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Must Go On PATTY BEAL When did the fashion bug bite you? TIELER GARSAUD I attended a summer camp at Ogden Museum of Southern Art when I was 13. I was drawn to the period costuming at the museum. I loved the fabrics, the design and the vibe. My initial inspiration and style comes from those collections. I’m in the Theater Design program at NOCCA now [New Orleans Center for Creative Arts]. I do a lot of creating there. PB How did you develop your sewing skills? TG I went through some rough years being bullied, so I threw myself into art and design. It kind of saved me. Basically, I’m self-taught, but I had a few classes on specific sewing machine mechanics. I do all my tailoring and draping myself. It’s like origami to me only more fluid than structured. PB How would you describe your aesthetic? TG I love the Neoclassical style, and I’m into humanities. I like to put a new twist onto forgotten paths. I’m an old soul, really.
PB You say that with a lot of passion. TG Women are objectified, however women have power. I want to give power back to women. PB Through their clothes? TG Yeah. Power gives emotion. Every garment has a meaning. There is a “why” behind every stitch and every detail. There’s a reason I choose that particular button. Nothing is random. PB What are you working on now? TG I’m a junior now, but I’m starting to work on a 30-piece collection for my senior project. I have some commissioned pieces I’m working on too. One’s a wedding dress. PB How did your passion become a fashion label: Tieler James? TG It all propelled after I was on Project Runway: Threads. (A design competition on Lifetime television.) When I won, things started to happen — opportunities. I got a lot of calls to show at different fashion weeks. I needed to bring a collection with a name — a label. James is my middle name. It sounded great. We [looking at his mom] loved it. PB Where have you shown?
EDGE Dec 2016 | Jan 2017
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