Ariel Taryn
Fashion Designer
Los Angeles, CA
Where did your entrepreneurial side come from?
My father. His story always blows my mind. He moved from Tel Aviv, Israel to LA when he was 19 to become an actor, he’s always had the biggest passion for film. He started sewing curtains out of his garage with no money at all. He then started a drapery business, in which was used as the opening for many award shows such as the Oscars, Emmy’s, Tony Awards, Broadway, etc. He then built his first film studio in 2003, from the ground up and sold the shmata business. Now he has a second studio and rents them both out to many production companies for commercials, films, and musicians rehearsing for tour.
Is that how you started working on set?
Yes. When I was 18, I started working as a production assistant for commercials. I remember my first job was on a lays chip commercial. I remember arriving on set at 3:30 am and ending the day around 7 pm every day for a week. We’d spend hours going through hundreds of boxes of lays to find the most perfect chips that would be a 3 second clip of the entire commercial. Was greatly rewarding seeing all of that hard work on live television, paid well, and got to eat all of the “reject” chips. ;)
What were your plans for the future at that point?
Well, I didn’t have any. I had just graduated high school and knew I wanted to do something on set, that was creative that used my hands. Piano taught me my love for using my hands. I went to special effects makeup school while working on set part time, but then realized as much as I love doing my own makeup, I don’t have a steady hand, and could never draw, but wanted to challenge myself. I also always wanted to go to culinary school, but that wasn’t an option so I thought by working with food stylists I could learn through them. After working alongside food stylists for a year, and working on food network shows such as Giada at Home, I decided to take a break.
Why?
I was 19, my mother passed. I couldn’t handle the stresses of that kind of schedule during such a sensitive time. So I started making jewelry with my sister for a designer in North Hollywood. As a way to cope, I also picked up learning how to crochet off YouTube and books form Joann's. I became obsessed with it. Watching a single thread of yarn weaving into intricate formations for hours was fascinating to me and also hugely meditative. That hobby turned into a business on held on Etsy, consisting of 70’s style crocheted intimates. I sold steady for a solid 4 years, to festivals all over Cali and boutiques in Bali. However I knew this wasn’t a career. I had the urge to gain a better understanding of garment construction and thought I’d take the leap to dive into apparel design.
That’s awesome! Did you go to school for that?
Yes. I attended a small fashion school called FCI Fashion School in Downtown LA in 2019. They specialize in short term, fast paced fashion programs. So I took two design courses. I learned how to sew the first day of class in Design 1, in May of 2019 which was all about learning how to create your own patterns and drafting a dress. Shortly after, I took Design 2, which entailed learning t-shirts, button downs blouses, pants and learning how to draft our own versions of them. Our final was to create a cohesive collection. Upon graduating, I was presented the opportunity to participate in LA Fashion Week, October 10, 2019. I had less than a month to create 10 cohesive looks for LA fashion week.
That sounds brutal, having such little time to create a 10 piece collection? What did your collection entail that you presented?
My pieces were almost entirely constructed out of vintage textiles I had collected, including Victorian/Edwardian lacework to deadstock cowboy fabrics . My collection was inspired by the elegance of 18th century romanticism, and the rawness Wild West as captured in television and cinema. Considering myself an old soul at heart, I carry a desire to bring back old fashion values. To me, I think it’s sexier to show less skin, makes the mind wonder. I created peasant style looks featuring high necklines, gigantic puff sleeves and lace bodices to edgy western silhouettes inspired by 40’s/50’s ranch-wear with a modern twist. I wanted to emulate both timeless worlds into a fantasy and create a nostalgic mood. I considered this collection to be a predilection of the exotic, remote, the mysterious and the transcendental - all of which are a huge reflection of my creative spirit.
Seeing my pieces on models for the very first time- was inexplicable. This moment was insanely emotional for me.
That’s beautiful. How did you go about creative direction?
The theme of my collection was prairie girl meets western cowboy. I had the music starting with Lee Hazlewood, then The Abigails and ending with Fat White Family. On the day of the show, myself and 16 other designers only had 4 hours coordinate the order of our models, looks and music. This was also the only time we had to do an initial fitting with the models presented to us day of.
Wow, that sounds intense. 4 hours just before the show? Talk about a time crunch!! Was this overwhelming for you?