Profession / role:

Student

Company / organisation:

Parsons School of Design

Website (if you have one):

Check me out on Facebook: Janelle Darling

My primary role in relation to fashion is:

Designer, Student

I am looking to discover or buy

Networking, sourcing for ethically produced materials, advice, input, stories, friendship, offering support to others, volunteer opportunities, etc.

About me / About business or organisation:

Growing up, my parents owned and operated a clothing manufacturing comapny. My mother homeschooled my brother and I, so we would often accompany her downtown and climb on the shelving stacked high with bolts of fabric, or roller scate through the hanging racks of clothing, chat with the workers, and so on. I learned to sew when I was at least 7, on an industrial machine. Connie, the sample sewer, would always slap my hands, and take my projects, claiming that I would sew through my fingers, so she finished them for me. This incredibly close connection with labor solidified it's importance within the fashion industry for me. So many people today have no idea where their clothing comes from, and as a result, 27 million men, women, and children have been enslaved. I hope to aid in the eradication of this disconnect between producer and consumer by starting my own childrenswear line, and introducing at a young age, the importance of labor.

Career history / Company history:

2006-2008: Costume designer for Inglemoor High School
2007-current: Costume designer for Coriolis Dance Collcetive (Seattle, WA)
2008-current: Student at Parsons School of Design (NY, NY)