We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Madeleine Asheleigh. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Madeleine below.

Alright, Madeleine thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Do you wish you had started sooner?

If I could go back in time, I would have stayed consistent in fashion. I have always loved styling and creating clothes for as long as I can remember. I used to take old clothes of mine and turn them into new creations for my dolls to wear. I would sit for hours watching fashion shows and red carpets, looking for the runway looks and guessing who designed what. I would obsess over Vogue magazine and the Bratz were basically my religion. When I was around the ripe age of 5, I decided I wanted to harness more of my energy into dance as my creative career of choice. Fast forwarding 10+ years, I have stepped out of the dance field completely and managed to find myself back into fashion, creating and all. While I still love dance, I have come to learn a hard lesson that I feel every creative comes across. I learned that I was forcing myself to monetize off of something that was supposed to only be a hobby. I wanted so desperately for my dance career to take off like it had for my peers, but I learned the hard way that the more you try to force something, the more it is going to resist your efforts. However, when I found myself back into fashion, nothing felt forced, and it still doesn’t.
I honestly believe that if I had stuck with it since childhood, I would have gone to fashion school and I would possibly already have a fashion line where I would create custom pieces for my clients, which is still a goal I would like to accomplish in the near future. Even though I am certain that I would probably be lightyears ahead of where I am now regarding fashion, I can honestly say that I am grateful for the fact that I c=took that time to focus on dance. It allowed me to learn a hard lesson in a field that I truly was, and still am, passionate about, but I am beyond grateful that I didn’t have to learn that lesson with fashion as it is a major aspect of my life and I can’t imagine my life if I lost my passion for fashion.

Madeleine, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

My name is Madeleine Asheleigh. I’m the author of the murder mystery novel, “The Strangers We Call Friends”, as well as an up-and-coming fashion designer. I used to dance professionally, but have put that on the back burner to harness my creative energy into writing and fashion. I am currently working on honing my sewing skills before eventually opening myself up to taking custom commission pieces for other people. I am most proud of my most recent projects as I have successfully began bringing my sketches to life, despite them being rather outlandish creations that most people didn’t believe that they would transfer well to actual pieces. I want potential clients to know that any pieces they receive from me is a complete one-of-a-kind handmade piece of the highest quality I can provide and that I put as much love, effort, and creativity into it as I could.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

For me, the most rewarding part of being an artist is being able to watch my creative process play out in real time. Watching one of my pieces go from a sketch to an actual wearable object is the most rewarding aspect. Knowing that I stuck it out and saw it through to the very end. It was the same thing when I published my novel, “The Strangers We Call Friends”. Seeing it go from a simple idea that played out in my mind all the way a whole paperback novel that people other than myself have been enjoying since its release has been an amazing experience and feeling.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

In my honest opinion, society can do right by the creative community by respecting the impact that the arts has on society. While occupations such as doctors, lawyers, and educators are imperative to the progression of society and the betterment of our future, we need to acknowledge that without the arts, society would lack passion in our progression. We would lack the creativity required to innovate the new technologies that push our lifestyles forward.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: instagram.com/madeleineasheleigh

Image Credits
K’Leah McKinnon, Moriah Johnson, Cinda Wickersham