1. What sparked your interest in fashion styling, and what inspired you to pursue it as a career?
I don’t think I’d refer to it as Fashion styling. I’d feel more comfortable using the term “expression styling”. Which we all do everyday. I threw 200 dollars down the drain getting certified through an online FIT styling foundation course. Honestly I’m having more fun taking the amateur route of styling. There’s more freedom. Not sure if I want to turn it into a career, but who knows.
2. How would you describe your personal style, and how does it influence your work?
My personal style depends. Ultimately just self expression. An it is forever changing. The places, people, nature, mood, money…many factors contributes to my style. I like to think that I’m multifaceted. For example I had a fixation on earthly subjects such as moss at the time. That’s how the most idea came about.
3. What’s your favorite fashion era or movement, and how do you incorporate those elements into your styling?
My favorite fashion movement is when people started not giving a fuck & had the audacity to be their authentic selves. That’s one good thing that came out of social media. I came across a reel from emiliafarts stating that people mock and laugh at her simply because she’s being herself. If that don’t tell you anything about the society that we live in every single day, I don’t know what will. People are out here fighting to be their authentic selves and I salute to them.
4. How do you stay current with the latest fashion trends, and what sources do you rely on for inspiration?
I kind of gave up on current trends. Being in your own sauce serves longevity. But I don’t knock anybody that do so. I’ll incorporate and indulge here and there. Them trends be hitting different sometimes.
5. What are your long-term goals as a fashion stylist, and what steps are you taking to achieve them?
I don’t feel uncomfortable referring to myself as a fashion stylist cause A. Being transparent I’m kinda lazy. The hard work, commitment & dedication that other stylists put in I have so much respect for. I will say long term goals as an artist is to stop sleeping on myself and share my creativity more. The steps I’m taking to achieve that is posting my works. Even when I don’t like them & Being open to collaborations.
6. Can you walk me through your process for creating a mood board or concept for a photoshoot?
So the process is brainstorming with an artist. Usually I already have a personal relationship with the person so 99.9 percent of the time it’s with a friend or close friend so that makes the process smoother. Once we pull and gather our inspo moodboard & agree on a concept, we gather and hunt. My go to is unique and antique (eg: thrift), then sprinkle it with modern take/trend (eg: Zara). Once we have our items, we agree on a fitting day. The artist puts on everything & more brainstorming happening. Once we agree on an entire we execute it by shooting the looks. Depends on the artist in a studio
7. What’s your perspective on the industry’s environmental impact?
I think most industries don’t give a fuck about the environment. Greed rules for most folks in the fashion industry. They’re coining in on this mass consumption movement. I blame social media for that. I will say they are fashion brands becoming more aware of the negative impact that retail has on the environment. There’s retail stores out there encouraging customers to recycle old clothing and repurpose them into new clothing. That’s an awesome idea to reduce water pollution, carbon emissions, landfills for examples.
8. What advice would you give to aspiring fashion stylists just starting their careers?
I’m not in a position to give advice for people that wants to be respected stylists in the industry. I do style for selfish reasons. It brings purpose into my life doing it for fun & as a hobby.
9. What inspires your style?
Everything inspires me. Family, friends, the person that walked past me, tumblr, food, a bug, flesh, bacteria, you.
10. What is your experience working with different body types and styles?
Unfortunately everyone that I’ve worked with has been skinny lol. So I’ll pull from my retail job experiences, unfortunately stores doesn’t carry plus sizes as much as the standard sizes. So I’ll plug in online stores that caters to them. Or tell them to think outside the box like using a flannel button top as a skirt. For styles it’s simply handled by brainstorming. Ultimately making sure the customer is satisfied.
11. What is your approach to sustainability and ethical fashion?
Doing research. Once again thrifting is the ultimate way. Sure you’ll go to a place that isn’t 100% environment friendly. We all have our guilty pleasures. However, I know we have clothes in our closets collecting dust. Repurpose it. Cut up those jeans, add ornaments or holes to a shirt, create a book cover with that old shirt of yours. Bring life back to it.
12. What are your goals for your styling career?
My goals as an artist is understanding myself more, like knowing my boundaries. Giving myself more grace & putting myself out there more, hence this interview. Hopefully something good comes out of it. If not I’m satisfied with answering these questions alone. It brought me clarity.
