Model Designer

Last week I sat for a talk with Inga Savits, an accomplished model who recently started her own shoe brand out of Milan. Her love affair with designing for fashion dates from long before her modeling years and it's interesting to see how she took advantage of her work as a model to pursue her dream of becoming a shoe designer; and a great one too.

Already in her third collection, Inga's designs have been spotted in red carpets across the globe and in collaborations with emerging french designer Alexis Mabille.

Have a look at the full article here or read below.

Model Designer: Inga Savits

After a successful career in front of the camera, some models open up night clubs and restaurants, others launch their own fragrances and skincare lines and many of them work in collaboration with large brands to launch fashion collections with their names attached to it. When it comes to Inga Savits however, it goes the other way around.

At the age of 19, Inga was attending fashion school in Estonia, her home country, when she was approached by a model scout while shopping. Puzzled by the idea of having an opportunity to see how fashion was done from behind the scenes, the student took that chance and went to Paris. Inga’s first job was with Mr. Yves Saint Laurent, in 1998. Inga spent a few days with Mr. Saint Laurent in his atelier, hair coiffed and red lipstick on, while he worked on his collection. “My eyes were open to see how he was making his dresses, what kind of accessories he was pairing with them, pretty much everything!”. After walking YSL’s famous catwalk, Inga was thrown into the arms of the fashion industry, which embraced and still holds her dearly.

During the time spent as a model in Milan, Inga met the shoe designer Brian Atwood, who then lived there. In observing his passion for shoes, Inga realized that shoe making was what she wanted to pursue in fashion. With more than a decade of experience as a model, it was time to dive into her long time passion and for that, she moved permanently to the Italian city. She was delighted to be closer to the shoe factories she worked closely with as well as old friends who constantly inspire her to create her own namesake line, Inga Savits.

Still unsure of whether she should go back to school to study the craft of shoemaking or not, Inga took some time to research the industry. “I went to a friend of mine who works at Versace and asked his opinion. He said I had the best teachers in the world, from Mr. Yves Saint Laurent to Galliano and Donatella Versace, teachers that most students would never have a chance to meet in their lives. In his opinion I was better off with the experience I had gathered as a model. He said if I went to school for shoe design I would not allow my creativity to take flight and could be restrained by the practicalities.”

Inga’s designs are a reflection of her years on and off of the catwalk, and are inspired by her life. The main goal is to create designs that are stylish and feminine without having to compromise in comfort and versatility. “Unfortunately in fashion when you say comfortable people think about medical shoes, or ugly shoes, and my goal is to show that it is possible to create very feminine shoes that can be comfortable at the same time. I had to learn to walk in very uncomfortable shoes, so now I want to make the type of shoe you can feel good about and wear anywhere at any time of day, I don’t want women to be fashion victims when I can combine both things.” explains the designer.

Production costs may be a little steep, but Italy is where she brings her designs to life; her goal is to really establish her brand at the top, so she only works with the best factories. Entirely self-funded, Savits explains that her business is the size it was meant to be, her goal with her brand from the start was to begin small and build up from there.

Already in her third season, scheduled to debut during the September shows in Paris, the designer has gathered great compliments from her peers and has even managed to secure a collaboration between her brand and the emerging French designer Alexis Mabille for whom she is also developing a second collection for his show.

Knowing exactly what she wants for her brand, and when asked if she would ever consider going into clothing, the answer is immediate and firm: “No! I could maybe do some bags, but not clothes. I recently started looking at some bags and was really interested in them, it would be a good complement to my collection, but at the moment I am really focused in expanding my shoe collections and establishing my brand in the market.”

Inga Savits is available for sale in New York at Patron of the New in Tribeca and on line at Feminin Rascal.

You can follow the designer on twitter at @IngaSavits  and check out her website at www.ingasavits.com

The Multitasking Supermodel

Many years and many models have gone by, but not many remain as active and inspiring as the lovely Ms. Claudia Mason, whom I had the pleasure of representing during my time working at Elite Models.

Claudia doesn't settle down, she writes, produces plays, directs, wins awards, shoots movies, dances and in whatever time she has left, she models. It's breathtaking.

Allow yourself to be taken out of breath too in this week's model musing column, just follow THIS link!

:)

Model Musing: Claudia Mason

With a passion for the arts, Claudia Mason is one of those girls that rose to stardom in the supermodel era, alongside names like Christy Turlington, Claudia Schiffer, Linda Evangelista and Naomi Campbell; Claudia had her brand established in the fashion industry right from the start. Discovered in a music store at the age of 13 she was attending New York’s prestigious School of American Ballet and was a very serious student. It wasn’t until she was 15 years old that things became really serious, and from that moment on she didn’t stop. Claudia’s first booking was for Vogue, and from there on Elle, Wand Bazaar followed, always shot by names like Bruce Weber, Mario Testino, Arthur Elgort, Patrick Demarchellier and Steven Meisel, to name a few.

Long and languid, Claudia was a queen of the runways, and soon also became a must-book for top campaigns. One of Gianni Versace’s favorite models and repeatedly used in his campaigns, she also modeled for Fendi, Valentino, Christian Lacroix and many others.

Claudia then went on to host MTV’s Fashionably Loud, starred in an Enrique Iglesias music video and caught Hollywood’s attention. The pursuit of the acting career lasted a few years in Los Angeles until fashion took her attention once more. In the same year she was receiving awards for her theater production of Tennesse Williams’s Orpheus Descending and superstar stylist Katie Grand repeatedly booked Claudia for Love Magazine and Vogue Russia.

Here, Claudia reminds us that acting, producing and writing are still the leading roles in her life nowadays. Duly noted.

Why do you love this picture?

I love this picture because it's old school movie star glam! It is from a LoveMagazine spread last year, and it's one of my favorite recent pictures of myself.

Who took it?

David Hughes was the photographer and Phoebe Arnold was the stylist! Great team!

How was the shoot like?

It was a one day shoot in London, and it was freezing cold and snowing outside! December 2010 I was relieved to be shooting inside, with heaters around.

What were you thinking  as you were shooting this?

I was thinking how uncomfortable I was in that position, as my neck was 'resting' on a concrete sharp edge. Ah fashion!

Did you receive any direction from the photographer?

The photographer wanted 'relaxed glam'.

Were there any wardrobe malfunctions?

My nipple popped out a couple of times - nothing major.

What was the theme for this shoot?

It was a jewelry story, so it needed to have an expensive air to it. Relaxed decadence.

What was your biggest challenge as a model?

Biggest challenge as a model is to not take my career for granted, as it has been so good to me.

Are there any regrets?

I would have liked to have had more fun when I started modeling.

Was there a modeling job that was so incredible that looking back it almost feels like a dream?

I've had so many great modeling jobs, but one that stands out is when I shot an Anne Klein campaign with Steven Klein, and there was an elephant in the studio! 

What is your dream modeling job?

My dream modeling job would be to have a cosmetics contract. Also the Bulgari campaign. I love that they use actresses such as Rachel Weisz and Julianne Moore.

What have been your most recent dreams?

I currently have nightmares only! But, a current dream would be to work with Woody Allen or Alexander Payne. Also, to be performing my one woman show that I'm currently writing.

What was your love at first experience; modeling, acting or dancing?

I fell in love with ballet as a little girl. But then again I fell in love with being in front of the camera and on stage as well. I used to perform at home in front of the mirror as a child.

You can follow Claudia Mason on TWITTER @ClaudiaMason1