Girl Next Door: Tour A Rising Design Star's Rad Mission Digs
Since being a fashion designer in San Francisco can be tough (hello,
lack of low-cost production facilities!), the talents in the field who
do live amongst us are folks we truly treasure. And one of our
brightest emerging designers carrying the S.F. torch is definitely
First Rite designer Nikki Garcia. The FIDM grad lives and works in the
Mission, and it's there, in her awe-inspiring antiques-strewn studio,
that the Montana-born designer opened up about her creative
inspiration, must-visit day trip locales, last meals in S.F. (should
it ever come to that), and the evolution of her three-season-old line.
Click through for her interview, plus some dreamy snaps of her workspace.
Nikki on the steps of her crazy-colored Mission home.
Name: Nikki Garcia
Occupation: Founder and Designer at First Rite
I live in: The Mission in San Francisco
Tell us about how you got into making clothes:
"I had been altering vintage clothing for years and had always known I wanted to be involved in clothing design. I would sketch out all my ideas, but had no idea how to create a garment from scratch, so after studying business in college [in Montana] I moved to S.F. to study fashion design at FIDM and learned everything I needed to know to get me started in pattern making and industry sewing. I began constructing my own designs between quarters at school, so while I was completing the program, I was already selling clothes at a couple of local boutiques."
Nikki on the steps of her crazy-colored Mission home.
Name: Nikki Garcia
Occupation: Founder and Designer at First Rite
I live in: The Mission in San Francisco
Tell us about how you got into making clothes:
"I had been altering vintage clothing for years and had always known I wanted to be involved in clothing design. I would sketch out all my ideas, but had no idea how to create a garment from scratch, so after studying business in college [in Montana] I moved to S.F. to study fashion design at FIDM and learned everything I needed to know to get me started in pattern making and industry sewing. I began constructing my own designs between quarters at school, so while I was completing the program, I was already selling clothes at a couple of local boutiques."
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