We recently connected with Daniel Mehaffey and have shared our conversation below.

Daniel, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about when you first realized that you wanted to pursue a creative path professionally.

That exact moment has been a gradual discovery for myself. When I was young, I always had a love for clothing and sneakers, but it wasn’t until I was in my mid-to-late twenties that I began to look at fashion as a potential career. I had no background or schooling in fashion design, so it felt incredibly difficult to even comprehend starting my own label or how I would even make money doing it. I loved discovering different brands through social media and YouTube. As I began to buy designer items for myself, I realized that I had my own ideas of how I could make clothing more comfortable for me.

I began to draw rough sketches of garments and networked through social media, to eventually finding a talented pattern maker and seamstress who brought my ideas to life. Once I had my first sample in hand, that was the true moment I knew that fashion design could be more than a just a hobby; I could make it into a full time career.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

The town I grew up in really had no access to the fashion industry, so it was hard to network and meet with people who were also in the space. The ability to locate factories and manufacturers that could produce the clothes I wanted to create, were unable to translate my ideas into reality. I found myself more discouraged than encouraged while trying to explain my vision to the people around me and having them not understand it at all. Those moments challenged me, but also pushed me to get out of my comfort zone and to go seek the right people that could help bring my vision to fruition. Those many trials were some of the foundational principles of my brand; having to continuously rise from the ashes.

Through social media, I was able to meet an incredibly talented pattern maker and tailor. For the first time, I finally felt understood and that my ideas weren’t “impossible”. Combining his skills with my creative spirit, we were able to work together to build the first few samples. The idea of building a designer label had finally became more tangible. While I was working in the sampling phase, my day job led me and my wife to the Los Angeles area, where I was able to meet more like-minded creatives and successful entrepreneurs. It was through their own success, encouragement, and support that really changed my perspective on embracing the mission of owning my own business. It reassured my belief that it actually isn’t impossible to create and build a successful company entirely from nothing. Looking back, I realized that, without intention, I had truly walked and lived out the name of my company: From The Ashes.

From The Ashes is a luxury grunge designer wear brand manufactured entirely in Italy. Our design inspiration pulls from the hardcore/alternative rock scene, gothic architecture, renaissance art, geometric patterns, exaggerated hardware, and oversized, open styled silhouettes. Our designs are a fusion of timeless elegance and edge, drawing inspiration from diverse cultures, art, and music. We embrace diversity and individuality, as we believe that every person’s story deserves to be told through fashion. From The Ashes is more than just a clothing brand; it’s a lifestyle and a philosophy. It’s about embracing the challenges, celebrating the victories, and always striving to rise higher. Our brand is a testament to the resilience and strength of the human spirit, inspired by the age-old concept of rising from the ashes.

Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?

The number one resource I wish I would’ve understood earlier in my career, is the importance of relationships. If there’s any advice I could share, it is to put others first, to serve, and to be a light. Allow the right people into your life. Find people that inspire you or are in the position that you aspire to be in. Apply the things that you feel they do best and see if you find your own success in those practices, while always keeping an open mind.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Before I founded From The Ashes, I worked with fashion influencers on content management. This job moved me and my wife out to Orange County for a few months and, at the time, I was incredibly happy with what I was doing. It allowed me to leave retail sales and to be in a creative space full time. But this role came with its own set of challenges and there were times where I felt considerable doubts about certain aspects of the job. I found myself ignoring this intuitive feeling because I was determined to never go back to a nine-to-five. A few months later, without warning, my pay was cut in half and soon after was let go entirely. We had to leave our new home in Orange County, return to Northern California and begin rebuilding our life. This experience shattered my world and I began to feel depressed.

For the first time in my life, I felt I had no direction and no purpose. I was still insistent upon not going back into retail sales, so I decided I would try pursuing real estate. For months I was struggling to get my real estate business off the ground with no luck. I found myself faced with having to do the one thing I didn’t want to do; to go back into retail sales. I was so frustrated. After everything I tried to build in my life, it was as if I had wound up right back where I started many years ago. I ended up getting a job in the sales of luxury timepieces, and what I didn’t realize then that I do now, was because of that particular job, it was the exact skillsets and qualifications needed to obtain my most recent nine-to-five job in the same field. This new opportunity led me and my wife back to Southern California, but this time, to Los Angeles. It was the foundation that aided in launching me into the fashion industry full time.

Looking back over the past five years of my life has been insightful. Sometimes we feel so hurt and frustrated with circumstances outside of our control or moments where there are things we don’t fully understand. But what we can embrace is just how beautiful and intricate our journeys are. I can confidently say that everything happens for a reason, and God is always guiding our paths in the right direction.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://fromtheashes.co
• Instagram: @fromtheashesonline, @danielmehaffey_
• Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/daniel-mehaffey

Image Credits
Photographers are Liam MacRae for all images shot on set with the model and Gionn Peralta shot the professional image of myself along with the photos of my hands measuring and drawing.