Monday, November 12, 2007

Long Island designer rocks the 'Runway'


The fourth season of Bravo's hit series, 'Project Runway,' kicks off Wednesday, and if the first episode is any indication, it is going to be a doozy.

Long Island's own Jillian Lewis, who grew up in Selden, is among the 15 contestants.

Newsday fashion writer, Anne Bratskeir, supplies some background info on the rising designer:

The fashion bug bit her hard in the late '90s, when big, wide-legged pants
were making a splash on the high fashion scene but not sold in stores on Long Island. She did what any hardcore fashionista would: She made them. "People were really responding to what I was wearing, so I stopped dancing and turned my attention to designing." She became so focused on her own small manufacturing business, making silk-screened warm-up pants for $35 a pair, that, she says, "My boyfriend broke up with me, my friends stopped calling. I underestimated the time it would take.

Read the full article on Jillian Lewis. And tune in Wednesday to root for your hometown girl.

A few of Jillian's sketches are below: