Wow, it has been a long time since I have written here—but I am thrilled to have found a moment to write again and express myself through this avenue! It has been a tumultuous, transformative few years, in which I have relocated, reeducated, and reinvented myself and continue to go through this journey of self-discovery. Let’s go back a few years to the start…
The onset of this phase began in the period following the height of COVID-19 pandemic: I continued to work at my corporate job as a graphic designer, and I moved back to New York in the fall of 2021 (after sixteen months of living in Minnesota with my parents). But at that time, I was now deeply feeling the call of a new path for my life: I was feeling the effects of burnout at my job and losing motivation and inspiration within my ongoing career, and I was simultaneously feeling increasingly drawn to my activities in and passion for fashion design, as I continued to engage in sewing and making clothes with my time in lockdown and explore deeper ideas about deconstructing conventional menswear and disrupting expressions of gender and power within men’s garments.
And so, with this increasing experience via self-teaching and expanding intellectual scope, I began to heavily consider the prospect of being a professional in fashion and menswear. That fall, I decided to work towards and submit applications for postgraduate programs in fashion and menswear design, at my alma mater as well as a couple of top international courses. This decision and my efforts towards it were made with not much time and not enough proper research, so it was not surprising that I unfortunately did not get accepted into any schools for which I applied—but I did not let that result deter me, and for the next year I continued to sew and produce more projects, and I did more research and networking surrounding school experience, job opportunities, and portfolio tips. Within that time, I also got laid off from my position, which, as supported by my own undying affinity and words of encouragement from family and friends and previous colleagues, only heightened my resolve to attempt to achieve some sort of formal position in fashion.
Stepping into London in September 2023—a huge and nerve-wracking big step, but certainly the start of what will be a wonderful and enlightening journey.
So I applied for schools again in 2022—and I was overjoyed to have gotten accepted! I actually received offers from three universities, all in the United Kingdom, which gave me the delightful and unexpected dilemma of multiple options to choose from. I ultimately decided to accept my place in the MFA Menswear with Professional Experience course at the University of Westminster in London, a unique program that specialized in menswear design and emphasized industry experience and connections.
The now-real event of moving to another country and starting education in a new field was quite daunting—but I also could not wait to begin a new adventure and expand my horizons, in every personal and emotional and professional and intellectual regard. I credit my initial move to New York in 2011 and attending The New School as huge factors that contributed to my evolution as both a artistic worker and a human being, and I was eager to make next enormous leap to grow even further again.