How I Do It: Fashion Design

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to design clothing, accessories, fabric prints, and more?  Are you a fashion designer wanting to learn how to turn your passion into a sustainable career? Join us for an engaging, open discussion with designers, Thea Perez and Lesley Potter. Both have a wide range of experiences and were selected to speak based on their varying career paths.  Join us for this round-table discussion as they share insight into the fashion world. This is a fantastic opportunity for ANY artist to have a behind-the-scenes view of a creative career!  We encourage artists of all levels and all media to participate!

Thea Perez works as a consultant for a wide variety of clients in the fashion and home industries.  She specializes in sweater knits, print and graphics development, and embellishment design.  She has earned a reputation as a great resource for trend-right design. Her career path includes the role of Senior Designer at Boston Apparel Group, a Senior Design position at Susan Bristol, several design positions at David Brooks; and Design Manager at Geoffrey B. Small.  In addition to her work as a fashion designer, Thea has also taught Fashion Design and Drawing classes at her alma mater, Rhode Island School of Design, where she had earned a BFA in Apparel Design.

An Apparel Design graduate from the Rhode Island School of Design, Lesley Potter is the Design Director at the Life is Good company.  Her fashion history includes launching a modern cashmere sweater brand, positions at Mast Industries, Cambridge Dry Goods, Telluride Clothing Company, Susan Bristol,  and a decade of working as the Senior Director of Design at Jjill.  Her career has given her the opportunity to travel the world and to design for every product category imaginable.   Womens Apparel has been her primary focus, but she has also designed Mens, Kids, Home and Accessories of all sorts.