Kirsten Zepf is the designer for an interesting new line of little girls' clothes called "Hannah's Closet," named after her 10-month-old daughter. Zepf may seem too young at 25 to be an up-and-coming designer, but she has been designing clothes since she was 14. Although she was born in New York and bred in Dallas, she is a Utahn now, just days away from picking up her bachelor's degree from BYU in fashion design.
She had originally intended to study fashion at one of the elite fashion schools - like Parson's School of Design or the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, but she wanted "a real education and a real degree." So she opted for BYU but made an effort to work for someone big in fashion along the way.She sent the major designers a packet with illustrations and resume and said, "Please, I'll do ANYTHING - I just want to come and watch what you do. I'll sweep the floors!" Fortunately for Zepf, it worked. Donna Karan agreed to give her an interview.
Zepf went to the flashy Karan offices in New York for an interview with Caggie Simonelli, Karan's head designer. "I was really surprised, because she was wearing cutoffs and a tank top. Her hair was a mess, and I thought `Omigosh.' The offices looked beautiful from the outside, but inside there were scraps of fabric everywhere - like a big, messy closet."
Simonelli told her she had so many design students that she didn't need her very much - "but I'll try you out since you're clear out here from Utah." So Zepf went to the Karan offices for only two hours a day, two days a week to start, because the students from FIT and Parson's had an internship arrangement that guaranteed them the most time.
Only thing is, most of these students didn't show up. Zepf couldn't believe it. So right away she was working full time. "To me it was a big opportunity to be working with such a big designer. I was so shocked these students were just kind of throwing it away."
Instead of hanging sweaters, Zepf was doing all kinds of things, including helping backstage with the show. Besides, Karan's people gave her good suggestions as to how to improve her portfolio. Within two weeks, she was offered a job as an assistant in the accessories department.
"It was really exciting. I spent five or six months doing it. It was a great experience. It was such a huge company, and I got to see all the tiny details of the operation. I got to see how things were produced. And it all had to be done under deadline. I also got to meet Donna. Her name is so well-known that she had people coming in all the time, and she was giving personal tours to her friends. I got to meet Barbra Streisand and Diane Keaton."
Zepf was offered an opportunity to stay permanently, but she was determined to finish her education. When she got back to BYU, she found herself "really bored doing school stuff," so she started her own line of clothing. But when she and her husband, Jonathan Coon, decided to have a child, she put her design career on hold.
Predictably, she got bored again.
"So I started sewing children's clothing, because we found we were having a girl. Some friends came to a shower and said, `Omigosh, these are soooo cute. I would buy these.' They all had their own children. They said, `You've got to sell these.' I said, `No, I have to wait until I'm established and can put everything into it.' They said, `Oh come on, it's just children's clothing - how hard can it be?' I said, `Well, it might not cost as much as women's wear."
Zepf jumped into it. She approached "Mom and Me" in Orem, and the proprietor liked the line and made "a huge order." Zepf was really surprised. "I thought she might order three or four pieces - but she ordered 100 pieces or more. I was nine months pregnant when I went into see her. I planned on going to other stores, but she gave me such a big order I couldn't produce any more. But I got it all done."
Since then Zepf's line has been picked up Nordstrom and several specialty stores. In fact, she has found the local market is very interested in local designers. "Even in Colorado, they're more interested because you're from Utah. And Utah has a reputation for producing good stuff for children's wear."
Zepf is convinced that children's wear is an easier market to break into "because the price points aren't so high. You're paying $40 for an outfit for a child. Most children's clothes are being made roomier so they can last for a long time. They're not a real waste of money."
So far, Zepf works at home with a partner and a design assistant - that's it. "We've been doing everything ourselves. We're going to manufacture for fall and spring, though, because there is no way we can do it all ourselves any more. It's just too big."
Much of the clothing available for little girls seems "very itchy" to Zepf.
"They're lacy and poofy - an Easter parade look. Everything looks too short, and they can only fit into them maybe one season. We make them to last at least a year, and we stress comfort. My child crawls all over the floor during church. If I put her in one of those lacy things, the dress would be ruined. The trend in adult clothing has gotten a lot more casual, and it's time children's wear followed."
Zepf calls her line "casual sportswear with a contemporary edge."
She shies away from bright pinks and purples, and instead, uses muted-colored fabrics richly filled with cotton so the clothes will be "soft on kids and easy on Mom."
She says "Toddlers no longer need to wait to don baby doll dresses and pajama pants." By reinterpreting the cut and style of "big people's" clothing, she has created a line with a sense of individual style both children and parents can enjoy.
She sees it as "big people clothing for a child's lifestyle."
Zepf does a lot of pique knits. And she uses a lightweight, durable denim for little girl jeans and overalls - and a blue polar fleece, snap-tie hood - no drawstrings to choke on. "It's dangerous out there for kids. We don't realize it, because we don't see the world from their point of view. We're not way down there."
The line is "very classic - to go with everything they already have in their wardrobe. You can mix and match these things day in and day out."
There is a dress a child can wear with the leggings underneath it. There is a gathered Mary Jane, a pocket jumper, a pleated Mary Jane or a 3-tone jumper. There is a vest or a cardigan to wear over it.
"It's taken right out of women's wear. You don't have to have a huge closet full of clothing to look nice everyday. You can wear the same thing, but in a different way."
Zepf offers a drawstring pant, a 3-tone skirt - or a reversible pant.
"My child gets dirty in the morning, and I don't want to put her in a new outfit, so I flip these off, flip them inside out and flip them right back on. It works."
The chances are good you will see a lot more trendy clothes for kids coming right out of Hannah's closet.