Kaitlin Nash Barton, former Valparaiso High School student and freshman in college, lives by the words, "If you don't try, you'll never know". Barton is an amazing young woman- she single handedly taught herself how to sew, which led to a lifelong interest in fashion. She is determined to do whatever it takes to make her dreams come true- even if it means creating her own clothing brand as a high school student.
Barton's clothing brand is named Kaitie Nash. 'Nash' is both her middle name and her mother's maiden name. When it comes to her fashion aspirations, her family has always been a huge driving force behind innate motivation. She's always pushed towards the best possibilities in the fashion world. Her brand has two parts- the casual line and evening line. She has had the opportunity to produce a photo shoot with models and makeup artists, which she believed was extremely rewarding. For her evening collection, she made two cocktail dresses and three prom dresses.
She stated, "Making the prom dresses was my absolute favorite part because I got to do fittings with the customers and make their dream dresses become reality. I drafted, pattern made, and sewed everything from original designs. The *most* rewarding part of having my own line is actually seeing my customers wear something that I constructed out of what used to be rectangles of fabric."
Barton's interests in fashion sparked about three years ago. At a garage sale she stumbled across an antique sewing machine. Although she had no sewing experience, she gave in and decided to buy it. She worked with the machine (even though it was merely broken at the time) and created a lumpy, mismatched dress using fabric from Wal-Mart.
"It was quite honestly the ugliest piece of clothing I have ever seen, but I was immensely proud. I kept on going, making garment after garment, slowly, VERY slowly, improving. I studied books like 1939 Vogue's Book of Smart Dressmaking (a gift from my aunt in Scotland) and taught myself to sew," Barton smiled.
Barton's favorite designer Michael Kors. She believes that his styles and patterns are empowering and bold. However, her real life fashion inspiration is VHS teacher Mrs. Debra Shaffer, who was her teacher for Textiles and Fashion Design 1 her junior year.
Barton stated, "While I already knew most of the technical aspects taught in the course, she [Shaffer] went above and beyond by giving me more challenging projects and helping me perfect my techniques. She told me she saw something in me and she helped me to have the self-confidence to pursue a career in fashion design. Even today, I can go to her and get technical advice on exactly how to fit 14 layers of tulle and chiffon in one skirt, or various other things."
Barton believes that her interest in fashion has given her the opportunity to truly express herself and embrace her individuality. Barton expresses her disinterest in fashion during middle school- she has three pairs of the same exact jeans so she could wear them every other weekday. Learning how to sew opened up a door that Barton didn't even know existed. Fashion helped Barton discover her voice.
"Once I started making clothes, I became fixated on how I dressed and presented myself. People may say that clothes don't make a person, but I don't necessarily agree. Clothes may not have made me, but they gave me the confidence to step out of the shadows, be me, and be acknowledged for it. I love clothing because it grants empowerment and yields respect," Barton said.
Barton's style never went unnoticed in the halls of VHS. She was nominated for the senior royalty of best dressed. She even made prom dresses for her peers with only the finest fabrics. Barton is also a member of VHS's brand new DECA chapter. She competed in Fashion Merchandising Promotion Planning event. Her hypothetical two year projection business plan presentation for the not so hypothetical brand Nash put her at first in the state of Indiana, which qualified both her and her partner for the 2014 DECA International Tournament.
Barton plans on taking her interest in fashion with her in college. She will be attending the Fashion Institute of Technology, FIT, in New York City this fall.
Barton stated, "My absolutely insane end goal, is to have my own store in the five fashion capitals of the world: New York City, London, Paris, Milan, and Tokyo. I know it's crazy but the crazy keeps me going. As cliché as it sounds, I also want to one day retire from working and open up a free school to teach underprivileged and special needs teens how to sew. I tutored special needs students in high school and I was given the opportunity to teach a handful to sew and it was such a wonderful experience."
It is clear that Barton has a bright future ahead of her. Her constant determination and strive to accomplish her goals is something that we can all admire.