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Student Fashion Designer Spotlight: Kelly Horak

Her Campus Placeholder Avatar Abigail Johnson
Her Campus Placeholder Avatar UW Stout Contributor
This article is written by a student writer from the Her Campus at UW Stout chapter.

Name: Kelly Horak

Major: Apparel Design and Development

Year: Senior

Hometown: Appleton, Wisconsin

Senior Collection Name: Free Association

Kelly’s designs will be showcased amongst other Apparel students work at the Silhouettes Fashion Show on May 1 at 7 p.m. and May 3 at 3 and 5 p.m. at the University of Wisconsin-Stout’s Memorial Student Center. Tickets can be purchased at http://uwstout.universitytickets.com/user_pages/category.asp?id=26

HC: When did you start designing clothing?

KH: For my sixteenth birthday I received a sewing machine. I designed my homecoming dress and everything.

HC: What made you want to start designing?

KH: I wanted to make clothes that I wanted to wear—not what was technically on the market.

HC: Aside from Stout, did you consider attending any other schools for fashion design?

KH: I was thinking of going to school on either coast. My parents made me a deal: I could go to school in-state and study abroad, which was better than just going to one of the coast schools.

HC: Which designers do you look to for inspiration?

KH: Marc Jacobs. And when I’m going for a quirkier style: Gareth Pugh.

HC: What is the most rewarding part of being a designer?

KH: I thought it would be when I saw the photos of my senior collection. But it’s actually seeing the final product on the runway.

HC: How many hours do you spend constructing a garment?

KH: I don’t even want to know. The sweater in my senior collection took 70-80 hours to produce. Knitting is the most time-consuming.

HC: Do you have a favorite garment or accessory you’ve made?

KH: The first handbag I made when studying abroad. It made me fall back in love with designing.

HC: What was your inspiration for your senior collection?

KH: My inspiration came from different art pieces I discovered at different museums during my study abroad experience in London. Every mono-chromatic piece stood out to me and how it is not always all about color but rather the textures, structures and patterns within the piece.

HC: What are your plans for after graduation?

KH: I am going to work for Abercrombie and Fitch as an Assistant Technical Designer.

Photo Credit: Jeremy Von Cooper

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Abigail is a senior at the University of Wisconsin-Stout. She is majoring in Retail Merchandising and Management with a concentration in Fashion Marketing and has a double minor in Business Administration and Spanish. Aside from being a Style Writer for Her Campus, she is involved with Campus Crusade for Christ (CRU) and Street Level Ministries. In her spare time she enjoys collecting art, watching Hallmark movies with family and friends, and going on adventures. 
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Her Campus at UW-Stout