From Indoors to Fashion Week Houghton Designer Katharine Polk Lives a Stylish Life With Horses and High Couture by Winter Hoffman Those who lined the runway to view the Fall/ Winter line from Houghton during February’s esteemed Fashion Week were blissfully unaware that the designer behind the creations on display harbored another love, one that was a world away from the catwalk. Designer Katharine Polk, who has recently and impressively broken through in the fashion industry, found her first passion in the equestrian world. The 29-year-old creative director and founder of Houghton was always drawn towards fashion, but as a young girl growing up in Malibu, California, horses commanded her full attention.
The Past
Riding and competing on the West Coast throughout her junior career gave Polk the fortitude to pursue a career in fashion. “Horses, horse showing and managing your own barn teach you responsibility and work ethic,” she notes. “I often look back and realize how lucky I
was to have those experiences and learn what I did. It definitely prepared me for the endless hours involved in fashion.” Polk began riding at age 11, and was a regular in the show ring during her teenage years, working her way up through the hunter, eq and jumper divisions. With her jumper Wittinger Festival, she competed at Young Riders in Bromont, Canada, and won at Devon and Indoors, including the National Horse Show in New York, with her hunter Eminem. After graduating from high school and moving on to study at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Southern California, Polk continued to keep one foot in the ring by showing Eminem as often as was possible, and staying active in the jumpers. Opposite and top: Houghton Fall/Winter 2013 Runway looks. Photos ©Ken Tachman Inset: Katharine competing in the hunter ring with Eminem during her riding days.
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