We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sophia Maria Izquierdo a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Sophia Maria, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
The most meaningful project I have worked on so far in my studies and career has been my senior year thesis collection at Columbia College Chicago. I designed a collection where I had complete creative control from idea to execution. I was dedicated to creating a fashion collection I was proud of and one that represented me. My senior thesis collection, ‘Versatility x Livery’ is inspired by Japanese drift car graphic wraps and the connection between the modification of both cars and fashion. Two of my personal interests and the similarities they share. By altering how a garment is styled, a person can make the garment unique to themselves, similar to how a car may be modified to fit the drivers personality. My inspiration for versatile clothing comes from my passion for sustainability in fashion. As for my passion for cars- growing up in a family that appreciates cars, I was interested in cars from a young age, but my interest in learning about them really began after getting my first car. I learned more about the car I own and the community as well. I learn more and more about cars each day from my friends and boyfriend who share this interest with me. We work on my car and modify it to fit my personality. With this being my final collection I designed while completing my degree, I felt it was necessary to open up as a designer. To open up more of my personally into this collection to really be proud of what I created.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
I have always wanted to be a fashion designer, but I used to think it was an unrealistic career. This is often how creative professions are misinterpreted- as ‘unrealistic’ and just ‘dream jobs’. I was fortunate enough to have fashion classes at my high school and took a few classes where we learned about jobs in the industry. This opened up my eyes to understanding just how large the fashion industry is and how there are so many different routes a person can take within the industry as well. I decided to pursue a Bachelors of Fine Arts in fashion design. Through my creative education and career so far, I have learned a lot about myself and my values. I have experience working in retail, fashion design, fashion internships, alterations, and textile design. I believe it is very important to have meaningful work. Especially working in a massive industry that produces millions of products every single day, it is important to give meaning to your work and understand why we (as fashion designers) do what we do. I personally feel it is very important for my contribution to the fashion industry to be meaningful and have a positive impact. I want to help others to feel good in what they wear. I want to help people feel confident in their clothing and where it came from. When I do alteration work, I want the customer to feel confident that their clothing fits their unique beautiful body. Impact and meaning is why I do what I do.
What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?
The most rewarding aspect of being a creative is seeing your ideas come to life and understanding exactly where the ideas started and what it took to get there. As a fashion designer, the best feelings of reward come from fashion shows, photoshoots, displaying my work at events, and connecting with others. Those moments of adrenaline show me that my hard work paid off and I’m making progress in my career. In my creative process, my ideas start in my mind, then move to paper and pen, and then are created with my hands. This is how I design my fashion collections and creative projects. I recently had the opportunity to have my recent collection on display at a networking event during the Chicago NASCAR weekend. It felt so rewarding to receive such positive feedback from my work. It also felt so rewarding knowing I was given this opportunity because the people who organized the event reached out to me after seeing my collection in my fashion show. Following this fashion show, I was also contacted by an individual to be featured in another upcoming fashion show. The best feeling is knowing how much hard work and dedication you put into your creative projects, and then positive outcomes and opportunities arise from that.
We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.
My freshman year of college, everyone was sent home before the second semester ended. We were unsure of what was going to happen, but we were told not to come back to school and that classes would continue online. Covid was a hard time for almost everyone all around the world. Being a creative at a time like this was particularly difficult. I remember wondering how I could possibly continue to pursue a creative, hands-on degree at a time like this. I was taking sewing classes where the entire classroom was students at sewing machines and the professor at a sewing machine at the front of the room. This was impossible to do when we had to continue our education online. Many of us were skeptical of how we would still learn what we needed to in a timely matter to finish our degree. It was difficult at the time to stay positive and hopeful, but we pushed through and adapted. At my college graduation ceremony, the president of our college took a moment to reflect and specifically congratulate all of us for pushing through online schooling and not giving up on our creative degrees. I remember feeling a moment of reflection in the auditorium and a reminder that I am proud to have pursed a creative degree, despite the challenges we faced. 
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.sophiamariadesigns.com
- Instagram: @sophiamariadesigns
- Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/in/sophiaizquierdo
Image Credits
Nathan Dewey J. Raphael Shaul Alec Basse Jude Shuma Jaxon Dobbins