Celebrity Fashion Designer Borris Powell is a “Fresh Face of Fashion”. He has come a long way, since growing up in a small town in Alabama. He catapulted to international fame when he won the 2011 Oscar Designer Challenge and he hasn’t looked back. However, his career as a successful designer didn’t come without a few hard lessons learned, as it relates to friends, their advice and creativity. I recently sat down with Borris during our FLM cover shoot at Jeff Schear’s studio to learn more about his journey, current collection and how he keeps his designs classic but fresh.
DC: Tell me about Borris Powell and your fashions.
BP: My garments are for anyone that wants to make a statement without trying to make a statement. My garments will really get you noticed. My goals are to enhance the inner beauty of women and the sexy beast in men. Be prepared to step into the light when wearing a Borris Powell piece. I don’t want to over dress anyone. I want you to feel very comfortable in my clothes and never want my clothes to wear you. But I do want you to feel at least 3 feet taller when wearing a Borris Powell piece.
DC: When did you first know that you wanted to be a designer and when did you realize that you had the talent to really pull it off?
BP: It all made sense to me in 1995. I used to be a dancer and was marching with a particular dance corps in of Rosemont, IL. That’s when I first met a fashion designer who was designing our dance group costumes. I literally followed him around as he was measuring others for their costumes and was in awe of what he was doing. I made the decision to move to Chicago shortly thereafter to pursue a career in fashion design.
DC: Was your decision based on being able to create your own designs?
BP: It was just an “A Ha” moment for me. I grew up in a small city in Alabama with 74 people in my graduating class. I’ve always been intrigued with fashion, but really didn’t know what fashion was about. I thought all clothes came from J.C. Penny, because that’s the only store that we had. My Aunt Shelby was a high fashion model and my mom was seamstress. But growing up as a boy in small town Alabama, I wasn’t allowed to play with the sewing machine. I pretty much lived a sheltered life. All boys were expected to play football, basketball or baseball, but I had no interest in those things. Although I came from an athletic family, I enjoyed watching my mom sew with the other ladies. In high school I stopped wearing denim, because I wanted to make a statement. I always wanted to be dressed up and so I created a game where the only rule was to wear your best outfit every Friday.
DC: When you started to study fashion and design, were there other people within the industry that had an influence on your fashions today?
BP: I worked odd jobs to pay the bills when I first started and then took a sewing class at Joanne Fabrics. My sewing instructor became my mentor and he allowed me to experiment in learning my craft. From there it went a little crazy and that led me to where I am today.
"I don’t want to over dress anyone. I want you to feel very comfortable in my clothes and never want my clothes to wear you. " BP