My Little Fashion Blog

What made you decide to become a women's wear designer instead of doing men's? I’ve always been drawn to creating clothing for women. There is a lot more freedom in design when it comes to women’s wear, whereas for men, I would always need to use restraint and focus mainly on the subtle detail. I do, however, want to launch a men’s line sometime in the near future. Designing clothes that I could actually wear as opposed to what I do now, which I cannot wear!

 

You attended various fashion schools, which one did you enjoy the most? I don’t think I enjoyed one more than the other. I find that they all complemented themselves in one way or another. Where Central Saint Martins focused more on the creative aspect of desing, Esmod leaned more to the technical side, and FIDM on the basics. If I had to pick one, I would have to say CSM, since it allowed me to indulge in creating things without considering a certain client, market, or restraint.

 

What was it like working at Maison Rabih Kayrouz? Working with Rabih was probably one of the experiences of my career that had the biggest impact on the way I view and design fashion. What you learn in fashion school is merely a fraction of what you actually apply in real life. Although at the time Maison Rabih Kayrouz functioned mainly as a couture house, it allowed me to learn a different side of fashion that was completely alien to me at the time. Working alongside side Rabih is rewarding on its own. He is very generous, kind, and giving. I had never witnessed anyone sculpt fabric the way he did, which shaped the way I create my collections today.

 

What was it like when you launched your own line in 2007? Frightening! I didn’t know where to start, how to launch, who to contact, what to do… At the time, the short war of 2006 between Lebanon and Israel had just ended. I had quit my job at MRK and decided to move back to London. One thing led to another, and I found myself back in Beirut creating a capsule collection of customized smiley faces that were printed or embroidered on cotton shirts or t-shirts, with the purpose of putting a “smile” on people’s faces. I displayed the collection during a summer fair, and it was actually well received. What followed was another capsule collection entitled “Liberty”, which was symbolic of the situation in Lebanon and was embellished with birds of freedom. Things pretty much took off from there, and I launched my first official collection “X-RAY” in the fall of 2007, and haven’t stopped creating since.

 

What is your favorite collection so far? My latest collection is always my favorite collection. I get bored of my work very fast, and need to move on from it as quickly as possible. However, there are specific items from each collection that I find amazing.

 

What celebrities have worn your dresses? I have been lucky enough to have the chance to dress some of the freshest faces of Hollywood! Just recently we dressed Bella Thorne, Laura Vandervoort, Hayley Orrantia, and Leslie Bibb. Other amazing celebs we’ve dressed are Kim Kardashian, Daniella Ruah, Lisa Rina, Cara Buono, Nikki Reed, Lucy Hale, Chelsea Staub, and many more…

 

You have done a bridal collection, do you find bridal harder to do? I don’t find it particularly hard. Wedding dresses can be very minimal and very majestic, depending on what the clients needs are. I personally am a firm believer of the “less is more” motto, and always try to discourage my clients from over doing it with the size of the dress, the embellishing, fabric overkill, or eccentric colors. The advantage of having a made to measure wedding dress is that it is made to the bride-to-be’s proportions. At the end of the day, almost any dress can be a wedding if that’s what the client wants to wear on her wedding day, as long as it’s not purple, red, blue, green, or yellow!

 

Which celebrites do you want to dress? All of them! Women and Men!

 

Check out House of Ronald at houseofronald.com