Designer Focuses On Challenges Of Fitting Tween Girls
- ch9029
- Aug 31, 2013
- 3 min read
Ester Knight has found her niche.
Tween fashion.
The Weyburn designer made her runway debut in Regina this spring, showcasing fall/winter 2013 designs at Saskatchewan Fashion Week (SFW).
This fall, she will present 20 spring/summer 2014 looks at Western Canada Fashion Week in Edmonton.
Why does she focus on “tween” fashions?
“I think the main thing I want to convey is that adolescence is such an awkward age, with all the changes happening to their bodies. And over the years, I saw so many girls discouraged with shopping when nothing fit, nor is it age appropriate,” she explained.
“I very vividly remember being at that stage myself,” she said. “And then, after I experienced this challenge with my own girls, it really inspired me to figure out a way to do a line that will fill this niche,” said Knight, the mother of nine- and 12-year-old girls.
“I have helped a lot of girls finally get into something that fits properly,” she proudly pointed out. “And to see how excited they are when they can wear a dress that fits great and looks great is a very fulfilling experience. It is a unique challenge, which I love! I think it gives a certain confidence which helps them feel special and that is always worthwhile.”
Knight, whose maiden name was Moon, launched MoonStar Designs in 2009.
“It was something I was kind of working toward for 20 years,” she said. “I have been sewing since I was six.”
She took a hiatus from sewing when her two daughters were little. But as they grew, she started making outfits for them Halloween costumes, etc.
Then she started making skating dresses. “And it kind of morphed from there,” Knight said. Next came swimsuits.
“My initial intent was to specialize in skating, dance and swimwear,” Knight said. “Although I still do a lot of these, my focus in the last year has shifted to ‘tween’ clothing, including dresses and casual wear.”
“I found during a particularly frustrating shopping trip to look for a fancy dress with my then-11-year-old daughter that there was nothing out there for young developing bodies,” she said. “Some girls are tall and slim. Some haven’t stretched out and still have a fuller middle. Some have hips, but no bust, and the opposite.”
Finding age-appropriate clothing is also a challenge, Knight discovered. Often styles are too juvenile for 12-year-old girls, or they’re too mature cut too low, too short, or too revealing.
“But in both cases, nothing fits properly,” Knight said.
So she decided to create fashions catering to the fitting challenges of girls ages eight to 12.
The MoonStar Designs collection showcased at SFW featured “a very artsy-type collection of funky, quirky, runway dresses for tweens, with lots of embellishment and one-of-a-kind type dresses.
Both her daughters modelled for her in the Regina runway show “which was a really neat experience to be able to share with them for my first time displaying a collection,” Knight said.
Her SFW designs were not meant to be reproduced, she explained, describing them as “just a bunch of random ideas” she had been wanting to experiment with including a dress featuring hundreds of hand-cut, hand-sewn leaves.
“To me, it was more fashion displayed as art,” she said, noting that a veteran designer described her designs as “kiddie couture.”
Her collection for this fall’s Western Canada Fashion Week is more wearable. It features gypsy/bohemian style mix-and-match skirts, tops, pants, shorts, vests and dresses, as well as three swimsuits.
“It is a bright, colourful collection of easy-to-wear knits,” Knight said.
Her inspiration comes from many places.
“Mostly, I find beauty from imperfection,” she said. “I also have a love of asymmetrical design. I am a person who likes to be different, definitely not the same as everyone else, and I try to reflect that in my work.
A self-proclaimed fabric-aholic, Knight said she often finds inspiration in fabrics, which she buys while travelling or online.
“I like to use funky fabrics,” she said.
At 35, Knight admits she’s a tad late launching her design career.
“But I finally jumped in with both feet!” She is hoping to get her designs into several boutiques, with prices ranging from $29 to $99.
Knight can be contacted at www.moonstardesigns.wordpress.com or ester.knight@accesscomm.ca
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