Get to know: Elyse Alligood
What is your hometown? Where else have you lived?
Chelsea, Mich., Houston, Texas, and Cleveland, Ohio.
How much professional experience do you have in fashion or anything else related?
I interned with Cate Lyon last year before Savannah Fashion Week doing mostly construction work with her. This past summer I interned at the Abercrombie & Fitch home office in the Hollister outerwear department.
When did you decide to pursue a career in fashion?
I’m not sure when the deciding moment was, but when I was in elementary school I used to draw stick-figure girls with upside-down triangle skirts and elaborate geometric bodices all day, basically forecasting the existence of Lady Gaga. Since it was a Montessori school (they basically let the kids do whatever they want), there were days when that’s literally the only thing I did. In senior year of high school I was flipping between economics and fashion (every parents’ worst nightmare), but decided to pursue what I knew I’d still be in love with in 10 years. Luckily my parents fully supported me and still do.
What inspires you creatively? Professionally?
I’m inspired by the way the human body is constructed and how the different elements work together, like the skeletal and muscle systems.
What are some of the most pressing issues facing today’s fashion designers? Models? Accessory designers?
Well, something that I’m trying to get involved with when I graduate is sustainable fashion. It’s been gaining a small amount of momentum, but I don’t think there’s enough of an emphasis on trying to make it a more important issue. Fast fashion companies as well as the majority of consumers don’t care about the impact that the production and life cycles of apparel have on the environment.
Where do you see yourself five years from now?
Hopefully, working for a company that is making an effort at improving its environmental practices, which is at least a start.
Do you have any advise for future SCAD fashion designers or those who are preparing to enter the industry?
The design program at SCAD is a lot of work, but if you put in the effort, it’s really amazing what you can do. And making it into the SCAD Fashion Show does not make you God’s gift to the world. Be humble and appreciate all the help and feedback your professors give you.
How would you categorize your aesthetic?
My design aesthetic is elegant and anti-fussy.
Who would be your dream designer to work alongside?
I would love to work with Gabriella Zanzani of Maiyet, which is a company that focuses on using artisans in developing countries to produce their runway collections. It’s important to stand for something, and if fashion can never be truly ‘eco-friendly’ it can at least be used to help support developing societies.
When you think about the future of fashion, what do you see?
I think that fashion will become more about quality and craftsmanship with less emphasis on trends.
