MODA Designer Profile: Stephanie Kim

Stephanie Kim is a second year student, first time designer, and creative, laid-back person. I got the chance to sit down with her a few weeks ago to talk about her design process for the MODA Fashion Show. Between talking about her dope outfit and asking her why she chose to be a computer science and philosophy double-major, I got to hear about her influences on and off campus, her personal history with fashion, and what she cares most about when crafting her designs for this year.

Have you ever done fashion design before?

No. This is my first year ever doing any sort of garment construction or design. I am part of DBC which is for the newer designers so the most I've done with a sewing machine in the past is maybe making a mask or two. Other than that, I have no formal experience, so this is really exciting just because I get to try something that has been really interesting to me for quite a while now.

What made you want to be apart of this process?

I started to develop a growing interest in fashion, in general, on the cusp of my freshman year of college. I just came here and -- I don't know if this is an experience across all college campuses -- but people here are so artsy and fashionable. I was so surprised, I just completely exploded onto the arts scene here. It was really inspirational and I thought, "Oh, yeah, I want to get into this more!"

In middle school, all I wore were sweatshirts, sweatpants, my hair was in a ponytail every day. Fashion was a big part of my transition out of that phase, because I think when you change your clothes you are also changing the representation of yourself that you want other people to have of you.

And the other thing is that MODA's a really cool organization! I came here and in the middle of my first year this was one of the RSOs that people were raving about with its culture and just the excitement that surrounds it with the show, the magazine, the blog, and the many aspects you can get involved with.

What are some sources of inspiration for your collection?

One of the things that I find really interesting is how you can use clothing to create a narrative or tell a narrative: the aspect of storytelling through what you wear. Not just wearing specialty clothing that has to tell a story but, one of the things I kind of want to experiment with is reconceptualizing what we think of as casual streetwear, or something that you can wear down the street and it's acceptable or unique in its own right. Exploring the side of fashion that can be interpreted as an art-form is definitely one of the more interesting parts about going through the garment construction process.

What are the most challenging/rewarding aspects of the process?

I think being a beginner designer, it's hard because you are struggling with wanting a theme or an aesthetic or artistic vibe to your clothing versus the actual amount of skills that you have and the sewing that you can do, and the timeline also. Balancing all of those three is part of the challenge. I am pretty limited by what I am able to sew and how much time I can fit in with my garment construction. At this point in time, my designs might be a bit ambitious relative to the clothing I will be able to make by the show! But this quarter isn't too bad in terms of classes so I am hoping I can fit in as much time as I can to try to achieve my original vision for my design.

The most rewarding aspect is the entire process of meeting everybody who has been involved with setting up the show and mentoring designers this year. There was no external instruction for designers this year. For DBC, normally there is a professor from the Art Institute, but it ended up being the regular designers, the returning designers, and David and David that were mentoring us over fall quarter. I got to meet David and David and all the other designers and during model call I got to read through all the people who applied, and in my mind I felt like I was meeting them all. So definitely that process of encountering so many different people that are involved in this one show.

What are you looking forward to most about the show?

Dressing my models! During model call, I really enjoyed the process of getting to read through the applications and was really looking forward to meeting the models that I eventually selected. I want to create clothing that my models will feel comfortable wearing and enjoy wearing themselves as much as I enjoyed making them. Even though it is a recorded show it will still be sick!

Who do you have in mind when you are designing? It could be a specific look that you liked from over the years or a person that you particularly admire, or both!

I have multiple Pinterest boards. Pinterest is a huge source of inspiration because some of the fits and the designs that come up are really creative. I follow a lot of Tokyo streetwear type boards and streetwear in general. I have a large interest in that fashion trend as well as seeing what you can combine streetwear with to make different types of looks. On Pinterest, I've seen people combine it with business-formal and other styles. It's cool to see a bunch of different ideologies clashing and a bunch of different fads working in tandem with one another. Pinterest is where all that is happening at the same time. When I was creating my looks for the show, I had my sketches up on one tablet and my Pinterest board up on my computer just scrolling. And just remixing everything -- when you remix an outfit it becomes original in its own right.

What is your favorite article of clothing?

Suspenders. I have a lot of pants that don’t have belt loops and I am too lazy to sew on belt loops so suspenders do a good job of keeping them up. Also, I think they just add a nice little vintage, 80s/90s touch to an outfit, while at the same time holding up your pants!

Describe your collection in three words.

Non-linear: I kind of what all three pieces to not necessarily have a straightforward theme to them. I want them to harmonize in a way that’s not obvious at first, so I think of that as non-linearity.

Loved: In the end, I don’t really care what my designs look like so much as do my models feel comfortable wearing them and do they enjoy the process of getting to wear them in the end and did I have a good time making them.

Comfortable: Kind of random but I haven’t worn denim since sixth grade, because for some reason it’s extremely stiff and scratchy against my skin — I don’t know what it is! For me, comfort is always a factor in what I choose to wear so if I am making clothes that other people want to wear then it has to be factored for them to.