Designing While Acknowledging Limited Closet Spaces and Environmental Concerns

Living in New York City with limited closet space has taught me the importance of quality versus quantity, and purchasing clothing that I will actually wear and like. In addition, an increased awareness of the impact that changing fashion trends has on the earth has instilled a desire in me to decrease my own clothing waste. As a result, the clothing that does make it into my closet is there because it's a necessity, or because I have respect for the craftsmanship that went into making the garment.

 Decreasing the amount of clothing that I go through has changed the way I think while designing ready to wear clothing for Kate Stoltz NYC, or create custom Kate Stoltz pieces for clients. As a fashion designer living in Manhattan, I am in one of the world's fashion hubs. I do love keeping up with fashion trends. However, what I wear is much more personal than following the wide variety of trends that disappear before you can adequately wear out a high quality garment. My personal experiences with clothing greatly influences the choices I make while choosing textiles and producing clothing for clients that order custom pieces, along with the ready to wear collections on my website.

 I recently created a custom dress with a removable black lace collar, embellished with Swarovski crystals, for a client. The dress can be worn with or without the black lace collar. The removable collar can be worn with the dress it came with, or with any of her other pieces that are already in her closet. The collar edge was finished with a tiny baby hem. It was then attached to a carefully pleated satin ribbon, sculpted to fit the natural curve around the neck. I then attached the crystals by hand, finishing the collar with a crystal on each ribbon end. The collar itself can be purchased here: Kate Stoltz Black Lace Collar .

 Creating individual pieces for clients allows me to work with my hands, and allows me to control the quality and quantity that I produce. My goal is not to design and create large quantities of products, but rather, carefully crafted pieces that individual clients can enjoy.

XO, Kate Stoltz