Research Paper
Nicole Quigg
10/17/12
Professor Lampley
Term Project
Norma Kamali
Norma Kamali has been around fashion her entire life due to the fact that she was born and raised in New York City. Her fascinating life started in 1945 and as a young child, she dreamt of becoming a painter, not a fashion designer. Her mother believed in more traditional morals and was against the idea. So when it came to her studies, she decided to study fashion illustration, here, at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She received her bachelor’s degree in fashion illustration in 1964, but had difficulties finding a job with her major so she resorted to a job at the Northwest Orient Airlines as an airline reservation clerk. She quickly took advantage of the discounted flights she was able to receive and flew to London every opportunity she got. In London, she was able to study the fashion styles she saw on the streets and in stores learning about the mod fashions that was seen everywhere. She then decided to bring the fashion she saw in Europe back to New York, opening up a small shop with her husband at the time in 1969. She then began to create her own designs inspired by the Europe fashion of the sixties. Norma quickly started to become famous when she was recognized in Harper’s Bazaar magazine for her bold designs after they paid a visit to her boutique. After the success of her boutique, Norma decided to start her own clothing line. She had no background in sewing or pattern drafting, but she still challenged herself to make her own collection. Norma was successful with the start of her new line and was forced to expand her store on Madison Avenue. This is when she created her most popular collection, “parachute”. The “parachute” collection consisted of real parachutes taken from the army store that featured drawstrings for the control of the fabric. Her parachute designs are now in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan
10/17/12
Professor Lampley
Term Project
Norma Kamali
Norma Kamali has been around fashion her entire life due to the fact that she was born and raised in New York City. Her fascinating life started in 1945 and as a young child, she dreamt of becoming a painter, not a fashion designer. Her mother believed in more traditional morals and was against the idea. So when it came to her studies, she decided to study fashion illustration, here, at the Fashion Institute of Technology. She received her bachelor’s degree in fashion illustration in 1964, but had difficulties finding a job with her major so she resorted to a job at the Northwest Orient Airlines as an airline reservation clerk. She quickly took advantage of the discounted flights she was able to receive and flew to London every opportunity she got. In London, she was able to study the fashion styles she saw on the streets and in stores learning about the mod fashions that was seen everywhere. She then decided to bring the fashion she saw in Europe back to New York, opening up a small shop with her husband at the time in 1969. She then began to create her own designs inspired by the Europe fashion of the sixties. Norma quickly started to become famous when she was recognized in Harper’s Bazaar magazine for her bold designs after they paid a visit to her boutique. After the success of her boutique, Norma decided to start her own clothing line. She had no background in sewing or pattern drafting, but she still challenged herself to make her own collection. Norma was successful with the start of her new line and was forced to expand her store on Madison Avenue. This is when she created her most popular collection, “parachute”. The “parachute” collection consisted of real parachutes taken from the army store that featured drawstrings for the control of the fabric. Her parachute designs are now in the permanent collection of the Metropolitan