift” [Spring 2011] or “collage” [Fall 2011].

Tess: I always knew what I wanted to do for spring when I was working on fall. I usually work pretty far ahead with an idea because I want it to relate, so it’s always kind of feeding off of the season before and how it turns into the next collection.

Lauren: So how do Shift and Collage work together in your mind?

Tess: When I was working on Shift, it was the arrangement of the balance and it was also shifting the textures. And as I was working on some of those pieces, I was like, ‘Oh that looks really cool—that looks like a collage.’ So I started thinking I would really like to develop a collection just about collage. And there were a couple of pieces [in Shift] that made me think about collage.

Lauren: Which ones?

Tess: There was a pieced blazer that had Swiss dot, silk and wool. And then there was a striped-and-mesh sweater…I think you have it… that just made me think I’d love to develop a whole collection to push that idea a lot further.

Lauren: So for Collage, what would you say are the two pieces that you think achieved the idea the best?

Tess: I have to bring my head back to fall—I’m so deep into Spring 2012 right now (laughs). Some of the sweaters, actually. I did a lot of cutting things apart and then rearranging them. There’s a sweater that had a handknit that was mixed together with a medium weight sweater. So merging those two pieces together…

Lauren: Not the one that was crochet with leather sleeves?

Tess: No, but that’s another one. But I didn’t show it; it was a piece that was just in the showroom. It was like I had taken a chunky handknit and I cut it apart and then I mixed it back together with a regular weight sweater. It was just playing with the merging of the two different pieces, and how they created a whole new balance. And then the crochet with leather…with that one, it was both the silhouette and also taking something organic [crochet] and mixing it with something more sleek [leather sleeves], and how you combine those two together.

Lauren: Walk me through your creative process. Does it start with the word and then does the word morph to the shapes and the fabrics, or is it different every time?

Tess: I usually always start with the words. I start with the word, I just kind of think about how I can show it, what kinds of things I might do with it. But it’s just purely about the words and talking about it and writing stuff down. And that’s why I like to start much earlier. I always work with my husband, too, in this part of it. We just talk about what the concept is and think about how we could actually show it.

Lauren: Is he a painter and a sculptor?

Tess: Painter, and he does installation. And since the very beginning, I’ve worked with him on the concepts of the collection because before I had my studio, we had a loft. I had my studio on one end and he had his studio on the other, so we’ve always worked really, really closely. He’s really a part of my whole process. We go through that and then I’ll pull together materials and think about the silhouettes and then I’ll start pulling those together. And at that point I’m pretty clear on what I want to do with it so it’s finding the right things to make that happen.

Lauren: So how long does the process usually take from inception to completion, because it seems much longer than most people…

Tess: Well it’s just much longer in terms of… I like to have some time to think about it before having to do anything with it. So it’s just having an idea that floats around for awhile. Then when I actually start putting it together, it’s usually a couple of months for gathering materials and then pulling through all of the development and then putting it to work. From start to finish, I guess it’s about five or six months, depending on whether it’s spring or fall and how much time we have.

Lauren: How many iterations does it go through; how many revisions? Does it sometimes turn out just exactly as it was in the beginning or does it go through many metamorphoses?

Tess: I think with my original collection, it was pretty much exactly how I imagined it. Probably because it was a smaller collection. I think I was always very clear from the start: this is how I’m showing it and then I would build up the collection to make that show. It’s different now because I’m also thinking about how to make a collection to sell, so there is a lot of…it changes. The idea stays the same but I also have the luxury now of not having to make it myself so I can be more critical. Whereas before if you’re making it, you’re more hesitant to be like, ‘Oh no, I don’t want to change that pattern’ (laughs). Now I can say, ‘I don’t like that, I actually want to do it this way.’ So there are a lot of surprises, which I think are really good and have made the collection a lot stronger. And having partners to support that, you know, it’s not just me; we work closely together on the whole process.

Lauren: And could you talk a little bit about collaboration? Because you work with artists a lot. You’ve worked with Jon, of course, and Carol Bove. How did that come about?

Tess: I think it’s because we had a very close group of friends that went to RISD. When I first moved to New York I felt like everyone we knew went to RISD.

Lauren: So who are some of the artists or people you went to school with that you’re still friends with?

Tess: Carol’s husband, Gordon Terry. Jenny Newman [Accessories Design Director at 3.1 Phillip Lim] who introduced me to Vickie, one of my best friends, Raphael… We were in apparel together and he’s actually the person from my class who I’ve stayed in touch with the most. I knew so many people that went to RISD that are here now.

Lauren: And Carol was one of them?

Tess: She went to NYU but she’s married to Gordon. I mean it’s not everyone that I collaborate with, but it was a really interesting group of people and it’s a great way to work because if you’re working with someone that you like and respect—you know you like their work—you can trust that something good will come out of it. So when I started doing my collections, we had a friend build a set for us and I just told him what it was about and he built something that was so much better than what I would’ve imagined. And I worked with Lindsey Adelman once doing lighting. She went to RISD and she’s a great lighting designer, and she did something that was just so cool for this early project I had done. So you realize you get so much more out of a project when you can collaborate with someone. And everyone gets something from it because what I’ve heard from people who have done the projects is, they have a good time because it’s not for them; it’s become something else. I just really like that way of working; it’s exciting seeing what comes out of it.

Lauren: And with Ninh [Wysocan], who did the jewelry?

Tess: Yes. She went to RISD, too (laughs). I feel like I’m always like, ‘RISD!’ You know it’s just when you have good experiences… Her husband, Erik, went there. He built the boxes in the front [Tess Giberson store] space. He was in architecture.

Lauren: Oh, I love it. So tell me about the installations that Carol did for the spring presentation? Was that based on Shift or did it just happen to work?

Tess: I told her what the collection was about and then she found elements that made sense with that. I didn’t tell her at all what to do. I just told her what it was about, we went to her studio and just chose things that made sense, and then she just put the whole thing together.

Lauren: That’s very cool.

Tess: I love what she did. I mean, I really love her work.

Lauren: And for fall, you took a sort of different approach.

Tess: You know, showing in Lincoln Center was an opportunity that came up [through Fashion Next] and I thought it would be good to try to do something in that kind of environment. I mean the environment was just sort of a blank and I was focusing more on the looks and an abstracted arrangement with the set. I worked with a friend of ours because he’d done a lot of things in that space, so he knew [how to work with] the black backdrop, which is a little tricky. Timing was a real issue because we only had two hours. I’m used to being able to go in the night before and have some time to arrange things. So it was just figuring out within that how to make it work back to Collage.

Lauren: And did it refer back to Collage?

Tess: It didn’t because the idea of it was taking these metal planes—we had these big metal sheets—and arranging it and having this white bench and the black walls. Originally we wanted to have a much more complex set, but that wouldn’t have worked in that space. The original idea that Jon was going to do would have been amazing in a big white room, but in a black space that was pretty small. We had to sort of abstract that original idea.

Lauren: And tell me about opening the store.

Tess: It’s very exciting for us. Well, we had the space—we had our showroom in the front—and then we started the renovation. At the time I was still working from my studio home (laughs). When Vickie and I met back up, she had just gotten the space so we were talking about how the studio could be in the back and the store could be in the front. It just made sense since we had the space so we started the renovation last November. It was actually really fast and we finished it in January. But we wanted to wait to officially open the store [until May] because I needed to be in the space before I knew what I wanted to put into it. So we did the showroom in February and then we moved the spring collection in the beginning of March. And over that next month and a half, we really got to feel what we wanted, You know, where do we want the mirror, just things like that. We weren’t working with an architect for that. It’s hard to know until you’re in the space what makes the most sense. And with the jewelry too, I knew I wanted jewelry but I didn’t even know where I wanted to display it. So now we’re actually going to create a display case. Jon’s doing that right now.

Lauren: So what were the characteristics of the space that you knew you wanted going in?

Tess: To maintain some of the original environment because it’s a really old building. This was the original ceiling and we uncovered it and found this beautiful wood ceiling and the brick wall. Then painting it white but not completely covering it—we actually just primed it, I wanted to keep it so it wasn’t too perfect because I like where you have the character—it’s clean but it’s not too perfect. We wanted to keep a little bit of the rawness, and then the floors have a very clean, light and airy feeling. And we also wanted to keep the flow; the openness to the front to the back.

Lauren: Yes, I see you didn’t bring the wall all the way up.

Tess: Yes, we kept that open and it’s just nice how your eye carries through. And then as far as the rest, [we wanted] everything flexible so we can move it around the space. Every season, I want to do something with another person and have it work with the collection. I just feel like it’s important to work around that so…I’m just working out what we’re doing for fall but things need to be able to shift around whatever that presentation is.

Lauren: So what did you for spring?

Tess: Spring is with Carol. It was sort of a continuation of what we did for the show but because the space is a lot smaller, we’re still working with what makes sense for the space. It’s been really nice to work here; it has really good energy.

Lauren: Any other collaborations or anything coming up that you want to talk about?

Tess: We’re definitely doing sunglasses for spring 2012, which will be really fun.

Lauren: And what stores are you wholesaling to now?

Tess: Barneys, Ron Herman, Joan Shepp, Weathervane… We’re in 25 stores now and this coming spring we’ll be expanding to Europe. So we’re on track; it all goes back to our business plan. I have to say it’s really nice because we had this laid out and it’s great to have worked out the original plan and to see that things are coming together how we were projecting it is good. I like that—I like organization—so it’s great!

Lauren David Peden is editor of The Fashion Informer and contributing editor at Rue La La. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times, Surface, Time Out, SHOWstudio, Plastique, Vogue.com UK and many other publications.

Juan Carlos Obando. Images and Text by Lauren David Peden.

I’ve been covering New York Fashion Week for nearly a decade now—first for Fashion Wire Daily and now for Vogue.com UK, WWD.com and my blog, The Fashion Informer—so you would think I’d have things down to a science. In some ways I do: I never arrive at a show without my seat assignment in hand. I never leave home without a Crunchy Peanut Butter Clif Bar in my bag. And I never wear shoes I can’t motor in (even if they are Rick Owens platform boots).

But there’s really only so much you can plan for when covering the shows. Things start late, which means you’re late for the shows that follow. You can’t find a cab when you need one. It starts to rain (or snow or sleet) and you’re caught with out gloves, a scarf or hat. The subway you planned to take is out of service and you’re left to scramble to get from the Upper East Side to the farthest reaches of Chelsea, in ten minutes or less. The batteries on your digital tape recorder die in the middle of a backstage interview. A junior clipboard girl—oops, I mean publicist—is having a bad day and decides to take it out on you. And so on and so forth.

Don’t get me wrong. I love fashion and I love what I do. But there are times during NY Fashion Week when the packed-to-the-gills schedule and overwhelming exhaustion conspire, making it difficult to remember what it was that excited you about fashion in the first place. And then you see a breathtaking presentation by a terrific newcomer or witness an exciting evolution by an established designer or have a wonderful conversation with a great new acquaintance, and suddenly you feel a surge of adrenaline and optimism that makes you remember: Oh, yeah. This is what it’s all about. This is why I do what I do.

So when Dossier asked me to chronicle a day of my choosing during the Fall 2011 shows, I jumped at the chance to share all of the above (the good, the bad and the ugly). The day of reckoning comprised ten shows by designers both established (Vera Wang, Rodarte, Rachel Roy, Halston), emerging (Frank Tell, Daniel Vosovic, Jen Kao) and somewhere in between (Juan Carlos Obando, House of Waris, Bibhu Mohapatra). These were just a handful of the 66 NYFW events that I was scheduled to attend.
Here’s how it went…

Frank Tell

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The day is slated to begin with Rachel Roy’s presentation at Lincoln Center at 9:30am. I get up at 6am so I have time to file my Vogue.com UK reviews from the day before. Normally I’d take the subway into Manhattan—I live in Astoria—but since the Manhattan-bound N train isn’t stopping at my station this week due to track work, I jump in a cab instead. In between tweeting for The Fashion Informer and Rue La La (I’m their guest blogger during NYFW), I field queries from my Vogue.com editors. When I pull Tuesday’s stack of invites out of my bag, I realize that I’d misread the time and am actually 45 minutes earlier than I need to be…

When I arrive at 9:40, the scene at Rachel Roy’s presentation is chaotic, with photographers wrangling to get a shot of ubiquitous NYFW fixture/celebrity stylist June Ambrose, who is certainly up for the occasion in a beaded silver dress and belted army green coat accessorized with snakeskin booties, a Birkin bag, fur shawl, towering turban and oversized shades and jewelry. Roy, on the other hand, looks preternaturally gorgeous in a simple burgundy suede dress, and her collection—a layered, Paris-meets-Peru mash-up of colorful Bolivian-inspired tunics, ponchos, scrunchy wool socks and hiking boots worn with refined coats, pretty floral dresses, tweedy jackets and Mongolian wool snoods topped by fabric-woven braids—is both sassy and sophisticated.

I find myself with time to kill before Vera Wang at 11am and pop into the Lincoln Center Espresso bar. Then it’s on to the show. The program notes promise a collection inspired by “the grace, romance and effortless style of the iconic American women who fascinated the English aristocracy during the 1930s” (e.g., Lady Emerald Cunard, Wallis Simpson, etc.), and there’s a stately wrought iron gate at the head of the runway. Consequently, it’s a bit of a jolt when the first look out is an uber-modern quilted black scuba coat with fur trim and a leather harness worn atop a long pleated chiffon shell and skinny charcoal pants with towering black platform booties. Schiaparelli, where art thou? Wang works a variation of this statement-coat-and-charcoal-layers theme for a good dozen or so looks—all accompanied to the sound of frantic typing on the soundtrack, as though an urgent telegram was being sent from somewhere backstage—before the coats shrink to nothing more than hoods and the tunic-and-pants combo gives way to delicate pleated chiffon dresses in soothing shades of stone, putty, loden, mustard, dusty pink and cardamom, some worn with elbow length leather gators. Pleats are the story here, and Wang explores her narrative from every angle (literally—box pleats, accordion pleats and multi-pleats adorn every surface of every dress).

Electric hay bales at Rodarte

Next stop: Rodarte. It’s noon and the Mulleavy sisters are once again showing about as far west as you can get in Chelsea without falling into the Hudson River. The first thing to greet me upon entering the venue are three bundles of florescent lights at the head of the runway. “They’re like neon hay bales!” says Rodarte publicist Brian Phillips with a laugh. Indeed. Said hay bales, each of which contains 37 individual florescent tubes reinforced with Rebar, were constructed by the Jersey-based Bernhard Link Theatrical. “Being a lovely and organic kind of feel and trying to roll with Fashion Week as it’s coming, the young ladies decided to change gears two days ago and we were able to make this work for them at the last minute,” said Colin from BLT with a smile.

The second thing I see upon entering the venue, which is perhaps even more dazzling than the first, is the equally shiny Anna dello Russo, who’s wearing a gold fringed dress with matching gold nail gels, a Dolce & Gabbana belt and aviator shades. I say hi to Lynn Yaeger and scope out the celebs before heading to my seat. It’s in the second row but is positioned so I can easily see the runway—and Anna Wintour, who appears to be wearing an entire leopard on her back.

The collection, which unspools to some major rock, thanks to the Led Zeppelin soundtrack, is very Rodarte on the Prairie, with long quilted coats and patchwork sweaters over sweetly sprigged underskirts, the toppers constructed with diamond-shaped keyholes at the waist to allow for a glimpse at the confection beneath. Inspired by Terrence Malick’s Days of Heaven and worn with surprisingly walkable shoes (as opposed to their usual Bride of Frankenstein contraptions), this sunny pastel reverie takes a more sinister, “Toto, we’re not in Kansas anymore” turn when Lindsey Wixson and Karlie Kloss take to the stage in blood red dresses—the latter working her thrilling metronome head and 20-yard-death-stare to the max—before returning to the cozy-cute safety of Laura Ingalls Wilder territory for the neon-lit finale.

I brave the crush to congratulate Kate and Laura, then it’s back up to Lincoln Center (The Studio this time) for Jen Kao’s 1pm show. I love Jen and I love Keegan Singh (who styled the show), but I’m not quite sure what to make of the collection, which is a hodgepodge of fringe, chiffon, metallics, molded leather and peacock-print furs, sometimes all in the same look. There’s a lot going on. On the upside, I am seated beside my pals Doria Santlofer, Amina Akhtar and Harriet Mays Powell (all New York Magazine alum), and we gossip and people-watch until the show begins. “Hi Bill!” sings Harriet when legendary New York Times street style photographer (and upcoming documentary subject) Bill Cunningham sits down beside us. “Did you see your movie?” Bill looks like Harriet has asked him to streak down the runway in his skivvies while eating a can of worms. “Oh, no!” he replies in horror, his face scrunched in distaste.

An artistic depiction of Anna Wintour in front of Lincoln Center

Afterwards, I’m gabbing with Doria and halfway across Lincoln Center plaza when I realize my 2pm show is…back in Lincoln Center. That’s what happens during Fashion Week; you suddenly suffer from instant and pervasive short-term memory loss due to being sleep deprived and over-scheduled.

I run back inside for the Bibhu Mohapatra presentation at The Box, which features models in ladies-who-lunch updos wearing ladies-who-lunch-gone-wild coats and jackets, most of which sprout tufts of fur or goat hair that climbs up sleeves, erupts from necklines or encircles the torso. It’s all done to great sophisticate-gone-savage effect. I also love his graphic use of black and white, which is especially winning when worn atop black-and-mesh striped long sleeved t-shirts.

Fifteen minutes later, I’m seated at a table at P.J. Clarke’s across from Lincoln Center, menu in hand and iPhone on table. I order a burger and fries (no Fashion Week starvation diet for me) and catch up on emails, texts and Twitter.

Juan Carlos Obando is my first show of the evening and he presents his collection—inspired by the theatricality of Queen and KISS performances, mixed with the ghostly allure of the Nicole Kidman film The Others—at Eyebeam Gallery, which is in the furthest reaches of Chelsea. I love his ruffled chiffon gowns and strict black suits, but have mixed feelings about the gold leather appliqués that are supposed to signify strength but read too cartoonish in relation to this otherwise sophisticated collection. Better are the black leather cages that encase a series of cocktail frocks. They’re subversively sexy without being obvious, and play up Obando’s razor sharp tailoring and impeccable craftsmanship. Shoe designer (and frequent JCO collaborator) George Esquivel sits down beside me for a quick chat as the models waft in and out of the smoke that fills the venue, appearing and disappearing beneath artfully placed spotlights like figures in a dream. I head backstage to greet the LA-based designer, who scoops me up in a big bear hug and literally sweeps me off my feet (JC and I go way back, and he is an excellent hugger.) He then gives me an up-close-and-personal tour of the collection, and I take a few snaps of the models lined up, awaiting their next catwalk turn, with close-ups of their gold buns and gold fingertips (“It’s meant to symbolize the Midas touch!” says JC as stylist Lawren Howell adjusts each girl’s look just before they reemerge into the spotlight.

Backstage at Juan Carlos Obando

I’m supposed to head over to the Halston presentation, which is five blocks north of the JCO event, but it’s now 6:50 and I’m worried that doing so will mean missing the Daniel Vosovic show at 7. What to do, what to do? I decide to go for it and sprint up the West Side Highway from 21st to 26th Street. I do a 10-minute drive-by at Halston. The takeaway: 27 girls on pedestals, wearing long, languid cashmere, chiffon and jersey dresses (even the eveningwear here feels more like a dress than a gown, due to designer Marios Schwab’s easy cuts and avoidance of bling), along with tuxedo jumpsuits, rabbit fur chubbies and olive suede trousers worn with a matching leather blazer. It’s good, but the presentation is so packed that you can’t see the looks from afar and are staring up the girls’ noses when you get closer (a problem I encountered at many presentations thisweek).

I make it over to the Metropolitan Pavilion on 18th Street with plenty of time to spare (whew). The glossy wooden runway at Project Runway alum Daniel Vosovic’s show is covered in autumn leaves, which looks pretty but is highly slippery (read: treacherous). I almost take a header while walking to my seat and see a dozen more people skitter across the floor, which doesn’t bode well for the models. Miraculously, none of the girls take a tumble. Vosovic shows some terrific graphic digital print silk tops and dresses (which are fast becoming his signature) along with skinny paneled pants. As on other runways this week, the looks are layered and the silhouette is long, longer, longest with several of the dresses trailing behind the girls. I run backstage to congratulate Daniel and jump in a cab to go up to Columbus Circle.

I’m lucky enough to have a driver who knows exactly where the Museum of Arts and Design is (having lived in New York more than 20 years, I’ve never been there before, oddly), and he streaks up Sixth Avenue and across 59th Street before depositing me at the House of Waris presentation hosted by jewelry/scarf designer, Waris Ahluwalia at 7:45 (it’s scheduled to run til 8). The elevator doors open onto the second floor and the first person I bump into—literally—is Chloe Sevigny and her pal Tara Subkoff. Both tell me they’re wearing Waris jewelry. I’ve apparently just missed Angelica Huston, Suzy Menkes, Franca Sozzani, Bibhu Mohapatra, Arden Wohl, Elise Øverland and Tory Burch. But the always gracious Waris is in the corner greeting his more proletarian guests and, after checking out his more-delicate-than-expected gold and diamond jewelry (displayed in glass cases) and soft, colorful scarves (displayed on fishing wire strung from the ceiling and on otherwise naked young models—well, they’re wearing bikini underwear—who stand shivering in front of the floor-to-ceiling windows), I go over to say hi.

House of Waris Fall 2011

Leaving, I run-walk up Columbus Avenue to see Frank Tell’s 8pm show at The Box at Lincoln Center. Tell’s publicist brings me backstage for a pre-show interview for my WWD.com review, but the designer (who is wearing braces on his teeth, making him look as young as the models at Waris) is clearly overwhelmed, so I snap a few shots and go back outside to wait for the presentation to begin. Tell has commissioned a special film for the occasion, and it plays on a four-sided screen suspended above a sand-filled square in the center of the room. As Timo Andres and Tema Wattstein play an original composition created for the event, out come Tell’s models, who look like a fearsome cross between Mad Max, Tank Girl and Juliette Lewis in her pre-hab cornrowed days. Riffing on the idea of entropy (and having, indeed, been inspired by Mad Max and Planet of the Apes), Tell reworks lace, leather, mohair, fox and chiffon into a wondrous cacophony of layers that have been torn, shredded and refashioned into garments that look both DIY and decadently luxe. Neat trick, that.

After having a brief chat with Tell, I call it a night and hop in a cab back to Astoria.

Lincoln Center at night

Dossier Magazine: Shelly Steffee from lina plioplyte on Vimeo.

Shelly Steffee may not be a household name, but among fashion cognoscenti she (and her designs) are held in the highest regard. Considered by many to be a designer’s designer (one who is more likely to be found in her mad scientist lab experimenting with latex and silicone fabrics than vamping for Patrick McMullan Company at the Boom Boom Room), Steffee has been working in the New York fashion industry for more than 20 years and has helmed her own label for the past decade, which can be found at her gorgeous, loft-like store in the Meatpacking District.

Dossier contributor Lauren David Peden has been following—and collecting—Steffee’s work for several years and recently sat down with the designer in her fourth floor workroom overlooking Pastis to discuss food, style, architecture and creative collaboration, all of which play a major part in Steffee’s approach to life and work.

Lauren David Peden: Why did you want to become a designer?

Shelly Steffee: Well, my maternal grandmother was a tailor and my paternal grandmother was a clotheshorse [who] altered her clothes a lot to fit her petite frame. That was my first introduction to a stylist format, because she really did style from top to bottom. You know: hats, gloves, muffs, shoes, belts. I also have her mother’s sewing machine—which is 200 years old now—in the basement. My maternal grandmother was an actual tailor. [She] had a room in her house and I spent a lot of time there. So my grandmothers influenced me; all the women in the family paid acute attention to details and grooming. Skin products, nails, hair, rings, jewelry—the whole thing.

Lauren: Where in Pennsylvania are you from?

Shelly: Northwest, in between Eerie and Pittsburgh.

Lauren: Was this common in the area or not?

Shelly: I don’t think so. I think it’s just part of the family. We broke out of the rural areas and went to Pittsburgh to plays. I grew up in restaurants. My parents owned restaurants. So I think I would have to say that they were progressive and forward for country people and then they were entrepreneurs as well.

Lauren: At what point did you decide you wanted a fashion career?

Shelly: I guess that I knew it all along, but in ninth grade my parents enrolled me in Barbizon School of Modeling. It was a company in Jamestown, New York.

Lauren: I remember their slogan: “Be a model or just look like one.”

Shelly Steffee

Shelly: Exactly. It wasn’t like I was a model, but a portion of the education program was makeup artistry, show production and styling. They put you in all of it. Basically, you’re the model. You learn to do your own makeup, you choose your own three outfits to go down the runway and you produce your own show. You had to do everything; it wasn’t just about looks. I really did it to learn other aspects of the industry that I wanted to be in.

Lauren: And then you went to Drexel.

Shelly: I chose Drexel because a New York fashion school was strictly fashion design and I really felt that I wanted a well-rounded education. Drexel was a university that had five colleges within it. So I got a BA in fashion and a minor in psychology. I really liked the idea of spreading out. The other reason I chose it was [because] it was a co-op school. A co-op is a work experience in your field of study.

Lauren: Like an internship?

Shelly: Exactly, but you got paid. It was real work. You got off school for it. My first co-op job was in Philadelphia on Lancaster Avenue, where I was sewing 40 jackets a day. We did all the sportswear: boxing, crew, jogging; anything that was sport related. I would sit down and that day I might be the zipper setter or the collar setter, the sleeve setter, the body finisher.You moved around to all stations. Then my next program was working for a belt company in New York called Raymon Ridless. They did small leather goods, and basically I sketched design sheets, mocked-up belts. Then I came back to finish school. I won a lot of awards through my senior year. They started something in Philadelphia called Philadelphia Dresses the World. So my clothes were featured in the Bonwit Teller window.

Lauren: When you were how old?

Shelly: I was 22. I had one dress that they featured in the window when I was a sophomore, and then my senior collection I sold off to a lot of wealthy patrons.

Lauren: What was your aesthetic then versus now?

Shelly: Huge shoulder pads. That’s all I remember (laughs). It was definitely a point of view—minimal, architectural, geometric. That was also the ’80s. At that time my icons were Mugler and Norma Kamali.

Lauren: How did you get your first job in New York out of school?

Shelly: I graduated in ’87 and came up to look for a job, and basically there were two types of jobs: You could work at Geoffrey Beene for $13,000 dollars a year or work with a company that could pay you, and I didn’t have any way to survive. I didn’t think it was wise for me to try to waitress and take a low-paying design job. So I ended up landing a job at Liz Claiborne. The pay was better and I felt that maybe I could learn some business things—because I felt that my aesthetic was my aesthetic. So at Liz Claiborne I started as an assistant designer and I was there for three years. I was promoted each year and ended up being an associate designer. Then from there I went to Tahari, where I worked for about two years as a designer in the sportswear division. From there I was hired at Anne Klein II, where I remained for six years. I left in ’97 and went to Brooks Brothers as the women’s design director and I was there until the end of ’98.

Lauren: I know you launched your own line in 1999. Why did you decide to do the line then?

Shelly: I started it because I felt that I had something to say and I saw an opening in the market. I had worked for a lot of bridge companies and bridge was ending, contemporary was not quite what it is today. That was a real niche I felt I could fill—a collection with a designer sensibility at an accessible price point and a conscious fit to an American body. You know, ages 25 to 45.

Lauren: Many designers have a line for a while before they open a store. You opened a store in the Meatpacking District pretty much right away, in 2001. Why was that important to you?

The Shelly Steffee boutique in New York’s Meatpacking District

Shelly: It was always a life dream to have my own boutique in New York City. I mean, I wrote myself a letter when I was in 12th grade, which my mother [recently] sent to me, and that had always been my dream. I wanted to do something beyond clothing and this was a way to showcase that and my interest in the arts and design in general. That’s why I started [the store]. Because my collection is pretty clean, minimal and subtle, and I felt that if I was gonna spend money—instead of spending it on having a couple of fashion shows—why not invest in a store that could be a long-term conversation with the outside world via editors and clientele. They would get an ongoing sense of the image and DNA of the brand. I felt that was the right vehicle for me to communicate my brand in the best way that I could.

Lauren: How did you hook up with [architect] Stephan Jaklitsch [who also designs all the Marc Jacobs stores]?

Shelly: A girl that I worked with at Liz Claiborne ended up becoming the head of Marc by Marc Jacobs. I was looking for architects and calling all my friends, and that’s how we met.

Lauren: What did you like about him?

Shelly: I felt that he was still young and willing to collaborate. I was very definite on what I wanted, because I had been collecting and making an architectural inspiration board and I had kind of been watching this neighborhood and knew what I needed. Because I was inexperienced in retail, I needed a space that could serve as a runway venue, a showroom for wholesale, an ongoing retail store and—possibly if that didn’t work—I had to make it an event space to rent out. I didn’t know how successful [I’d be] or what was going to happen, so I had to have a flexible space. I really wanted someone that could understand that. He had a clean aesthetic and we got along really well.

Lauren: What was the mood you were going for?

Shelly: You know, I had been traveling a lot and I felt at that time that everything was getting too cold in the retail environment. Everybody was kind of into the [minimalist aesthetic] of the Calvin Klein store. Everything was like that. And it started to feel very much the same; even though it was high-end and very refined, it was almost very cold, very separated, very disconnected. I wanted to have an environment that was attacking the five senses. Since I was new at this, I also wanted something that could be flexible and communicate different things to the person. Because I knew I wanted to do art exhibitions and other things, I needed the space to be timeless, yet have a point of difference from all the other stores that were out there. I just knew that I wanted things to be a lot more intimate. I wanted a salon feeling.

Lauren: Tell me more about the artistic collaborations.

Shelly: Every time I design a collection, there’s an inspiration from somewhere. It can be from the street, an architecture book…anywhere. I want to put an exhibition in the store that is linked to the collection at that time. So there are those types of collaborations.

Lauren: Can you give me an example?

Shelly: I did one spring collection that was based around the portrait artist Fernand Khnopff; he’s Belgian. He seemed to capture a woman that I felt directly spoke to me and that I was trying to speak to. They were very modern, very deep women. And he seemed to somehow capture something in their eyes or in their face that told a whole story. They really had a soul and a real story. Good, bad, indifferent or ugly, it was all there and he captured it. I knew once I was doing that collection that I wanted to bring in three different portrait artists for each month I was delivering the collection. So that’s what I did. One person I brought in was a painter (Sydney Albertini), one was a photographer (Maura Sulivan) and one was an illustrator (Zayne Armstrong).

Then there are the other collaborations, which are things like hosting the ICFF—the International Contemporary Furniture Fair—and the Food Festival. The ICFF I did with Stephan, ’cause the theme of that particular design week last year was all about architecture. So I thought it might be great on my ten-year anniversary to celebrate both Stephan and I, revisit what we built together and go one beyond. The new thing I felt was happening with architecture was about the outside coming in through the use of glass, or the garden might be right off the cement or on the roof. So I asked him to think about something that was inside out and he came up with this thing called inversion. From there it developed into the camera obscura. That was a really kind of intimate collaboration. With the Food Festival, I am a foodie and I really had been a supporter of being local—considering that I’ve stayed local as an independent designer all of these years.

Last year’s camera obscura installation

Lauren: Is your line produced here?

Shelly: It’s all produced here in New York. As local as upstairs and in the Garment District. So when I got the chance to do the Food Festival, I thought it might be nice to showcase this whole green, local approach in the state of New York. I went with three chefs that are local, including the chef from Diner in Brooklyn. It was really amazing ’cause I felt that the approach, thoughtfulness and consideration that these people approach their jobs with, they’re aligned with the way that I operate and the way that I think and the way I would hopefully like to approach life.

The important thing is why I collaborate in general. It’s the old thing: Two heads are better than one. If you’re gonna do what you love, the best thing is to work with other passionate people who do what they love and hopefully you’ll enhance each other’s skill, craft and whatever you wanna call it…artistry or creativeness, let’s say that. I consider that one of the best parts of having my own business—the collaborative work that I do.

Lauren: And in terms of your actual design work…

Shelly: I feel like the best thing as a designer is evolution. You hope to keep getting better, and I feel that I have gotten better. I really try to approach it in an old-fashioned way because I love the process. I try not to be geared solely by money. In my own company I have a little liberty to do that.

Lauren: What is it about the process you like so much?

Shelly: Conceptualizing it. I like trying to test the concepts I’ve come up with and letting them evolve into something, or not. There’s something about that that’s really rewarding, being creative.

Lauren: Can you give me an example?

Shelly: I guess the recent one we’ve been working a lot with is silicone and latexing. Obviously there are a lot of things that come into play with that: How does it stay on the garment? Is it toxic? It’s on shoulders, belts. We’ve been trying this since the Zaha Hadid collection in 2007. I was really inspired by her because a lot of her works are these kinds of model materials. So for us, I was thinking it would be really great if we could translate that into clothing somehow—anything from caulking to siliconing, latexing. It finally came to fruition in fall 2009 with the equestrian collection. We started putting small parts on garments that gave [them] “wear spots” like an old leather chair. So it’s really about starting and trying it on different fabrics, and then when you finally get it to work it’s really rewarding.

From left: The FW07 Zaha Hadid collection; the FW09 equestrian collection

Lauren: Is there a unifying thread among your collections?

Shelly: They’re built from the inside out. Industrial. Things that are functional and modern, [like] architecture, because you’re really worrying about the inside and the infrastructure. You want the garment to stay and last. I like things that are timeless. There’s also always a touch of eccentricity and darkness. It’s about enhancing the individual and trying to break down the avant-garde to a more digestible form.

Lauren: I know your spring 2010 collection was inspired by the architecture of fish. How did that come about?

S/S10

Shelly: My husband and I were on vacation in Berlin and we happened to see an exhibit about the architecture of fish that just spoke to me. I think after coming off spring ’09, it was all about going back to foundations, literally the bra and the panty and building up, wardrobing again. The architecture of fish, along with the ethnic movement, felt like the next progression. Basically, I think that in fashion right now there is a cleansing and rebuilding. I think it’s more important than ever that you strike the right chord between the right silhouette, the right color and the right fabric. It’s kind of separating the boys from the men as far as designers out there. It’s coming back to craft and showing a design muscle. I think all of that was kind of in the hour, and I felt that the architecture of the fish was so complicated, yet so simple.

Lauren: So what’s on tap for fall 2010?

Shelly: I’m still addressing this foundation and still feeling strongly about going back to key items. [The idea of] wardrobing keeps coming up. It’s about a clean start. It’s back to basics, my roots. It was more focused, more intentional.

Lauren: Is that a reaction to the economy?

Shelly: It is. The economy and getting back to what I feel strongly about, what I do—back to the tailoring, color and the right items.

F/W10

Lauren David Peden is the New York Correspondent for Vogue.co.uk and editor of The Fashion Informer. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times, Surface, Time Out, Plastique and many other publications.

Although it seems as though George Esquivel just burst onto the scene last summer with his CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund nomination, the LA-based, self-taught shoe designer has been honing his craft for almost 20 years.

The music-obsessed Esquivel got his start making one-of-a-kind shoes out of his garage for the likes of Pearl Jam, No Doubt, Perry Ferrell and 311 in the early ’90s, and today counts everyone from Janelle Monae and the Kings of Leon to Courtney Cox, David Arquette, Diane Kruger, Sean Lennon and Charlotte Kemp Muhl as clients (the latter of whom wore his-and-her Esquivels to the Fashion Fund cocktail party at Anna Wintour’s house in October).

Esquivel, 39, recently launched ready-to-wear shoe collections for men and women, hand-crafted in the same LA workshop used to produce his custom kicks, all of which share a classics-with-a-twist aesthetic (think: wingtips, oxfords, combat boots and the like rendered in funky color combos from seriously luxe leathers) and range from $650 to $4,500+ for bespoke. This month, the designer will present his F/W10 collection during New York Fashion Week and is scheduled to collaborate on shoes for the Loden Dager and Zero + Maria Cornejo runway shows, along with a few other still-to-be-confirmed projects.

Lauren David Peden: I know you grew up in LA. What was your childhood like?

George Esquivel: My childhood was pretty crazy. We grew up mostly in and out of motels, on welfare and food stamps. My dad was always in and out of jail and causing trouble.

Lauren: Wow, that sounds rough.

George: What would happen is, at the beginning of the school year we’d move into an apartment. Then half way through the year my dad decided he didn’t want to pay the rent anymore, so they’d evict us and we’d move into a [welfare] motel. There were seven of us in the motel room—I’m the oldest of five, plus my mom and my dad. The thing is, my dad at the time was making good money, but he’d spend all his money on drugs, getting high, enjoying life. And then he actually went to prison for murder. So I ended up going to 12 different schools.

Lauren: How did you deal with that?

George: I played sports and I tried to get good grades to be normal. I didn’t want anybody to know about my life. You know, being in high school you just want to fit in, and I never fit in.

Lauren: What sport did you play?

George: I played football; I wrestled one year. All of us played sports. I think sports were our saving grace of not ending up like my dad.

Lauren: I’m curious because you said earlier he made good money. What did he do for a living?

George: Well, my dad was actually a really smart man. At one point he spoke Spanish, English, and he understood French and German very well because he was stationed in Germany during the Vietnam War—just one of those guys that’s really smart, could do anything but was just a waste of talent. So he would always get jobs working as a machine shop operator, in construction, making good money at the time, but he would blow all of his money on drugs or get-rich-quick schemes. What was really weird was that my dad had this really strong sense of morals. He always respected police, but he was a criminal. He would always tell us, “You need to respect the police officers and people in authority.” Maybe it was the military in him—but he never respected authority, which was really funny.

Lauren: Do as I say, not as I do.

George: Exactly, and it doesn’t really work when you have kids, because I used to look at him and think, ‘What a hypocrite.’ It wasn’t until I got older that I realized he was right about everything; he just didn’t do any of it [laughs]. My mom, who moved here from Mexico to marry him, finally kicked him out and now he’s just kind of this old guy who’s semi-homeless on the street. He was in a bad drug deal several years ago and is permanently disabled, so he doesn’t have to work; he’s got a metal plate in his head. He’s 63 and he looks like he’s about 85.

Lauren: That’s intense. Now, at what age did you first become interested in fashion?

George: Well, when I was a kid living in motels, the reruns that were on TV were The Monkeys, The Partridge Family, The Brady Bunch and I Love Lucy, so I’d watch all those and I used to really think, ‘Wow, these guys look really cool.’ And then, remember the movie Taps with Tom Cruise?

Lauren: Yeah.

George: That had a huge influence on me, and I wanted to go to military school after I saw that ’cause they looked so cool.

Lauren: You were, like, “I want a uniform.”

George: Well, when you don’t have clothes and you see these cool uniforms and their shoes are polished and they did the rifle thing, you’re thinking, ‘Man, that is so amazing.’ That was a huge influence on me. I was probably in junior high, maybe freshman year. But even watching TV reruns, I would always notice their shoes, maybe because I never had good shoes. We always had the fakes—we never had the real Reebok, we never had the real Nike, we never had the real anything. I think God has a pretty good sense of humor, given how he’s blessed me with amazing shoes. Now I can do anything I want with shoes, and I never had shoes growing up so it’s pretty cool.

Esquivel’s S/S10 men’s collection at New York Fashion Week.

Lauren: So how did you get into shoe making?

George: Well, I graduated in ’89 and right out of high school I was into the whole punk and the rockabilly scene here in Orange County. I used to buy vintage clothes and shoes, but I never found anything I liked in terms of new footwear. My now-wife, who was my girlfriend at the time, we were in Mexico and I saw a sign that said shoemaker, so I went in and asked if he could make a pair of black-and-white pointy spectators. They made them for me and that was it. I was hooked. And I was already buying workwear shirts—like Dickies and UPS driver shirts—and reworking them for all the local bands and my friends with my mom, who was not a professional seamstress but was handy with a sewing machine. We actually had a pretty good account base. I think I got up to 25, 30 stores around the country. But I didn’t know what I was doing; it was just a hobby.

Lauren: And how did the shoe line develop?

George: We were making all these shirts in my living room and selling them. Now the shoes come into play, but I can’t go to Mexico every time somebody wants a pair of shoes. So I did the research for about a year—this was before the Internet, so I’m driving around to all the shoe repair shops in LA—and finally found someone who could make them. Because everybody said, “Yeah, I can make them,” but nobody could make them the way I wanted them.

Lauren: What were they doing wrong?

George: They just weren’t what I wanted. But I didn’t have the words or the vocabulary to really describe what I wanted, because it was very new [to me]. I knew nothing about it, and you couldn’t go on the Internet and research shoe making. I had purchased a couple of books on making shoes, but how do you translate that into Spanish? All these guys are from Mexico. And at the time, I was still driving a truck for a chain of linen stores and doing all kinds of other jobs. Then one day I met a retired shoemaker who had shoemaking machines in his garage. He was a leather craftsman who used to make shoes for all the stuntman in the ’60s and ’70s, like Evel Knievel and these other guys. So he makes me a couple pair of wingtips. Next thing you know, all of my friends are buying shoes. From there it took off to the bands and everybody buying shoes.

Lauren: Was it just the two of you making all the shoes or did you have a little crew at this point?

George: No, at the beginning I was making them in his garage and what was happening was, I’d wear the shoes to concerts and people would say, “Where’d you get the shoes?” ‘Oh, it’s my company,’ and I would hand out a card with just my phone number. It didn’t even have a name; it was just my phone number [laughs]. ‘Cause everybody was wearing Creepers and Doc Martins at the time, and that wasn’t me. It was too much flash. So we designed a wingtip and an oxford and a cap toe. He would go buy scrap leathers, and every week we would meet and he’d say, “Alright George, from this leather you could make three full pairs or six half pairs.” It got to a point where he got behind, ’cause I was just selling them by wearing the shoes around town. I would walk into American Rag, “What are those?” ‘Oh, they’re my shoes.’ “Well, we want to place an order.” Just like that; it was the craziest thing. So I go to my guy and say, ‘They want to buy 50 pair’ and he says, “What, 50 pair?!”

Esquivel four-inch platform heels made for the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund gala. The pleating on the black and purple Juan Carlos Obando dress worn by Esquivel’s wife, Shelly, inspired the shoe. The vamp is a hand-burnished pleated purple wrapped in this black supple leather with a rippled heel.

Lauren: And how did you get into the actual shoe making process yourself?

George: Well, at first when we got behind on the orders I’d show up and say, ‘What can I do to help?’ He said, “All right, take the trash out.” ‘OK, I did that, what else can I do to help?’ “Organize the leather.” And it went from taking the trash out to organizing the leather to “I’m gonna have you cut this leather. I’m gonna have you scythe this leather.” I became his apprentice, and he showed me how to make shoes over the course of two and a half years. Finally he quit on me and I found a couple other shoemakers who mentored me for a little bit longer.

So I would say eight years ago was the beginning of what Esquivel is now. When I started working with Fred Segal, I found someone who could really make good shoes; he’s an artist in a whole different way. Then he—my last mentor—finally said, “George, you’re driving my guys crazy. Here are some machines. You’ve got to go on your own.” And I went out on my own and opened up my shop about six years ago, and now we have anywhere from eight to 14 guys making shoes here full time.

Lauren: What’s the process for making a pair of shoes?

George: To break it down really simply, first you have to develop a last, which is a mold. That determines the heel height, width, toe shape, everything. Without a last, you can’t make a proper shoe. Someone introduced me to a gentleman in Mexico, who’s been developing lasts for 20 years, and their company uses all European machinery and they have a European mindset; there’s a lot of Italians that work there. So I learned from one of the best of last developing. From there, you develop designs or uppers that go on that last, and then you create a pattern, then you make a couple of prototypes—cut the leather, stitch it on. There are a lot of variables that go into a shoe. For instance, if the eyerow, where your laces are, is too far back, you’ll have a difficult time getting your foot in, and if it’s too far forward, it won’t hold your foot properly. If the last is too long, it’s not gonna be comfortable on your arch. If the width isn’t correct…I mean, it’s just all of these things. So you go from lasts to pattern making to prototype to cutting, sewing, mounting, and then soles. That would be the steps.

Lauren: Do you know what type of leather you want to use before you make the last, or does the last determine the materials?

George: It’s a little bit of both. I kind of have a vision. I usually create a yearly collection, and within that we’ll add or delete styles. For 2010, my inspiration is that famous image of the men building the Empire State Building, sitting and having lunch and reading their newspapers.

Lauren: Oh, the Lewis Hine shot of the men on the I-beam?

George: Yeah. That’s the inspiration for 2010. So based on that I started developing my collection. You look at what the guys were wearing—the hats, the clothes—and obviously you don’t want to use alligator hides for that collection. It has to be something that is still beautiful but a little bit worn, a little bit softer. Then based on that I’ll work with my existing lasts or develop a new last, and you start building around that. I would say 95 percent of the time I already know, because I have everything in-house, how that shoe’s gonna look. If I had to use an outside factory, I don’t know how the shoe’s gonna show up. But I’m 25 steps from my workshop. My office is upstairs, I go downstairs and I take a look at it. Or my guys come up and say “What do you think, did we mount this correctly?” I say, ‘No, I want this adjusted, I want that moved.’ Where in a traditional design world, first you sketch it, then you send the sketch to a last developer, then do a prototype, and then it comes back and the designer approves it or not. We do it all right here.

Image by Lewis Hine.

Lauren: And where do you source your leathers from?

George: My leathers are from some of the best tanneries in the world. One of my favorite tanneries is out of Norway. They’ve been family run since 1889. These guys supply other luxury houses like Louis Vuitton, and I work really closely with them to develop special colors.

Lauren: So even with the addition of ready-to-wear, it’s still a very small business.

George: It’s very small. You know, we want to do rare products, and when you think of rare, they’re exclusive and they’re in limited quantities. We only make between 1,500 and 2,500 pair a year.

Lauren: Esquivel is known for flats—you started with men’s shoes and then segued into women’s shoes—but what is it about flats that you love?

George: I guess I’ve always had in my mind that you’ve got to have a utility shoe. I’m a huge fan of high heels and all the sexy, beautiful creations that are out there. But for me—-and maybe it’s because of the way I was brought up—you have to invest in something that’s going to be very durable, wearable, so it’s got to be a utility shoe. Plus, it’s not how high the heel is that makes a shoe sexy; it’s how you rock it. It’s about the attitude. Utility with attitude is, I think, what makes my shoes what they are. My shoes are for going to work. If you’re a creative type—a writer, architect, graphic designer—those are the things that my shoes allow you to do. They let you be creative and take care of work. There are a lot of people that do amazing heels. I want to be the shoe that people think of like, “This is my go-to shoe that’s gonna take me day-in and day-out. I’m going to go make money with these shoes and take care of business.”

Lauren: Wait until Fashion Week, when you see everybody coming through your showroom in their ridiculous heels…

George: Yeah, but now everybody’s wearing my shoes and it’s so cool, you know. That’s what my shoe is about, and I think it goes back to that whole 1930s Depression era, when you couldn’t afford to have ten pair of shoes. I don’t think people need to have 20 pair of my shoes. Buy one or two; they’re going to help you get through this whole craziness that’s going on with the economy. That’s the inspiration for this collection. It’s not so much Americana; it’s the American worker. Now I would love to do heels one day, but for right now people want to get back to basics in terms of something that’s an investment. You don’t throw my shoes away. You resole them, you take care of them, you put them in their box, you put them in their shoe bags. That’s what I think we, as Americans, need to get back to. It’s about creating a new heritage.

Images by Irving Penn. Working men and their shoes.

Lauren: So what’s next on your professional agenda?

George: To me, this past year has been a blessing, and I want to be a good steward of what’s been handed to me, which is this amazing opportunity. I don’t want to look at it like, ‘Wow, I was in Vogue, and that was a cool party.’ I’m here to grow a business. I want to employ more people. I want to have a bigger shop. I would love to have 50, 100 employees making beautiful leather works, shoes and bags and accessories. So if I want to do that, I think the most important thing to come out of this is that there’s some really smart people that have seen designers like me come and go. I don’t want to go. I want to keep growing, so I want to seek their expertise and their advice and their guidance.

Lauren: Very cool. Any non work-related dreams or goals?

George: I think non-work related, I just want to do what we should all be doing, which is give more back. I’d love to start an internship program with at-risk youth. I’ve spoken at youth jail camps in the past, and I’d love to hire some of those kids as interns and show them a trade, learn how to make shoes. That’s one of my dreams. I’d love to help at-risk moms and mentor some kids. And not mentor them in terms of how to make shoes, just mentor in life.

Lauren: Lastly, I know you’re really into music. What is it about musicians that you find so inspiring?

George: Well, I think it’s just their creativity that inspires me, and it’s the craft of musicianship. For instance, No Doubt, they’re one of those bands—and I’m not saying this because I know them all and they wear my stuff—but I went to their show recently thinking, ‘Ah, I’m too old for this,’ and they put on a frickin’ amazing show. They are true craftsmen and they’ve mastered whatever they do. It’s really, really cool. I took my kids and my little girl is jumping up and down, my 12-year-old boy’s into it, my teenage daughter’s into it, my wife is into it, and I’m into it. And that’s when the craft has come together, and you’re thinking, ‘What a really cool band.’ That’s what I like. I like the craft of making music. If you look at my shoes, yeah you might like the style, but truly what is behind it, it’s the craft of the burnishing, the craft of the leathers and the textures coming together. So for me, it’s always about the craft.

“I’ve seen some beautiful pictures of Coco Channel in the ’30s, and she looks like a woman who’s getting stuff done. She looked elegant, but she wasn’t draped in layers and layers and layers—and she wasn’t walking around in ten-inch stilettos. She had a hat and a coat and a skirt, and there she goes. That’s kind of my inspiration for the 2010 collection: just getting it done and moving forward. Also, she overcame so much in her life. But what got her there was her craft and skills—using her hands and sewing beautiful objects.” -George Esquivel. Image courtesy of LIFE archive.

Esquivel’s S/S10 women’s collection at New York Fashion Week.

Lauren David Peden is the New York Correspondent for Vogue.co.uk and editor of The Fashion Informer. Her articles have appeared in The New York Times, Surface, Time Out, Allure, Plastique and many other publications.