Life As We Know It

Earlier this week, one of my biggest inspirations passed away. I have been trying to write this post ever since, I just simply could not find the words to describe the impact that Kate Spade had on me.

For those of you who don’t know, Kate Spade did not start out as a designer. She was actually a journalist for Mademoiselle Magazine in New York City. She moved all the way from Kansas City to pursue this job while writing articles on what she was really passionate about, fashion. She worked her way up to being fashion editor and also overseeing all accessories. Kate Spade is a prime example of if you are truly passionate about something, work for what you want and where you want to go. This is exactly what she did, and she was very successful with it as well.

I don’t want this article to come off as a biography, however, I want to give y’all background of why I idolized Kate Spade as well as why I admired her dearly.

That being said, Kate quit her job at the magazine in order to follow her love and interest in fashion accessories. This was a risky move to be honest. Giving up everything she knew, everything she was used to. But she followed through with this and created her own brand, specifically for handbags. These handbags were nothing like the world has seen before. They were new, interesting, and offered a different style. They had luxurious patters as well as bright, eye- popping colors. This brand expanded internationally.

Creating an international brand after no design experience at all shows the dedication and success that Kate obtained. She was so passionate about this and grew this brand in such short time. She was honored with awards such as the “America’s New Fashion Talent in Accessories” award, followed by multiple others. She is truly a success in everything she did.

But she didn’t stop there. She expanded her brand to including other accessories as well as clothing. She had over 400 stores all around the globe and eventually sold this brand. During this time she engaged in writing 3 books, which was her way of sharing personal information about her such as her style as well as fashion advice and ideologies. I think theres a lot to learn from her books. She wanted the world to know the more personal side of her, not just what they see in stores. She was showing the world that there is more to her than her handbags and accessories, she is human as well. Her love for helping others and influencing them through fashion is what I admire most. This inspired me to share my love for fashion with all of you.

Although there is much more to her life I did not mention, these are just a few reasons why she is one of my idols and why I am so inspired by her.

I’m going to say it again, just to emphasize why I appreciate her so much. She created designs from no where, simply what she liked and what she thought others would like as well. There has not been anything like hr designs before which is so fascinating to me. She came up with these bright color, sophisticated and fun patterns automatically. She really changed the fashion and accessory industry.

It is such tragedy to have lost someone so compassionate as her. Kate Spade is a role model to me and teaches me that nothing is impossible to achieve, as long as you put in hard work and time. You can get to the place you want to. I have still not come to terms with the fact that someone who seemed so happy, seemed to have everything they could possibly want–at least we thought–could actually be so broken inside. I think this is a huge lesson we need to take away.

With her memory, I will follow her philosophies and in her footsteps to achieve the goals I want within the fashion industry but in my private life as well. I will always consider her one of my role models, and someday, I hope to leave as great of an impact on others as she has left on me. May her memory live on.

Xo,

D