Being a part of Tumblr’s Fashion Spotlight has exposed me to creative talent and innovative individuals who use Tumblr as a platform for their singular expression. Among them Jessie Cohen of Closet Collage, proves to be a driving force with her unique take on fashion blogging through her beautifully constructed fashion collages. Closet Collage has easily become a Style Line favorite, and Jessie was kind enough to grant some time to give us a sneak peak into her design process and world.
How, when and why did you first get into fashion?
I’ve been into fashion my whole life. I found a pile of my moms old InStyle’s when I was about 9 and I’ve been hooked ever since. Even before that I was designing outfits for my American Girl doll with my grandmothers, both of whom have amazing style. The magazines just spoke to me in a way nothing else did and I knew I wanted to be a part of fashion when I grew up.
Tell us a bit about your background.
I’m originally from Westchester which is a county just outside New York City. I live in NYC now and I’m finishing up a degree in Visual Merchandising at LIM College. I’ve been interning in the fashion industry since I was sixteen which seems like forever! I pretty much tried everything out including design, PR, styling, and visual merchandising, but my real love is publishing.
What inspired the creation of your blog “Closet Collage?”
It’s sort of a long story. I’ve been hooked on blogs for years and loved the idea of having my own, but I didn’t know what it should be about. I knew I didn’t want to make another personal style/fashion news blog because there were so many others who did it so well. I have been collaging since before I can remember. Birthday cards, notebook covers, color war clipboards at camp, my bedroom walls, you name it, I collaged it. Whenever I read magazines I tear things out that I like or want to keep. As I got older the pile of tears was getting bigger and bigger but the collage-able surfaces were becoming fewer and fewer. I have also always been a huge list maker and always loved going through Style.com each season and keeping track of the collections I liked. So one day last October just as fashion week ended I was going through the collections and my pile of tears, decided to put the two together, and Closet Collage was born.
Describe the process that goes into making these collages.
I like to work on at least 8-10 collages at once. I go through Style.com and pull the specific looks I like. Then I print those, cut them out, and paste them onto a backing sheet (I prefer to use silver paper since its an uncommon but great neutral). Then I’ll write myself notes to give myself a guide for tearing and to organize myself a bit. It could be anything from “Great Gatsby” to “pink” to “neon lucite,” its just whatever I feel the mood should be for the collage. Then I cut everything out, put it all together with glue sticks, double stick tape the looks on top, scan, and upload as a picture.
Where do you draw inspiration?
Everywhere! I know that’s totally cheesy but it’s true. I’m a huge music nerd and a major movie/tv buff so I always reference specific movies, tv shows, albums, and bands when creating the collages. I’m inspired by other blogs, street style, photography, art, my friends, magazine editorial spreads, traveling, New York City. What’s fun about collaging is that tons of things that have nothing to do with each other can come together to create this one unified composition. My inspiration works in the same way.
Your favorite collage that you’ve created?
That’s so hard to choose! Some of my favorites are Proenza Schouler Spring 2010, Bottega Veneta Spring 2008, and Oscar de la Renta Spring 2004.
Where do you want to see yourself in the next few years?
I hope to be working at a fashion magazine as a market or accessories editor, still collaging, but maybe in a slightly bigger apartment with a few Celine bags and pairs of Charlotte Olympia’s in my closet.
