Growing up I have always enjoyed playing dress up and going shopping. I dreamed about having a big closet and new outfits everyday. This dream grew bigger within time. Just this year I decided I wanted to do something in the fashion Industry but I just didn't know what exactly I wanted to do. I interviewed for a high end clothing brand as an office assistant and thought it would be a great way to kick off my career in Fashion. Fast forward to a few weeks later I realized that it wasn't going to be a job that will make me happy. I realized that I'm just never going to be that person who works for someone. That is just not going to happen down my future. In addition to that, Im not going to continue to work a simple 9-5! NO WAY!
About two months ago I spontaneously went to see a psychic with a friend. I was lost and frustrated then and I needed SOME sort of answer. I was very unsure of what I wanted to pursue after graduating. I knew it had to be fashion related or something creative and not sitting in an office all day while reporting to someone. But that rules out most jobs! I'm currently pursuing my bachelors in Human Resource Management with two other minors in labor studies and digital communication information technology. I've attained a good work background history and leadership experiences that falls under my studies, however, It wasn't ME enough. I did not feel the chemistry in this career path. That is the reason why I felt so lost and confused. I felt like I was wasting my time and time was running out!
But lets talk about what the psychic said:
I don't want to give away too much because I don't want to jinx it but the big message she was giving me was that I have chosen this "new" fashion career path long before I knew it and eventually, I will attain success in it however I will have lots of competition and will face a lot of challenges. But who doesn't like a little challenge? haha.
Seeing this psychic didn't really change the way I was always thinking but it made me realize one thing: THAT I MUST CHASE AFTER MY DREAMS. IF I DO NOT, I WILL REGRET.
This was when I decided to participate as a designer in my school's fashion club, F.A.C.E Modeling Team in which I'm one of the acting Fashion Coordinators. I knew this was out of my comfort zone but I debated with myself and concluded to go forward with the challenge. I said "let's go all in and find out what happens next!" SO I WENT FOR IT!
I came up with my first idea in a stock room working at a retail store-- Uniqlo with a good friend of mine who's also a talented designer herself- Alaysia Joy. I thought of having suit sets for women. I realized that there aren't enough women leaders in the corporate level. I almost rarely ever see women dressed in a FULL suit at ANY event. Men usually outnumber women. That is really discouraging. I wanted to empower women to remind them that they CAN also run this world. I then remembered the image of barbie dolls and how I was always obsessed with their cute matching outfits. I then combined that idea with the suit concept--- Matching suit sets.
But I didn't want it to be just regular suits. I wanted something to speak louder. Something that will make people spot it out from around the block that will scream -- those are "Maggie's" designs. One day I was studying with a friend at a coffee shop and there was a cute tiny book for customers to leave messages. I started doodling on it and thought of this drawing idea I got from visiting The Color Factory in NY: drawing the other person's face without looking at the paper and without picking up your pen. In one try, my drawing came out successful and it looked nice. It was artsy and abstract, like me. I loved it and captured it on my phone. I went home that night and thought maybe I could incorporate that idea into my designs. I began sketching.
After several sketches, I picked out my top four. I asked a few friends which sketch they thought resembled me the most and looked most appealing. After narrowing it down to one, I began to execute my process. It was about two weeks before the show and I only had the sketch ready and untouched materials. I quickly ordered a one day shipping sewing machine from Amazon and taught myself how to sew in three days. The first two days were so hard I started crying. I was frustrated and was afraid that I would let everyone down. I called up my friend Krishna and had her come help me. Thanks to her, I got my first top finished.
Despite the small break down I had, everything else afterwards went smoothly and I regained my confidence. I went through the next week and a half running around looking for supplies and staying up late at night to finish each design while going to work, attending all of my class and preparing for my end of the course projects.
The day of the show:
Finally, the day I've been waiting for has arrived. I was so nervous I felt like my heart was dropping every second. I had invited all of my close friends and I was so excited for them to come see my work. I was so eager to see everyone's reaction. As I'm fitting my models into my designs, other models were coming up to me and telling me how they wished they were modeling in my designs. This was the initial reaction and I felt goosebumps all over my body. The next reaction was when my models were walking out in the runway. The crowd cheered and clapped and even screamed, for EVERY SINGLE design. I almost cried. It felt beautiful and I was just in awe, hearing the noise coming from the audience. The collection walk was up next and now the crowd gets to see who I am. I walk out in my all silk outfit and the crowd stood up and clapped. On my peripherals I saw my friends screaming and going hysterically crazy. This was a phenomenal moment . I felt like I owned that stage. I'll never forget it. The final reaction was after the show. Random people approached me and asked if I was selling soon and if I had a website up yet. Some asked me to vendor and other designers asked to collaborate. I almost chocked on my own saliva because I did not expect for all of this reaction and was actually amazed at how many people who were interested in purchasing.
A big take away from this experience is to always believe in yourself. Always finish what you started. Never consider doubts. You must take risks. ALL IN OR YOU SINK.
I started my senior year confused and unaware of what I wanted to do but now I know exactly what I want. I want to live my life working at my own time, under my own creativity and running my own game through my own art. Thanks to this spontaneous act, I now finally know what I want to do, a month before graduating. It only took me four years of my college career to find out! hahaha!
To all the creatives and aspiring artists and creators, do not be afraid to chase after your dreams. You are capable of more than you think. Trust in your abilities and who you are. YOU ARE AMAZING.
Love,
Maggie Lin
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