We recently connected with Cynthia Kirkland and have shared our conversation below.

Cynthia, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today It’s easy to look at a business or industry as an outsider and assume it’s super profitable – but we’ve seen over and over again in our conversation with folks that most industries have factors that make profitability a challenge. What’s biggest challenge to profitability in your industry?

Thought the entire creative industry struggles with proper compensation, the stitchers and textile workers have consistently been underpaid. Fast fashion in the commercial space has created this perception that well-made garments are cheap…but there is a human cost behind that sentiment. Since the film industry strikes are still fresh in people’s consciousness, the costume makers and designers were tallied at being the lowest paid of the creatives credited on screen. Why is that? I have struggled with this question many times as a professional costume maker. The reason I have discovered is that textiles and sewing has traditionally been considered “women’s work”…it’s sad but the lack of compensation for the costume field can be boiled down to that attribution. So, during strikes, the costumers would often use the tagline, “Naked without us” to validate why their value and compensation needs to be addressed. It’s a powerful sentiment.

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

I am a freelance seamstress who specializes in costuming. I worked in the entertainment industry for about 12 years before becoming a textile engineer. In my free time, I often enjoy making screen accurate costumes to wear to various comic conventions around the US.

What’s worked well for you in terms of a source for new clients?

Honestly, within the hustle….word of mouth has been my greatest ally. I have done work for RuPaul’s Drag Race simply because within my community, my knowledge and reliability made me an asset. Any creative in the entertainment industry will tell you that work of mouth is their biggest asset. It can be frustrating to wait for that opportunity…but it will come if you keep up a good work ethic and are ready to jump when that opportunity arises.

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

This story can be summed up by my career. I went from entertainment seamstress to the engineering field within the last three years. COVID halted the entertainment and tourism career pretty drastically, so like many in my field….the role within my company was cut to restructure during the pandemic. I am honestly still healing from that identity shift a bit, but it helped me to explore a new field. While in lockdown at home, I became more interested exploring costume technologies such as animatronics and lighting. I taught myself soldering, battery powers, torque……and so many other things. I learned 3d printing the previous year, so it has just been a matter of building up my skills. And because of these skills, I was reached out to by a fellow creative. She worked as textile/fabric engineer for a wearable technologies company and knew that my new skills would be great for the company. As an out of work creative, this was the perfect opportunity to explore a new path and field. With the new environment of engineers, I have continued to explore tools such as laser cutting, CNC milling…and honestly…anything I can use to create a unique wearable.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: www.instagram.com/athel_artistry
• Other: I really only use Instagram, and that is also how clients usually contact me.

Image Credits
Image 1 Instagram: WorldOfGwendana Image 2 Instagram: RyanSimsPhotography Image 3 Instagram: AleeStudios