Growing up in Las Vegas, Las Vegas is suburbia. I feel like a lot of people don't know that. When you think of Las Vegas, you think of the strip, you think of tourism, economy, and gambling, but it really is a lot of neighborhoods and churches and schools.

I grew up in a church family. I went to a Lutheran private school, so I was in uniforms my entire life. I was in a polo and khakis. I grew up with two siblings and we spent our time going to church. I always loved Sundays because Sundays was when I could dress up and wear something that was out of that uniform, I loved going to church for that reason, was being able to put on a cute outfit.

It really is just how it naturally came to me. And I think a part of that too, is just being in a uniform for so long and feeling like I couldn't dress in the way that I wanted to dress, now as an adult, I'm going to go full force every time. I hated being in uniforms and, for a long time, I found my creative self expression through makeup and coloring my hair weird colors and anything that I could do to push the boundary of the dress code, I definitely did. I got dress coded a lot in high school because of our uniform policy and it was like strict, we had to wear very specific colors, you couldn't be able to see under shirts, shoes had to be a certain style and it just never really meshed well with me. So wearing a crazy sock or wearing a bright colored eyeshadow, dyeing my hair bright orange, even if it was probably not supposed to, and that was against the dress code, anything that I could do to push that because I just hated it. I felt like it was limiting self expression and I just wanted to be a kooky human and wear something silly. I was jealous of other schools. They could do a skirt. They could be in shorts. They had blazers. They had vests. They had neckties. All these little pieces that could go into their uniform so they could mix and match it. Whereas the school that I went to, it was khaki shorts, Dickies specifically, and not the flattering ones. And then a polo that was either maroon, black, or white. That was it. And we weren't allowed to wear undershirts. I'm trying to think what else was like a no-no. There were specific policies on the shoes. I don't quite remember what they were anymore at this point though, but we had specific shoes that we couldn't wear. We were not allowed to wear hats, hoodies, jackets, any kind of over layer had to be school issued. We had two different types of, school issued clothing that we were allowed to wear to sporting events, and then there were, the issued clothing that we had to wear on campus. So even, the jackets and the outerwear had to be limited. So, if you were a part of a team or in a sport and you got a sport related jacket, you couldn't wear it. It was so silly. So yeah, I just felt limited in the colors. I felt limited in the styles. And then I just looked at the other private schools that were in my area. And I'm like, “Why do they get to be in cute little plaid skirts and a sweater vest and a little bow tie?” I think it was the limitations of style and variation. Just being in the same thing every day. And I know there are some people where that makes their life easier for them. They don't want to think about what they're putting on. And, my high school, their whole reason for it was to, eliminate bullying. You know, if everybody's in the same thing, nobody can get picked on for, their style or, how they're dressing every day. But. I just I like to play dress up and when you like to play dress up and you feel like your expression is coming from those places, it just feels limiting. I think it was the limitations of style and variation. Just being in the same thing every day.

The reason I got into makeup is because of my dad. He works in the film industry. He's a special effects technician. So he wasn't around for a lot of my life because he was just working a lot and he traveled a lot for his work. And I remember when I was in high school, I really wanted to be in this play. I didn't get cast, but instead I got put on the makeup team. And my dad was like, “why are you upset about that?” And he was like, this is how we're going to make it cool. He like took me home that night and taught me how to do special effects makeup and then that just developed into something so much bigger for me that I never would have imagined. Because, at the time, when you're a young kid, when you're 13, 14, you're so egocentric. You just want to be in the spotlight. So I couldn't, comprehend that, no, doing the artistic route was just so much cooler and, what was meant for me. So yeah, just having parents that were very encouraging to just try anything is really where I feel like my creativity blossomed. Even if, you Even if what I was trying didn't stick in the long run, I still was encouraged to try.

So anytime I think about when my interest in fashion starts, it's always through the media, I consumed as a kid. I, as a very small child, was obsessed with TLC's What Not to Wear and, Project Runway. I remember being in the 5th grade wanting to wear, a pointed toe shoe and, layered blazer because I was watching, What Not to Wear. I think back at, a lot of the media I consumed as a small child, and I see that translated into my style nowadays. Winx Club, Totally Spies, cartoons like that, Polly Pockets, even. The types of, like, colors that Polly Pockets had in their clothes, I see those color palettes in my wardrobe now as an adult. So I think it's funny to carry through those inspirations my entire life. I've always been really obsessed with, fairies and butterflies and fae, and as nature colors. Pinks, greens, oranges, warm purples.

I have some background as a costume designer and working in live theater and film and I've always really loved translating a story through clothing. I've loved working in a color palette because I think colors evoke all these different feelings and mings in our subconscious. I worked on a production of Godspell, I got to costume design a production of Godspell back in Vegas, and I put this idea to the director and he was like, “we can absolutely do that.” And I was so floored that he was so willing to work with this idea that I had, but, um, at the end of Godspell, if you're not familiar with it, it's the story of Jesus and Judas and he betrays him and all this stuff. But at the end of the story where Jesus goes and he prays in the garden, all of the other characters come forward and they have a brief bit of narration about what's happening. And in that moment, we had the characters line up behind our Jesus character on the stage, and they were all in a different color. So they subsequently made a rainbow behind him. And it was so stunning to just see that come to life. And as I mentioned, I just love color play like that. I think it's so pretty and translates such a good story.

I think the joy in being crafty is one of them. Just finding in sewing, upcycling, making stuff. And to be honest, I don't know if I know where that comes from. It's just, something that is inherent in me. It's just something that comes out one way or another, whether it is through a project I'm working on, what I'm wearing, my makeup that I'm wearing, the color of my hair. I don't know if I really know where that comes from, to be honest. Maybe it does come from just being in uniforms for so long and wanting to not wear maroon anymore and khaki. I really do just follow seasons that way. And I noticed that I was doing it in my hair. And I noticed that I would change my hair colors just according to the season. So I would be like dark burgundy in the winter, and then light pink in the spring, orange in the summer, green in the fall, back to burgundy again. And then for a long time, it just came from a place of experimentation and just wanting to try. I love sewing. I love upcycling stuff. I just like to make stuff with my hands. I love, doing photo shoots and working with photographers, and producing props and sets for them. I love when a director comes to me and they're like, this is what I want. And then just being able to bring that into the real world, there's just magic behind creation, and seeing a final product go from a crudely drawn sketch to something on stage with lights and sound is magical. I've been in a jacket making mood recently. I, really like using, recycled fabrics as well. I get a lot of my sewing notions from the thrift store because it's more affordable and you're saving it from a landfill. I love finding, old blankets, old quilts, and turning them into jackets. I think it's so much fun and it's just giving new life to something that might otherwise have been thrown out.

I don't know if I would consider myself attached to any of my clothing, to be honest. I feel like stuff comes and goes, and clothing is the same way. You wear it, you experience it, you make it into something new.