i’m an independent designer and one still attending school at parsons. the quote you took from anabela sounds like something i say every other day. the things i make, i wear, daily or especially to parties. i can’t tell you the number of strangers who come up to me to tell me they love what i have on, and where did i buy it? and i can’t count the number of people who’ve taken my photo on the streets, or told me they love my design style. as a designer, having people love what i do is really an amazing feeling. it’s what i live for, really.

i’m still a student and i’m lucky that my parents are well-off enough to be supporting my lifestyle now. but once i graduate, it’s going to hit home to me that all these compliments mean nothing when no one is buying anything.

i make all my clothes in my own apartment. everything. i can’t buy fabric in bulk, i don’t send 1000pieces to some china factory where the girls working at 14 years old, i don’t have the budget that big companies have, to lower their costs so that my selling price can be lower. things in my studio are made by hand, with love, with the intention that it will last for a long time and be loved by whoever wears it.

try as i might, i cant lower my prices anymore than they are. i know they might be expensive but with the cost of making it plus the time that goes into it, it wouldn’t make sense for me to even attempt to sew a new piece if they were cheaper.

i would love for more people to start supporting independent designers like myself. i’ve been lucky that some people and stores who told me they love what i do, actually do place some orders. but those small numbers are not going to be able to pay my rent.
.-= queengilda´s last blog ..saturday’s new york shopping tour & its unexpected compliments =-.