HOW I GOT TO NYFW
I wish I could say I always knew I wanted to work in the fashion industry, but the truth is I never really knew what I wanted to do professionally. A part of me believed I’d go to the Olympics for show jumping and that would be my job (naive, I know).
During university, I explored many different career paths, starting with pre-nursing since there would always be jobs after graduation. I quickly realized I couldn’t care less about anatomy and struggled through math and chemistry. Sophomore year, I changed my major to anthropology and began to really enjoy learning about culture through media. I later added a second major in digital communication, which is similar to marketing but focuses more on advertising and design rather than metrics.
That same year, the pandemic hit and everyone felt tossed around, lost, and confused - so I did what many people did and turned to the internet. Unexpectedly, the pandemic gave me extra time to explore where my interests truly lay in media and modern culture. I began experimenting with graphic design and sketching garments, and by junior year I landed a summer internship with Olympic National Park. In Washington, I dove deeper into using design as a way to communicate cultural importance. I loved acting as a liaison between storytelling and visual execution and graduated in May 2022.
After graduating, I moved to Nashville, TN with a job as a biology lab assistant which I ended up quitting before my first day. Needing work, I became a barista and unintentionally started my career there. About a year into that role, I realized I hated being a barista and transitioned into a media manager and graphic design position (shoutout Jenna!). I found a mentor and began refining my skills in Adobe while experimenting with social media, which I genuinely loved learning about.
About a year into that role, I started feeling stagnant and leaned into hobbies that made me feel creative again. I painted, crocheted, and read 20 books, which led me to save up and buy my first sewing machine. Between December 2024 and March 2025, I sewed about 30 pieces.
Sewing changed everything for me. I wore one of my designs to a book club meeting and a friend invited me to sell at a pop-up in April. By then, I had created about 12 looks I felt confident selling and ended up selling 10 of them. I fell in love with being part of the entire lifecycle of a garment - from ideation to construction to selling.
After that event, I applied to the Fashion Institute of Technology’s certificate programs, where I studied Fashion Event Management and Fashion Business. I loved every second of it. I grew close with professors who later invited me to assist at a Hermès event in Chicago as an event host where I fell in love with luxury and deepened my understanding of the culture and history behind these houses.
Soon after, I was invited to New York Fashion Week to work as a dresser for LoveShackFancy, where I met others gaining hands-on experience in the industry and saw firsthand how fashion operates behind the scenes.
Most recently, I returned from working NYFW FW26 with brands like Carolina Herrera, Michael Kors, Prabal Gurung, and Altuzarra.
I’m relocating to Chicago to pursue more opportunities in the fashion event space which is truly where I feel most aligned. I also have a personal design project underway that I’m excited to share as the time gets closer.
If I can do it, I genuinely believe anyone can as long as you work hard, move with integrity, and have curiosity.
