INSPIRE: ‘I’m doing what I was born to do’

From the days doodling sketches of dresses in her copybook at school to taking part in London Fashion Week, Emma Curtis has always pursued her dream of designing and creating beautiful clothes but, she tells SALLY HARDING, that dream can come with a financial and emotional price tag

A FASHION designer from Drumconrath has opened up about how she uses her passion for creating as a form of therapy and the challenges of making a living in an artistic field.

Emma Curtis (32) says she remembers doodling sketches of dresses in her copybook at school from a young age but “didn’t really know you could get a job in it” subsequently following a path into interior design.

It was exposure to this creative aspect that focused Emma’s attention towards her first love of fashion and she went on to study fashion, textiles and design with business management graduating with a degree from St Angela's College in Sligo in 2016.

Even before graduating, the talented Drumconrath woman had a steady clientele winning multiple awards at Lady’s Day events in the horseracing calendar.

Since starting her own brand EmMarie by Emma Curtis the mum of one has been busy making bespoke pieces for her customers and even took part in London Fashion Week.

Speaking about her love affair with fabric and design, she said:

“It’s a part of my life, it's who I am. When I’m in my studio and I create a piece or even just playing with the fabric it is really fulfilling, I’m doing what I was born to do.

“I get so ecstatic when I see a finished piece, it just makes me happy as a person, I wouldn’t be me without it.  When I talk about what I do I get so excited.

“It’s a way of expressing yourself, it is so diverse, no matter what you do, nothing you do in art is really wrong. No matter how you are feeling you can get it down on paper, it’s like a form of therapy.”

Rather than being a slave to style fads, Emma says she creates pieces for each individual.

“I’ve always done my own thing, I wouldn’t really follow fashion trends, I look at what suits the person and their colouring, I try to get to know a person and try to express it through their clothes.

“I think your clothes should make a statement, when I am going somewhere I like to stand out, I love a bit of colour or just something different.”

Emma’s inspiration for her designs is usually sourced from the outdoor world, explaining her creative process she said:

“Hand painting would be one of things that I would enjoy the most, I hand paint designs on the fabric that’s an area I love, I think that is kind of my niche.

“When it comes to sewing, I find that boring, I’m more into actually getting at the stand, just getting a piece of fabric and playing with fabric and just creating and making something instead of having to sit down and sew a piece together, I feel like I am wasted doing that.

“If I wanted to design six dresses, I would always pick something that inspires me, natures really inspires me, I just love being outside.

“I might just go down to the field and get some kind of shape on a tree or I might see stones or weeds and I take different pictures and then within that picture I’ll pick out different shapes and then I just play with shapes on an actual illustration that sketch out.

“I might have the petal of a flower and then multiply it and create some kind of design on a sleeve, then I might get a piece of fabric and try and get that piece of fabric and pin it on the actual mannequin and try to come up with a design that way.

“I do the drawing and see what colours work together. You’ll have your picture drawn then you have to do the pattern but you have to make sure the pattern works as well, depending on the shape of the body and if it going to suit the person.

“You’ll sew up a sample piece to make sure that the shape works so you might have to make two or three mock ones before you actually get the final finished piece before you cut out the main fabric.

“It’s a long process, unless you are selling a lot of pieces they only way to go would be to do commission pieces, it’s very hard to make a living from it.”

Although the love for design and creating runs deep, following your dreams to make it in the rag trade doesn’t come without a price tag both financially and emotionally according to Emma who went back to college to qualify as an art teacher to help pay the bills.

“My work is more seasonal, and it is commission work I am doing; it is too expensive to make collections all of the time.”

One of the best parts of the designer’s job is seeing how a client’s reaction to a piece tailored made for them according to Emma.

“I’ve had one or two customers and they wouldn’t have been very confident, so I have made some really beautiful pieces to suit their body shape and express their personality. A woman said to me once I’ve never felt as beautiful in all of my life and for me that was just amazing to hear.

“It feels like such an achievement and it’s something I’d love to do more of but unless you have a lot of backing behind you it’s not something you can’t do full time. You are constantly pumping money in and it’s so uncertain whether you are going to get a return.

“I’m currently teaching post primary art but I’d like to set up my own design school and run private classes. I am very skilled, I love what I do, I would like to teach a fashion course and show my skills and make the most of them .”

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- Article first appeared in the Inspire pullout in the Meath Chronicle dated 12/06/21

Have you an inspirational story to tell? Contact Sally.Harding @ meathchronicle.ie