Madeleine White on DIYing Her Dress for the CFDAs, Viral Fashion, and Relaunching Her Brand See You Tomorrow

0:00The following podcast is a dear media production. Hi guys, welcome back to another episode of Let's Get Dressed. It's your host, Liv Perez. Do you guys remember a video that went viral last year where an influencer was in Milan for Milan Fashion Week? She was going to the Prada show and she posted a Get Ready With Me video where she had a$2 ,000 Prada jumpsuit and she cut it up and made it her own. It went from a jumpsuit to a crop top skirt and leg warmers and it was a pretty iconic moment. I'll never forget it. And it was the one and only Maddie White who joins us today on the podcast. Since that moment, Maddie has truly become the DIY queen of TikTok.

0:42We've seen her cut up Prada jumpsuit. We've seen her recreate a dress that Bella Hadid wore to the Comfilm Festival right at home, to even creating the gown that she wore to the CFDA Awards just last week. In today's episode, Maddie and I got to sit down and talk about her best tips for learning how to create and build your wardrobe right at home. We talk about some of her favorite moments in viral fashion, a little bridal update too. She's getting married next year and some very exciting news about the relaunch of her brand. See you tomorrow, coming this December. I hope you guys love this episode.

1:14Let's go get dressed with Maddie White. Welcome to Let's Get Dressed. Thank you. I have been really excited to have you on because there are so many looming questions. I'm so excited to hear from you on. Yeah. Firstly being, tell us about the CFDA dress. Oh, it's been a journey. It's been a fun journey to watch, by the way. I'm proud of you. It's been, because I decided I wanted to do it because usually a red carpet comes up kind of last minute, whereas I knew about this one for like a couple of months beforehand. And so we decided, me and my team, like I'm going to DIY my dress. And we had to get approval from Amazon because they were bringing me.

1:52And it took a while for them to say yes. and we're like, okay, this has to be good. Like it was not a little hack it up and call it a day. Like I knew it had to be well-made and like properly done, which I've truly never done before. Like I've never made anything more than like a thrift flip or something that was like already an existing garment that I just like flipped. I'm not somebody that typically makes things from scratch, but I decided I was going to do it. I started working on it last week. It's actually going way better than I expected. It's not done yet. By the time the part's out, it'll be done.

2:23So hopefully it turned out great. If it didn't, I'll be crying somewhere because I have spent so much time and energy building this dress. I have been like just watching YouTube tutorials that have like three views on how to do every single step. Yeah, but it's turning out really, really good so far. And I wanted to, you know, take inspo from something that I didn't want to do anything too recent. Didn't want to just full on copy something. So I took inspo from this dress that Audrey Hepburn wore in Funny Face. that was my inspo. It's looking pretty close and pretty promising so far. I saw you post this morning and I was like, you know, I saw, I've been like watching the progression.

3:02So I saw it from like the muslin to this. And when you posted the like dress on your body this morning, I was like, she's doing it. It's going really good. It's going well. Yeah. I was like, I feel like this is my opportunity to be like for people to know that I'm serious. And I actually do have knowledge about like construction of garments and about fashion, and I am really passionate about it. So I'm taking it very seriously, and I'm hoping that it will pay off. I love it. It's been really fun to watch you do it. And for listeners who don't know what the CFDAs are, they're an award show that happened last week by the time you guys were listening to this.

3:34It celebrates American designers. Jenna Lyons hosted the red carpet. It's a really fun event. Yes. Tell us a little bit about you going to the CFDAs. That's huge. Yeah. Yeah. First time. I'm really excited. Again, And it's, I feel like, one of the more prestigious events in fashion and on the calendar. So I'm so happy and honored to be invited and to get to walk the carpet. And I knew it was, like, probably one of the biggest carpets of my career yet, if not the biggest. Hence why we were like, okay, we have to have a look. We have to have something because there's going to be a lot of eyes, a lot of press, all those moments that you want.

4:09And so I wanted to think outside of the box and do something that probably nobody else is doing. Definitely not. Definitely not. Yeah. It's a very industry-facing event. Exactly. And the CFGAs have helped really bring so many incredible designers that we know and love to the forefront of fashion today. It's so exciting that you're going. I know. It's like one of the biggest nights. Yeah. But I'm, obviously, as we're recording now, I haven't seen the final look, and I'm very excited. I'm nervous. I'm hand-painting it. And so that's like... Oh, that's very cool. That's what I'm most nervous about, because I just feel like there's a lot of anomalies with paint and, like, spillage of paint.

4:43paint and I've been like testing it out on swatches of fabric and trying to make sure to see how it dries because I'm like what if it dries all wrinkly and then I can't iron it or steam it like there's so many variables with paint and then I realized like testing it out that it does like bleed through on the back and I'm like yeah that would have been a disaster if I had like thank god you're testing yeah thank god are you going to be painting it similarly to the Audrey Hepburn dress or are you taking your own inspiration I'm going to do a floral motif but I'm going to switch up the colors and kind of do my own, just see where it takes me as I like paint it.

5:12But I am doing florals like she has on hers. I also really love, you know, from like a content creator perspective, that Amazon partnership is very creative. To say, hey, I'm not going to wear an Amazon dress, but I'm going to use tools from Amazon to create this moment, I think is really innovative and outside of the box. How did you come up with that? Totally. I just, I have been working with Amazon for quite a while on their like partnership side and the like amount of garments that they had available to wear because it has to be obviously available on Amazon is pretty limited it's you know they have some amazing designers on there but you know there's more than just me going and I didn't want to run the risk of like wearing something too similar to someone else and I was trying to think about like what is actually relatable to my audience because like the majority of my audience is not going to be buying a$15 ,000 dress on Amazon which is awesome and I love that they have that available on the luxury site and the luxury site is like my favorite place to browse such a good place to browse but I knew that my audience was probably not going to engage with it as much as they would I get questions all the time about like where would you start where should I start sewing where should I what machine should I buy like I really want to get into it what do you recommend and so that's why I pitched it to them as like hey what if I did a DIY moment and I as I do the journey I'm gonna include all my sewing tips and I have like lists on my storefront that have beginner machines and all the little beginner kits that I used when I started, I learned how to sew.

6:37And I just felt like that would resonate so much more. And then I'm going to tie in with my Amazon accessories and my shoes and everything. And yeah, I just felt like it made more sense for my audience. And I knew that it would probably get a bigger reach that way. And yeah, I just wanted to do something a little bit different to make sure that I was not doing the same thing as everyone else. Love it. I also think one of the most important things, no matter what you're doing in this space, is meeting your audience where they're at. Exactly. And you did. Yeah. It's amazing. Speaking of big dress moments, you are also on the hunt for a wedding dress at the moment.

7:08I am. How is that going? Congratulations. Thank you. It's done, to be honest. Oh, I'm so happy for you. Yeah, yeah. Yeah, because you just got married. Congrats. I did. Thank you. Your dress is absolutely beautiful. Thank you so much. You are Ellie Saab, right? Yes. It looks absolutely stunning. Thank you so much. It's so much fun, and I'm so excited for you. You're going to enjoy every minute of it. Yeah, I'm honestly so happy the dress hunt is over. It was like, I started to get dress blindness. I was like, oh my God, they're all just white dresses. They're all just white dresses and it really doesn't matter.

7:38So I literally sent my top four to my mom and I was like, can you just pick? Because nobody would give me a straight answer. Nobody was like, this is the one. Everyone was like, well, it's whatever you feel confident in. And I'm like, please shut up. Please stop. And my mom, just like easy, like that one. Love. like thank you mother I knew I could trust her to tell me straight and so I was just so happy that somebody made the choice because I couldn't and I I feel like the worst thing I did was post it on TikTok and share my journey because then it's just like you have a hundred opinions just swirling around like people like that style on me even though I didn't like it that much and like I feel like it started clouding my judgment of which one I actually really liked best and then when my mom picked the one that she picked I was like I think that's the one I like the best as well it's just Not what everyone in my comments on previous videos has been saying they want to see me in.

8:28But I have to just trust that nobody wants me to look prettier on my wedding day than my mom. Exactly. So I'm trusting her judgment and my judgment. As a former bride, I have my experience was I was like, bye, everyone. Yeah. I couldn't do it. Yeah. I have a very strong recommendation for brides as they're looking for dresses. is. It's like, do that first fitting with your friends, with your mom, your siblings, like whoever you want to bring. Bring three people, make it fun, make it loose, have a drink, get your hair and makeup done, and make it like an exploratory thing. But after that, you should be bringing one person who you know is decisive and gives you just the straightforward, honest advice.

9:11Yeah. And sometimes that's not your mom. Sometimes that's not your sister because they're very emotional. I brought my best friend and she's the one that picked out the dress that I ended up wearing. And it was my favorite thing in the world. Any other tips in the wedding dress shopping process that you would share that were helpful for you while you were looking for yours? I agree with you totally. Like go the first time, friends, champagne, try on every style. Like even if you think you know what you like, which I ended up picking what I thought I liked, but try on one of everything just in case.

9:41Because like some of the form fitting, like the Hailey Bieber-esque long sleeve lace. I didn't think I would love on me, but then I tried it and I was like, wow, I loved it. So definitely just like give everything a shot and also just like trust yourself and your gut and don't let anybody influence your choice because it's ultimately, if you show somebody, play somebody a thousand songs and say pick your favorite, two people are not probably not going to pick the same one song and it's exactly the same with dresses. And so you just have to pick what you feel the best in because ultimately nobody cares about your wedding as much as you care about your wedding.

10:14And the only person that's still going to be looking on that photos in 10 years is you. Absolutely. A quick break from our conversation to thank the sponsor of today's podcast, Posh Peanut. If you are listening to Let's Get Dressed and you're ever shopping for your own wardrobe and you have kids, chances are you are also thinking about their wardrobes. And if you are looking for a brand that is both cool and cute for your kids, I have a brand that is both parent-approved and kid-approved, and it's called Posh Peanut. Posh Peanut makes thoughtfully crafted, beautiful and stylish clothing for kids and families designed in-house from beautiful florals to your favorite brands such as Hot Wheels, Disney, Hello Kitty, and Barbie.

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11:27And right now, Posh Peanut is offering you guys 20 % off your first order with promo code LGD. Go to poshpeanut.com slash LGD and use the promo code LGD for 20 % off your first order. So while you're out there getting some cute new things for your wardrobe, get something cute for your kids too. It's loved by over 1 million parents and adored by so many of your favorite celebrities and influencers too. Let's get back to the show. Okay. I want to get into how you get dressed every day because you walked into the studio and have like the cutest outfit on ever. Those shoes are to die for. And I think we need to put on everyone's holiday wish list because that, for those of you who are listening audibly and not watching on YouTube, they're like a satin pump with a crystal Miu Miu bow over it.

12:11They are so cute. I think I need those for like my Christmas outfit. Yeah. So cute. I did come in here complaining about the fact that they're not that comfortable, but you're not wearing these for comfort. And you don't wear heels for comfort. Yeah, facts. People keep messaging me being like, what are your comfiest heels? And I'm like, how comfy are we talking? Like, you're going to be inherently uncomfortable, but you mean the comfiest uncomfortable? Yes. Yeah. Yeah. And if you were to ask me that question, I would say Aquazura. I think Aquazura are the comfiest heels ever. My wedding shoes.

12:38Were they Aquazura? Yeah. Definitely the best of the discomfort, in my opinion. Well, the shoe I wore for my ceremony was like a Jimmy Choo classic white satin pump. And then the shoe that I changed to dance in all night was an Aquazura sandal slingback. Yeah. That I literally, I like have a bad back. So my shoes for the night went like decreased. Yeah. It went from like a pump to a slingback to a flat. Yeah. And those Aquazuras I had on for hours and didn't even, I don't even remember them. Like having them on wasn't a big deal. They're the best. Love. Yeah. Okay. So tell me about your outfit today.

13:09Walk me through it. It's just, I mean, I was in a little bit of a rush. I'm always in a rush. I just was like, okay, I need to be, I need to dress up. Like it's a fashion podcast. I've got to ruin my fashion. Thank you. We appreciate it here. And the weather's like kind of in the middle right now in LA. It's like still hot, but you want to dress before. so I originally had a sweater on and then I'm I was just like panicking I'm like okay this Versace top that I have is like my favorite top ever and in a pinch I'm just like that'll work I know it'll work I say for podcasts if you're going like belly button up you're winning and you're going belly button up yeah but usually I would love to tell you that I have like a formula to get dressed but most of the time it's just like me standing in my closet I put 18 different things on I just like, okay, this works.

13:55So is it a feeling or is it, I've seen a lot of your getting ready videos and one that sticks with me forever, the Ugg boots. I'll never forget it. Those were, I'll never forget it. I still have those sitting in my closet. I'm like, don't know what to do with them. Yeah, but honestly, you did the thing with them, which was like create this video that everyone was like, holy fucking shit. Yeah. Anyways, do you, when you're getting ready, are you like walking into your closet and being like, I have this one item I want to style look ground? Or are you like, I want to look hot today, so this is the outfit I'm putting on.

14:24Is it a feeling or an item? Most of the time it's an item, especially if I'm filming it for my TikTok or Instagram or whatever. It's usually an item because people I feel like come to me for the fun items, the thigh-high Ugg boots or the super sparkly dresses and all that kind of stuff. So usually I start with the item and build out from there. And that's honestly the best way that I do it, like the most effective takes me way less time than today when I'm just like have free reign. And I'm just like, I don't know what to put on. You don't know where to start. Yeah. I know. I usually like it when I'm like, I either have something new or like something I've been excited to wear.

14:59Yeah, exactly. It makes it so much easier. It does. When I walk in and I'm like starting from scratch, I'm like, oh God. Like it could be a jean. It could be a cardigan. It could be a skirt. It could be a dress. It's just like the most overwhelming feeling of all time. Yes. Agreed. I have been very invested in closet organization recently. Oh, yeah. I need one of those. How is your closet organized right now with the loads of incredible things you have? It's not. I have. It's not? Yeah. I have, like, you can see my backdrop from when I film. I have all my poses and my shoes in my office, like, as my filming backdrop, which I don't think is very smart because it's like, here's everything that I have.

15:40Disagree. Can I tell you why? Okay. Yes, from a security point. Yeah. Yeah, okay. Let's. Anyways, I am very drawn to creators who have a template or a background or a staple series that I know is them. Yes. So like I have an area of my house that's like this beautiful archway and I always film my videos in front of that because people can be scrolling their feed and say, oh, there's Liv. Yeah, exactly. I know when I'm scrolling my TikTok and Instagram and I see the cute pink office. Yeah, yeah, exactly. With the flowers on the wall and the last case with your accessories. Then I know it's Maddie.

16:15Yes, absolutely. Totally agree. I feel like it's so important if you do content creation or you want to get into it, to have that background that's kind of a constant. Because again, when people are scrolling, they know it's you. And they know even if they're not paying attention to who it is, as soon as they see that backdrop that they know is yours, it's kind of like, oh, okay, I know what I'm watching here. I know what to expect. So yeah, that's where I keep my accessories. And that room is, I keep organized because I can't like film in chaos. But my actual closet that has all of my clothes is a disaster.

16:46It is like way too small. When we bought our house, there was nothing in the closet. Like no racks, like no nothing. And I was like, oh, are they going to finish building it? Because it was like half done. They're like, yeah, yeah. And then we moved in and it was just an empty room. And I'm like, oh, what happened to the closet? And they're like, oh, well, most people prefer to like build their own closet anyway. I'm like, okay. And a lot of work. Then I got a quote for like a custom built-in closet. And I'm like, oh. You're like 25 grand later. Great, thanks. So I'm like, no, no, no. I can do this with Ikea stuff myself, which was like the biggest mistake of my life.

17:20If I could go back, I would just. Yeah, I'm going to give everybody right now who's dealing with a custom closet situation just a piece of advice. Yeah. The custom Ikea situation is, the price looks amazing and you're super excited. Putting it together and the quality of it is terrifying. Terrible. Don't do it. Find any other alternative. Yeah. Like, even if it doesn't have to be California closets, it doesn't have to be the most expensive thing on planet Earth. Find a bunch of armoires and, like, put them together. Totally. Find a shelving solution. Yeah. The IKEA wardrobe cabinets are not it.

17:51No. And you'll think you're buying the right measurements. You're going to have a panic attack. Yeah. Actually, that part. You think you're buying the right measurements, and then they come in, and you're like, And then you've accidentally... Is this a me thing or a them thing? I had to order the drawers, like, three times because they were in different depths. I didn't realize. It was just like, yeah, my closet's a mess. It's just overflowing with clothes. And I clear out probably every three to four months I get rid of stuff. I'm taking it to the donation place or to Wasteland or wherever it is.

18:18But yeah, I could really use some better organization in there. It's a disaster. People always ask for closets where I'm like, oh, trust me. You're like, please don't. You ain't getting one. I believe in like the closet organization as like mental health and like wellness. Genuinely, like my husband's been having like a crazy week at work. and I woke up the other day and like organized this whole closet and I was like, here you go. Yeah. This is my gift to you. This is to help you like de-stress. Yeah. Because it's that thing, first thing in the morning you walk in and it's absolute chaos in there.

18:45You start your day from a chaotic point. Yep. So yeah, I'm here for you if you need help. The way I say to do it, call a friend over and say, help me clean out and organize my closet and you can take whatever you want of what I'm giving away. Yeah. Yeah. Like if there's things I'm giving away, just take whatever you want from it. I'm going to get drinks. I'm going to get pizza. We're going to make it fun. Yeah. That's usually my sex in the city scene. I never bring that up because people are like, how cheesy. But they had a point. Yeah. They had a point. Yeah. I'm not telling you to get the signs that say yay or nay.

19:14Yeah. And like drink out of the champagne bottle. I'm not telling you to do that. But I'm telling you to do an iteration of it. Yeah. Yeah. I'm going to I'm going to do that. 100 percent. I think that's great advice. I want to get into your DIY a little it because I think that's how I first found you. I might have seen you first from the Ugg boots and I was like, oh, that's queen. But I actually think the first time that I really saw you and I was like, oh, wow, I'm obsessed with this person was the Prada show. Yeah. Take us back to the day where you're in Milan getting ready for the Prada show and you cut up a$2 ,000 Prada jumpsuit.

19:46Yeah. It was probably the most nerve wracking day of my life because it came about like pretty last minute because it was my first invite to the Prada show. I only got invited like the day before. Like we're waiting to see if they had a ticket left over. By the way, for people listening right now, that is a very common thing for creators, influencers. It is not, we don't, I decided to go to Paris a week before I took my flight. Yeah. No, in that instance, it was like, okay, Prada's maybe a yes. So I had like gone to Milan just in case it was a yes. Literally the night before, like 7 p.m. they're like okay we have a we have a seat for you but we can't dress and usually in fashion week they'll loan you a look to wear and like dress you but they were like we've given away all our loans like we have nothing and I feel like most of the talent would be like okay I'll just wear some product I already have even now I would be able to wear some product I already had but at the time I was like very new to my influencer journey I didn't have racks of product sitting around that I could just throw on towards the show.

20:49And so I was talking to the team and I'm like, oh, you can go to the store right now, like 8 p.m. and buy something if you want to. I'm like, okay. And I'm like, my heart's palpitating because I do not have the money really to be spending, like buying a full look from Prada. Like I had maybe had bought like two Prada bags, but that was like a lot to me. So I'm like looking for the cheapest thing in there. And unfortunately, like a$2 ,000 jumpsuit was one of the cheaper things that I could get. Then I was like talking to the team and I'm like, my manager was with me and she's like, why don't you cut it up?

21:21And I'm such a rule follower. I am not somebody that likes to break rules. I'm not somebody to like take, take risk. I'm the opposite of a risk taker. And so I look at the product team and I'm like, can I do it? And they're like, it's technically yours. Yeah. If you buy it, it's yours. You can do whatever you want with it. And I'm like, okay. And so I just decided we were going to make a moment out of it and that I was going to take this like huge gamble and it was either going to be there never inviting me back again in my life or it was going to pan out and people were going to pay attention and so I decided to do it I knew I had to do it on camera I had to do it with my glam already done like I had one take one shot even looking back one bad cut yeah it's over crappy like hotel scissors that I had like begged for in the lobby and even looking back there was things I would have done.

22:10I would probably skip the leg warmers, but I'm like frantically like, okay, 20 minutes. Like, let's do this. It was part of the look. Yeah. And so we decided to do it. I wore it to the show. First, like two days, nobody really picked it up. Nobody was like that interested. And then all of a sudden, like three, four days later, I am just like blown up. And I have a hashtag on Twitter. It was like hashtag Prada Jumpergate. And all of these fashion journalists, everybody like covering it. If they thought that this was like an abomination or whether they thought that this was like really innovative and cool and different.

22:43Well, people thought it was a loan. People thought it was a loan. I thought it was a loan. Yeah. I was like, girl, I was like, oh, I think I showed like everybody I had spoken to in the span of those five days. I'm like, did you see this? Yeah. Yeah. No, I would never do that to a loan. And even still, like we have asked so many brands since like, hey, are you down for me to cut something up? And they're like, I think that was just like a very unique situation because I did have to purchase the look because they didn't have any loans left. And so it was just like the perfect little storm where I had this opportunity to do it.

23:14The brand were like, okay, sure, you own it. It was like, it wasn't like, yeah, this is all planned. And I planned it ahead of time with Prada. It was more just like, you can do whatever you want. Like, it's not on us if people hate it. But like, and you were back the next season. I was back and I was dressed. Yeah. Yeah. So jokes on you guys. Exactly. But I'm honestly so glad in hindsight that I did. I feel like it really put me on the map in terms of like, it really got the fashion world paying attention to me as opposed to just any other influencer. And it gave me so much exposure. And I'm so grateful for that opportunity.

23:48And I'm really glad that I did it in the end. And I still have an amazing relationship with Prada. And I still am working with them. We're still good, guys. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, also, I think Prada is so known for innovation. And I think that they are very, they really admire creativity. Yeah, totally. So I think that was the perfect fit for that moment. It made sense. And I remember seeing it being like, well, like if any brand's going to accept it, it's Prada. Yeah. Yeah. Okay, tell me how you started DIYing to begin with. Because I know I've seen through the years so many different things that you've done.

24:20So obviously Prada moment. I remember when you recreated Bella Hadid's Dress from Khan. Yeah, that was one of my first. Yeah. That was incredible. Talk to me a little bit about your beginnings in cutting shit up. Yeah, I started, I learned how to sew when I was probably like 22 or 23 because I was broke. I had no money and I needed a new bathing suit for modeling casting. And to me, like$100 for a bathing suit was just like not going to happen. And I'm just like, why is this so expensive? And I had my mom sews and my mom would make my Halloween costumes when I was a kid and all that stuff. And so I was like, I bought a$30 miniature sewing machine on Amazon.

25:00And I'm like, if I can make a bathing suit to wear to this casting and then keep the fabric and make more bathing suits and I'll have like many to wear, that's like a huge win. And now look back, I should have just bought a real sewing machine because it would have been much easier than that like dinky little. Feels really hard. Yeah. And now looking back also, bathing suits are like the hardest thing to make. Like, yeah. It's like fit where it's placed. And like the kudos. Bathing suits, they were terrible. They were not good. They were falling apart. But that's how I learned to sew. And then after that, I was like, OK, again, I didn't have any money.

25:33So I was like, wanted new clothes to wear. I needed new clothes to wear to castings and stuff. So that's when I got into like thrift flipping and making things from items I bought for a dollar, 50 cents and switching it up at home. And then around the same time was when I started posting on TikTok because it was a pandemic. I lost all my income and needed something to do with my time. so I started posting on TikTok and then within like a few weeks maybe I found my niche and I was like oh people like fashion content because at the time it was kind of like still dancing and it wasn't content creation the way we know it now on TikTok where everybody has there's a niche for everything which is kind of like people doing the whoa and stuff I forgot about that yeah so I decided to start showing my flip flips on my TikTok and start doing like little transition videos and stuff.

26:22And that is really how I got to where I am now was just, I learned to sew out of necessity. And I tell everyone it's such a useful skill to have. The most. Yeah. I can't tell you how many times I'm home and maybe I got a new pair of jeans that I love. Yeah. And I'm like, I wish I could just cut the bottoms and re-sew the hems right now. Yeah. I'm too light with a pair of scissors. I used to cut my clothes up all the time. Yeah, same. I love hacking away at my stuff. And then I'm like, why did I do that? Why did I just do that? Why did I just cut that skirt? And I think it's okay to walk out with a raw hem like that.

26:53Yeah. Not okay. Yeah. For people who want to try DIY, what tip do you have for like the first step of figuring that out? For me, I would get a nice sewing machine. I would not start on the$30 miniature one that's like basically a tin can. I would get like a beginner singer sewing machine, like$100. It's so worth it. The extra like 50 bucks, I would get like a basic machine and sit down with a YouTube tutorial. I learned everything on YouTube. I've never taken a sewing class, nothing. And just like sit down with a very basic YouTube tutorial, find some tutorial of something that you genuinely want, because you're going to be way motivated to like do it all the way through if you actually want whatever shirt you're getting at the end of it or skirt or something.

27:36Or if you want to know how to hem your jeans, just like sit there with a YouTube tutorial and get some like scrap fabric at first to figure it out, the sewing machine and everything. Because that's really the only hard part is once you know how to use a sewing machine and like set it up and you know how to sew it's really easy it's just like a puzzle like you're just piecing things together on a puzzle and following directions and just like it becomes really easy you just need to have the patience to do that first thing but I would just get a beginner machine and then like a YouTube tutorial for something you genuinely want and just don't get up until you've done it lock yourself in a room yeah exactly and figure it out yeah I know you're doing the Audrey Hepburn dress right now But if there was anything in the world that you could DIY, what would it be?

28:17My gosh, everything. Because you can just make. It's another reason I tell people, like, this is a really, really useful skill to have. Because you can make everything exactly how you want it. You don't have to trust even a tailor to take something in the way you want it. Like, if you really want to snatch the waist and the tailor doesn't want to do it for you, like, I'll do it myself at home. And that's what I love about something. It's like, you can make anything exactly the way you want it. If you see a dress online that you really like, but hey, I just wish it had some sparkles on it or anything.

28:47The world's yours that you can truly make anything you want. And that's what I think the beauty of it is. But if I could make anything, I mean, my bridesmaid dresses. I have a bridesmaid dress that I really, really, really want. Or it's like a few. Impossible to find. It's like a vintage Elie Saar runway look. Living rent free. And I haven't found anything remotely close, remotely similar. I'm so scared to get just like random seamstress online to make it because I've just heard too many horror stories. And so I'm genuinely thinking about just trying to make it myself. I mean, I was going to ask, are you going to DIY anything for your wedding?

29:21And I feel like that's a great. Initially, I was like, hell no. It's my it's a day off. The same way people ask if my fiance is going to DJ. He's like, no. Yeah, the plan was to DIY absolutely nothing. But I might end up doing these bridal made dresses at this point if I can't find them to purchase anywhere. I think that would be so special. Why not? I also think that like that's so intrinsic to who you are as a person. Like weddings are about bringing all these amazing things about your life into that weekend. And I think if you can do that, that'd be really special. I always tell everyone, I'm like, my DIYs look really good from the outside, but the inside's a bit like...

29:56Yeah, you're like... It can sometimes be a little wonky because I'm like, ah, you can't see it. I'm not going to bother finishing that seam. My very first like sewing, like really viral look was when I made Lily Rose Deb on the Met Gala carpet. And it was a Chanel look. I called it Versace, which like I remember will haunt me forever that I called it Versace. Honestly, let's give you a little credit. It does have the chains of a Versace dress. But yes, it is a Chanel runway look. It's a Chanel look. It's okay. And people always ask me, like, you should wear that on a carpet. And I'm like, babe, that fell apart 45 minutes after I finished making that video.

30:28The chains start falling off because I was rushing. Like, for some reason, again, why was I in a rush? Where was I going? I think it's more about the creativity and the storytelling. yeah like I love watching you yeah dressed there's narrative to it exactly it's your experience it's your perspective yeah people always ask like oh like do you actually wear these crazy outfits out and I'm like most of the time no because my content is not for me to actually wear it's for the entertainment and for the journey of people watching it at home like those thigh high UGG boots no I didn't buy them because I was like oh my gosh yeah I'm so gonna wear these all over and over again.

31:03Like this is entertainment at the end of the day. It's the same as watching a TV show or putting a queer eye on. Like it's exactly in my brain, a very condensed version. And so my goal is to make it as entertaining as possible, not as practical as possible. I think you have a really good eye for finding things that you know will go viral or have some sort of appeal. Yeah. That's different than anything else. Yeah. If you could get anything right now in the fashion world, anything what would you get oh my gosh i will so this is one of like the hottest parts of my job is finding that stuff like it because you're like not just gonna go to laueva every time no that would be the easy way but so many of the like really innovative things that i've posted are from like pretty small designers they're just like hard to find and like i just spend my time on my instagram explore page like refreshing over and over again and trying to get it to like pigeonhole me to smaller and smaller and smaller accounts because that's what you're like they're really know me yeah exactly yeah like I have so many cool crochet looks saved that take like a long time to make so definitely a couple of those like handmade crochet things that I have people love something that looks like something else they love anything that's like 3d and and like textural yeah anything anything like that is a optical illusion or like something that looks like something else always people love it are there any Etsy shops that are your go-to that you love I wouldn't say that I have like specific shops I did get this one really cool gold it like was very Scarpa Raleigh vibes which is why I got it it was like a leather corset top that looked like a bronze men's like chest statue which was really really sick I got it and it was huge it was like for men I think like for for like bigger men to wear to I think that the ads were like for like pride and stuff but I got it to wear as like in the Scarpa Raleigh vibe I did it with like tuxedo pants.

32:55And it was really, really sick. So yeah, I just love, again, looking for unique pieces on Etsy. And I feel like there's so many creative people in the world and you just have to find them. You have to take the time. Yeah. Etsy is like vintage shopping online. Yes. You have to sift. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Let's talk about See You Tomorrow, which I love. How did the idea come about? Talk to us about the brand. The idea came about, well, I always knew I wanted my own brand because ultimately I started out in fashion. I have wanted to make clothes since I was like three. Always knew I wanted a brand.

33:25I just needed to find kind of like what it was going to be. Because also, it's kind of nobody really knows how to start a clothing brand. I didn't really know where to start. And then I thought about doing pajamas. So I realized that I was spending a lot of time, more time in pajamas on my account than I was in my actual outfits. Because I always do the makeup first. And in the makeup, I'm always in my pajamas. And when we're talking about like the backdrop, how people know me for that, I was always scouting around for cute pajamas to wear because I needed something to wear while I get ready. And then people started knowing me.

33:58It's like, oh, she always has cute pajamas. Where are you getting your pajamas? Like all your little sets are so cute. And so it just felt really natural for me. Like, oh, this is something that I already use and integrate into my content in my daily life every single day. People know me for it. And so it just felt like a really easy, easy thing for me to to do. And getting the brand and starting the brand wasn't easy, but like in terms of made just made perfect sense and fit for me. And we're hoping to expand into more like ready to wear and expand into just like all kinds of stuff. But sleep felt like a really organic place to start.

34:32Those are the creative brands that I love the most. Yeah. Where they just naturally fit. Yeah. It's not like this random or like, you know, secondary thing. Yeah. It fits directly into your content. Exactly. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I love that. Ready to wear sounds exciting. I know. It's just it's hard man yeah for cuts fits exactly and just just because you know how to make something for yourself at home doesn't mean that you know how to mass produce and so I've had to learn all of that from scratch and learn as I go and I have made so many mistakes and I'm sure I'm going to make so many more but yeah so I've had to learn all of that as well what has been the biggest thing that you've learned as a founder of a fashion brand since you've started oh so much just I would say to just like not trust the first thing that comes along in terms of like just because somebody says this is the best way to make this doesn't mean it is the best and to get second opinions and third opinions and really just like scout around and go to different factories get different quotes and just like really do the due diligence is something that if I could go back I would do so much more of the first time around so that's probably my number one of advice smart I love that.

35:45Any new drops coming up or anything we can share now? Yes, we, so we have been on pause for a little bit while we figured out some logistical things. And then we are relaunching on December 4th. Exciting. December 1st, we relaunch. December 4th, we go on sale. Amazing. So we're in the middle of shooting campaign for that, shooting everything. So we're going to be back up and running in December. And then we will be monthly drops from then on until, I mean, we have everything already done until next summer. So we have bridal coming. We have like a full bridal collection, obviously. But of course, I'm expecting to see you tomorrow on all the bridesmaids while we're getting ready.

36:21Yeah, exactly. So yeah, we have loads coming up. Amazing. That's so exciting. Whenever we close the show, we always like to ask one question. If there was anything that you can change about fashion right now, what would it be? Anything I could change about fashion? I would say just slow down with the trend cycle turnover. Just appreciate what you have in the closet. Find new ways to wear it instead of just like, oh my gosh, brown's in. I need to buy tons of brown, you know, like just take a beat. You don't need to buy into every single trend because ultimately fashion editors and writers need something to talk about.

36:53And so there's always going to be new trends. But I would just say like you don't necessarily need to buy something for it every single time. Just look at what you have. Think about whether you're still going to be wearing it next year or the year after and just like enjoy what we already have and not necessarily feed into the consumerism that's happening at the moment. Invite a friend over. Exactly. Take your out to new looks. Clean out your closet. Yeah, exactly. All of those things. Yes. I love that. Yeah. This was so fun. Thank you for coming on. I'm so glad we got to do this. Yes, me too.

37:23We've been a guest of On and On for a while. This was fun.

37:39Thank you.

38:08or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.