Designer Profile 2022: Caroline Chael

May 1

May 1 Designer Profile 2022: Caroline Chael

In advance of MODA’s Spring ‘22 Fashion Show: Moda Nouveau, I had the pleasure of speaking with first-time designer Caroline Chael (‘24) about her collection. Caroline is a second-year Biology and English double-major. Outside of MODA, Caroline serves as an RA, a member of UC Audubon and WHPK, and works at the Field Museum doing research.

You’re a new designer. What made you want to be a part of this process?

I’ve been making clothes for about 2 years. I taught myself how to quilt during the pandemic, starting off with simple patterns and straight lines. With quilting, I liked that I could make something I could keep for the rest of my life. As I grew more comfortable with quilting, I started teaching myself how to sew clothes and make things I could actually wear. I wanted to be in the MODA Fashion Show because it’s so rewarding to be able to see your designs worn on a runway. Plus, it’s so nice to work with other people—the models, the hair & makeup team—that’s not something you have when you're sewing by yourself.

What are some sources of inspiration for your collection?

I draw a lot of inspiration from Elton John. Bob Mackie was the designer responsible for some of Elton John’s most outrageous costumes—the big feather hat, the crazy shoes—and I incorporated a similar sort of “go big or go home” design philosophy into my collection. I was also inspired by Dolly Parton and her “cowboy” style. There’s a lot of cowboy imagery in my work. Orville Peck is another musician who inspired me. Peck is a contemporary artist who is known for taking something classic and making it his own. I like to do the same thing. In this collection, I took classic ideas such as “the suit,” “cowboy,” and “American traditional tattoos,” and tried to subvert them.

Walk me through your collection.

Yeah! So I made three pieces for my collection, and you can see the sketches for them above. The pink outfit on the left is inspired by American traditional tattoos, which is a style of tattooing typically seen as very dark and masculine. I wanted to subvert that association, so I put these tattoos on an all-pink, glitter set. The sixties-inspired green outfit in the middle was almost entirely modified into something else—I removed the pinstriped pattern and made it more colorful. The Elton John, cowboy-inspired blue outfit on the right was also modified a lot. It ended up being quite impractical to quilt an entire suit, as I’d originally intended. Instead, I modified the materials and reduced the number of colors used. There are elements of all the sketch designs in my final collection, only altered to fit with what was doable. I also made sure to incorporate quilting into all three of my pieces to pay homage to my origins as a designer.

Describe your collection in three words.

Cowboy. Glitter. Hot glue.

What are some of the most challenging and rewarding aspects of the process?

It was challenging to execute some of the grand ideas I had for my designs. I’m a self-taught designer with just one at-home sewing machine, so I didn’t always have the time or skills to do everything I hoped to do. At one point, I wasn’t sure if I could make the blue suit. With a suit jacket, there are a lot of parts you need to lay correctly. The lapels in particular were really hard to get right. However, I kept going and I ended up being able to finish it, which I’m super proud of. The most rewarding part of the process is seeing the finished product. The fittings are my favorite part. That’s when the look really comes together. The process of adjusting the clothes is also so fun: just by taking in a dress or fixing a suit lapel, you can make a design go from looking like a mess to looking amazing.

What are you looking forward to most about the show?

I’m really looking forward to seeing all the collections come together and be shown on the runway. I’ve been zoning out a bit in class, visualizing what it’s gonna look like when the models walk down the runway in full hair and makeup and accessories. It’s going to be so rewarding!

If you could give yourself any advice on the design process, what would you say to your younger self?

The first thing I would say is: Try out different things. I often spent hours reworking the exact same detail or look until it seemed right. I think I would’ve preferred to create more looks instead of working so much on the same items. The second thing I’d say is: Don’t worry too much about the details until the end. I spent a lot of hours fixing minor details that in the end were not too noticeable. It’s easier to edit at the very end than throughout.

What’s the story of your collection?

Classic motifs are associated with certain ideas. Cowboys, suits, and American traditional tattoos each have existing, deep-rooted ideas attached to them. However, I want to show that these motifs can be displayed or worn by anybody—they don’t have to be associated with any group in particular. My collection is not a rejection, it’s a broadening of the scope.