The beginning of each Mixed collection looks a lot like groping in the dark—curious, clumsy, feverish.
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Start with a Board
I have a pinboard in my studio that is quickly on its way to becoming the most valuable piece of real estate in my office. This board houses a collection of magazine cut outs, images, fabric swatches, sketches, notes and pieces of writing that spark inspiration as I develop a new collection. As I come across each artifact, I pin it to the board. With each addition to the collection, I move things around, step back, and make connections that I couldn’t see before.
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Zooming In & Out
I’m always working between multiple seasons. While prepping photoshoots for the spring, I’m designing and sourcing for fall/winter. Some days I’m trying to figure out the story for one collection and other days I’m sketching and coordinating garment linings and button colors. I need to be able to zoom in and out of the details in a way that maintains a coherent bigger picture. And of course, not every idea makes it into the current season, but might instead provide fuel for the next one.
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An Artifact of Mixed History
Though my board begins digitally, the physical aspect of the studio board invites others to engage with it. Whether that’s team members or customers or friends who visit the studio, I love watching people walk up to the board, touch it, and interact with it. It starts conversations that influence the development of the collection and provides an almost museum-like experience within our studio. The board solidifies each collection as an artifact of Mixed history. It’s special.
I designed each print as abstract versions of their literal motifs—if you look closely, zebra stripes turn into a kaleidoscope of butterflies and branches of coral morph into delicate flowers.
My process—in work and in life, really—is all about “following the thread.” Finding one interesting idea and seeing where it takes me. It takes some guts to do this because you don’t know exactly where you’ll end up. Sometimes it’s a dead end, sometimes it’s a wrong turn, and sometimes it moves you towards a bigger, better idea.
Spring '24: More Than Meets The Eye
Mixed's Spring collection was inspired by a simple concept: that there's always more to a person, situation, or piece than what meets the eye. This concept deeply resonates for me as a designer and business owner, as a Japanese-Iranian-American, and as someone who generally shifts between different identities! Often times when people meet me, they're surprised by what they learn. I bet that feeling's not unique to me. I created this collection to inspire you to embrace your nuances, question your assumptions, and surprise others—but more importantly—yourself.
