today in my studio

In a fairly clean state. (That's unusual; I make big messes when I work!)

advice

Edited 6/27/09. My main intention in this post was to inform and help others in similar situations.

To any young designer, or any person running their own business, make ABSOLUTE certain of one thing: At the end, know EXACTLY how much you will be making in the deal. Never assume. Never estimate. And don't be afraid to say NO early in the beginning. Don't be afraid of making others unhappy. Definitely, get everything in writing (as one commenter mentioned). Just make careful decisions.

People probably think that fashion designers make a ton of money. But in reality, for the majority of us, that couldn't be farther from the truth. (even if we're one of the lucky ones that "makes it" so to speak.) We spend more than we bring in. We're lucky when we break even. And we're one of the select few if and when we turn a profit. I'm still not there yet. 

Long Live Etsy: I'm a huge proponent of marketplaces where you can buy directly from the designer. It ensures the designer actually gets compensated for their work. I still realize I have so much to learn about this industry. And I'm learning, one mistake at a time.

summer

Ah, it's been such a busy past month, with no time to post! I've been hard at work on the Bluefly collection, which should be launching at the end of the month (fingers crossed that nothing else can go wrong and hold it up at this point). I think every possible production problem that could have happened has already, but every time I say that a new crisis or fabric shortage pops up. Yikes! 

It was my first hand at doing production, and it has been quite a valuable learning experience. Next time will go much more smoothly! Still, even with the frustrations, it's so nice to be able to hire someone else to make my clothes and to do it here domestically in New York so I can check up on everything and smooth out the kinks. It sure beats staying up all hours of the night trying to do everything myself!

Additionally, I have a few things currently on my Etsy page available and a dress on my website, with hopefully more to come soon! I'm ridding myself of some past samples on Etsy every now and then for ridiculously cheap, too.

Yesterday, marked one year from when I flew out to start filming the show. It's insane how fast this past year flew by! It seems like it was literally just weeks ago.

Photo by Nicholas LaClair (yes, that's Karalyn!)