Mary Bradley | On 25, Feb 2015
While most of her middle school classmates were worrying about pimples, relationships and assignments, Jackie Chelales had more on her plate: full-fledged designing and dressmaking.
Years later, Jackie’s talent helped her land a spot at Parsons, a school which burst into the limelight by Project Runway’s Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum.
Going To School In New York City
Parsons has a reputation for developing young designers such as Jackie and crafting them into young experts.
Many graduates have climbed the ladder of success—perhaps the names Isaac Mizrahi and Marc Jacobs sound familiar.But for Jackie, her time at Parsons is not focused on becoming the next name inked across Vogue advertisements. She is centered on where she is now.
“For the moment, I am focusing on the end of my third year, which means a capsule collection and pre-thesis,” said Jackie, who is one of nearly 5,000 Parsons students. “Getting closer to [my] thesis and eventually graduation is definitely scary, but I’m trying to also intern when I have time so that I can have enough experience to get a job in design when I graduate.”
Outside the windows of Parsons’ 5th Avenue classrooms sits New York City, a place that Jackie—among many others—see as the capital of the fashion world.
“In the United States, New York is definitely the place to go for fashion,” she said. “Since I moved here for school, I was able to adjust to the change pretty easily, and I’ve been able to grow and learn a lot since then.”
Competition vs. Drive
The key for her lies less in the perceived dramatic competitiveness of the fashion world, and more in simply working hard in her studies to find success outside of them.
With the fashion world being swarmed by aspiring creatives, Jackie said success depends on having a combination of internship experience and drive.
“I’m sure it’s similar at many art schools, but the large fashion design program makes it a little different,” she said of Parsons BFA program. “It is very competitive, but a large part of that feeling I think depends on each student and whether they are competitive or not. Overall, I think it’s great because I’m always surrounded by other hardworking people and any competitive feelings are just more motivation.”
But despite a humble and focused take on approaching the fashion world, Jackie has managed to sketch out a name for herself.
Last year, she was one of 15 chosen to compete in an annual fashion contest called Fusion, held between Parsons and the Fashion Institute of Technology, or FIT. For the competition, Jackie designed five looks and four leather bags. She presented them to judges from fashion magazines such as Elle, Teen Vogue and Scene.
The Importance Of Learning & Experience
While she did not end up winning the competition, Jackie learned a lot. “Having to make not only my first collection, but my first fully-fashioned knitwear collection was very challenging but very rewarding,” she said. “It was definitely an experience I have grown from.”
And with a growing online following—more than 1,500 on Instagram alone—Jackie said making it in the fashion world can rest on having connections. While connections are nice, they don’t set one designer apart from another. Ultimately, experience, not the name game or cash flow, is the most important thing for her.
“More than anything, I think the key is experience,” she said. “There are many people who try to start their own companies right out of school and end up failing. I think it’s better to work hard in school, intern while in school and to get a job working for another company before thinking about starting one.”
Jackie, with all of her designs, sketches and talent, says her plan is to stick to just that.
For more of her work and sketches, check out Jackie’s Instagram.
Feature Photo Courtesy of Ryan Duffin