Today we’d like to introduce you to Kaitlyn Kiley.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I first started my brand immediately after I graduated from Framingham State University with a degree in Fashion Design & Retailing, but I started sewing and designing much earlier than that. When I was very young, I once cut up my younger brother’s Batman cape and used a needle and thread from my mom’s sewing box to put together a (very crudely made) dress. I first learned to sew on a sewing machine and create my own designs when my mom sent me to Fashion Design & Sewing Camp when I was 11 years old. It was there that I learned how to use a sewing machine, studied all different types of fabrics, and learned the basics of designing my own looks. I went to that camp every summer for around 6 years after that. In high school, I spent 3 years on the Costumes Crew in the drama club, constructing costumes for shows like Footloose and Thoroughly Modern Millie. While it was often stressful meeting those costume deadlines at only 17, it prepared me for the stress of deadlines to come in my college fashion experience.
When I first started at FSU, I went in undeclared, but thinking I wanted to be an English major. My mom actually was the one who urged me to go to FSU because they have a Fashion Design program saying “You like fashion too though, so if you go there and change your mind about your major you can just switch into fashion”. I’ve been very lucky that my mom has always been supportive of me pursuing a career fashion. About halfway through my first semester, I ended up doing exactly what she predicted, so I signed up for a few fashion classes and then switched my major to Fashion Design. During my years in school, I spent a lot of time experimenting with my aesthetic and pattern making skills. I actually spent so much time in the sewing lab working on my senior collection that my professors used to joke that I actually lived in there. My time at FSU was where I realized exactly how much I loved, and how much of my time I was willing to dedicate to fashion.
After graduation, I continued that experimentation, working with difficult-to-sew fabrics like PVC and referring to different pattern making methods. Recently, I’ve been referring to Japanese pattern-making books (which were gifted to me by FSU’s Fashion Design department at a Senior awards ceremony) by Japanese pattern maker, Tomoko Nakamichi, for the collection I’m currently working on. I’ve also always been into Upcycling, which is when you take old things and transform them in to something new, in an effort to be a more eco-friendly designer. Some of my later collections contain more upcycling than my older ones, but I’ve fortunately been able to do it more and more through fabric and clothing donations from friends and family. I first learned about upcycling and other more eco-friendly and alternative patterning techniques in a Special Topics elective Fashion course I took called Creative Pattern Cutting. That class really challenged me to think outside the box when designing and patterning and I’m forever grateful for the techniques I learned there.
I’m currently working out of my home studio in Marshfield, MA, where I have a decent sized room for my machine, garment racks, and fabric shelves. I’ll admit, having my bed so close to my workspace makes calling it an early night and heading to bed all too tempting, but I always somehow manage to resist in favor of bringing my designs to life. So far I’ve created 3 full collections and 1 mini-colleciton since graduating, and am currently working on my 4th full collection. I’ve also had great opportunities to work with other talented artists in the Boston community, such as photographers, hair stylists, make-up artists, models, dancers, and even other designers. I’m very lucky to be able to collaborate and work with so many amazing people.
Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I wouldn’t say it has been a completely smooth road, but I’ve also been very lucky to have people supporting me along the way. If I’m ever in a creative funk, I have a group of artist friends I can often bounce ideas off of if needed. Most of my struggles have been financial, especially because many consumers don’t realize how much it actually costs to make clothing. This problem largely comes from fast fashion retailers selling clothing at such cheap prices (which in many cases they are only able to do because they don’t fairly compensate their workers), so consumers often will think that that’s just how much clothing is worth. I frequently hear comments from people saying that local designers set their prices too high, when we are only trying fairly compensate ourselves for our work and make an actual profit when figuring the cost of materials that go into making garments. Another issue I’ve run into is unsolicited comments, often from complete strangers who feel the need to tell me that I’ll never make it and that it’s dumb to even try to pursue a career in fashion. With those comments, I’ll get angry about it for a bit but then I use that energy to fuel my creativity. My reaction to being told I can’t do something is usually to try even harder.
My advice is to trust your gut and always be open to challenging your creativity. Set personal, achievable goals to help motivate yourself. I find that making checklists where I can check off even the most minor steps is very motivating when I have a lot that needs to get done. Get involved, make connections and collaborate with other artists in your community. It’s always good to have another artistic set of eyes to get advice on a piece you’re working on, and also to have friends who can relate to the struggles of an artist. On a more practical note, make sure you keep your receipts and keep track of the prices on all of your materials because it’ll make calculating prices much easier!
what should we know about Kaitlyn Kiley Designs? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
I am a clothing designer based in Marshfield, MA and I specialize in custom work, couture, and women’s formalwear. Right now I am most proud of my effort to be more eco-friendly through my use of upcycling. I’ve collected a lot of unused fabric and old gowns that are no longer of use from friends and family and been able to revitalize them by turning them into something new and beautiful. I have also been more focused on hand-stitched detailing lately, and am very proud of the progress I’ve made with enhancing my skills on that.
What sets me apart from others is my obsession with small details. I’ll often spend days upon days and weeks just hand-stitching appliqué, tiny beads, and sequins onto my pieces and perfecting those little hand-done details. Because of my focus on upcycling, many of the garments I make are also one-of-a-kind and can’t be recreated due to the limited material, meaning these pieces are truly something no one else will have in their wardrobe.
Do you have any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general? What has worked well for you?
Currently, I’m doing well with just having a solid group of artists around me to get feedback from. For networking, I feel like I’ve had the most success with just reaching out to artists I follow on social media and telling them I admire their work and then going from there.
Contact Info:
- Website: kaitlynkileydesigns.com
- Email: kkiley224@gmail.com
- Instagram: @kaitlynkileydesigns
- Facebook: facebook.com/kaitlynkileydesigns
Image Credit:
Emily Bowling, Siobhan Beasley, Tiffany Cantin, Rachel Gordon, Logan Gilbert, Polli Gulina, Emily Metauten, Amelia Franklin, Allison Burns, Danielle Perry, Mandi Lynne, Melissa Black, Emma Parla-Aziz, Dana Hernandez
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