Designer Spotlight: Erin Fetherston
Enchanting, romantic fairytale fare.
Continuing our Designer Spotlight series, our next featured designer is Erin Fetherston.
When looking at Erin’s personal life and her runway collections, it’s hard to tell which influences which. It’s fitting that she’d have an eponymous line.
Fetherston’s collections have this instantly identifiable feminine, romantic, whimsical feel. I liken it to a combo of two of our previous Designer Spotlight features – Chloe and Kate Spade. Erin’s Instagram page, her dresses, and even her recent wedding to musician Gabe Saporta all have this enchantment factor that we at College Fashion totally adore.
Fashion Fairytale
Born in San, Francisco, California, Erin Fetherston went to school at UC Berkeley. Her next stop was Paris, where she received a degree from Parsons school of design. At the age of twenty-four, she launched her eponymous womenswear label, Erin Fetherston, at Paris Fashion Week. Her feminine, enchanting dresses and ethereal aesthetic were an immediate hit.
Returning to her roots as an American, Erin showed her next collection during New York Fashion Week in 2007. That same year, she became a finalist in the prestigious CFDA/Vogue FASHION Fund competition. She also received the 2007 Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award.
In 2009, Erin was inducted as a member of the CFDA, the Council of Fashion Designers of America. Her career truly took off from there. In 2011, she launched a contemporary collection called ERIN erin fetherston.
This fall, Erin Fetherston celebrated her line’s 10th anniversary, with her 2017 Spring/Summer collection. Right now, Fetherston is expanding the lifestyle side of her brand, with a new home collaboration, Erin Fetherston x Fragments Identity.
Charmed, I’m Sure
Like Diane von Furstenberg and Tory Burch, Erin Fetherston embodies her brand’s aesthetic. That means she lives a life filled with all things enchanting, pixie-esque, and fairy tale-inspired. Her wedding, like many of her designs, had a very storybook feel to it.
Fetherston has said she gets her inspiration from old school designers like Chanel and Christian LaCroix. Architecture, nature and old movies also come into play in her work.
Surprisingly, my absolute favorite thing Erin Fetherston has ever done is her 2014 Youtube video series titled “Charmed, I’m Sure.” She collaborated with filmmaker Rebecca Forteau, to create a “Charm School” series with tips on beauty, style and social graces.
The quirky videos include everything from how to create a side-swept bang to how to chew bubble gum properly. As I said, quirky. The videos perfectly capture the ladylike, tongue-in-cheek persona of Erin Fetherston and her brand.
“What’s been authentic about [my line] is that I’m always thinking, ‘what would I want to wear?’ ‘what would my friends want to wear?”
Erin is a prime example of a designer who has become successful by using her own personal lifestyle to create a fashion brand. She designs pieces that she would wear, and she does for her company what she does for her personal life. Erin Fetherston follows only one rule book- her own. And that’s what makes all the difference.
Your Thoughts?
What are your thoughts on Erin Fetherston? Do you own any pieces from her? Have you watched that video series? What designer do you want to see under the spotlight next?
Source: #Fashionblogger #fashiontrends