PAVING HIS OWN WAY IN FASHION WITH FOCUS - BLASIAN WOMACK IS NOT TO BE PLAYED WITH!

Where are you from?

My name is Blasian Womack and I was born in Panama City Florida but raised all around the DMV ( D.C, Maryland, Virginia). And yes, before anyone who reads this asks, I am Blasian, haha. I am Filipino, Vietnamese, and Black.

How has your upbringing developed your craft?

Being an only child of two parents who were in the military, I moved around a lot. In doing this, I learned to communicate with a lot of different people and maneuver in many different situations. I feel like this was the biggest benefit within moving around. My dad is a graphic designer and my mom was in IT building computers and databases. Being within different environmental conditions also played a part in how I design. Moving around from Miami, Montana, the DMV, and New Mexico, all gave me different perspectives in how fashion works within communities in various environments. I am so dedicated to my craft because I saw how my parents grew in front of my eyes and did better in life over time while raising me and making all the hard sacrifices with me in mind.

Tell us more about PSA Atelier, how did this come to be?

Actually the brand is Peer Style. The word “atelier” is French for work space and became a part of the brand probably 2 years after I started working on the name. I thought of the brand during my sophomore year in high school when my father had asked me to describe who my target audience was, and I responded with “My Peers” because they were the closest that related to me. Peer Style Atelier or PSA, is a reflection of who I am and what my life is. It's really bigger than what is shown but i got my whole life to show everyone what it really means to me and how far I invision this.

Blay, what has been your biggest take away as a young designer? Any lessons you can put us on to?

I’m still new to this so this definitely may change over the years but my biggest take away as a designer is that you just gotta be genuine with everything you do. It's such a simple lesson but it is probably the most important to learn and apply. I can’t tell you how many times being genuine has gotten me into doors that I could only imagine at a certain point in time.

During quarantine how did the pandemic stop or aid your creative process?

I felt like quarantine really put me in a position where I could slow down and reflect on me as a whole. I'm definitely not the same person before quarantine and I feel that it affected my creative process in a positive way because it made me more in tune with myself. A lot of great opportunities came out of this pandemic and showed me how close people’s dreams are to reality. All we have to do is work on it day by day.

Although I say this, I will say it was hard to do all of this shadow work and currently still doing some, but I never regret it. The pandemic really showed me, in ways I can't explain, how to be a better me in all aspects in life. I hope I was able to answer the question lol

Blay what work are you most proud of and what can we get excited about in the upcoming future?

Well, to date, I guess it's the work I haven’t shown yet. Maybe by the time this interview is out, I may have debuted some of my proudest work but from the work that is out? I’d say it’d be the butterfly dress shirt I made back in sophomore year. Definitely one of my favorites and I show it off all the time. I have big things coming in the near future though. Thesis year is coming upon me so I’m just locking in with a lot of creatives from round the way that are doing big shit as well to create art all year long. Between that and of course all the pieces being made at this very moment.

Blay, As a fashion designer in a world where so many people call themselves designers how do you manage to remain authentic in your designs but also in your approach of showcasing them?

I hang around authentic people. Genuine in their own right. The dumb shit they say to me behind close doors really be that shit that makes me think about shit differently and continue to stay outside the box with a lot of ideas. I like working with big energy to where we collide because with great conversations comes timeless work as the product. All my friend groups are different and serve different purposes in my life. I love em all the same and they know that. Shoutout to all of em forreal.

Any big goals for the second half of the year?

Lately I’ve been getting this question a lot, but I really am just focused on my thesis collection for the rest of the year. I got a few drops coming out to hold people over until I really show who I am as a designer but from the people in my circle who have seen my work for this know that it’s totally different from what I have released under the brand thus far.

Last but never least. What does the phrase foolish ambition mean to you?

Foolish Ambition, to me, means a person's dream that is so big that only them and a few others can see it. To the rest of the world it's just a dream, but to that person it's more real than life. To be called a fool for dreaming of the life they imagine. Yet to me, as long as you can visualize it, there is no dream too big.

shot by @jhilikenmoon