Designer Spotlight: Mimi Prober | EP 103

Join us this week as we shine our DESIGNER SPOTLIGHT on a rising star fashion designer, Mimi Prober.

This episode is a FASCINATING deep dive into one designer’s passion for fabric, vintage textiles, sustainable fashion, and creating a brand with a purpose.

Mimi Prober has dedicated herself to “the sustainable practices of natural dyeing and design with a focus on textile narratives, preservation, and process - honoring those involved in the creation, from farm to fiber.”

She is celebrated for her decorative and unique beading, embroidery, and lace designs. “Integrating the artistry of the past and establishing a sustainable future through the reuse of antique materials to create modern handcrafted heirlooms.”

Founding her namesake label in 2014, Mimi has become known for creations using “forgotten textiles with documented stories to tell from a previous time.”  

So of course, her designs are GORGEOUS and highly regarded! Her collection has been worn by industry icons Chloë Sevigny, Misty Copeland, Erykah Badu, and Rihanna, just to name a few. #JUSSAYIN!

And this year, she was just named one of fashion’s “Rising Stars” by the Fashion Group International – a BFD, friends!

Mimi’s bio is vast: she is a graduate of the Fashion Institute of Technology, the creator of her own clothing brand, a lover of vintage textiles and fashion (especially rock T-shirts!) and has been a designer-in-residence at the Jill Stuart Gallery at Cornell University.

If that is not fabulous enough: Mimi’s work is part of the permanent collection at the Museum at FIT, where a collection piece was on view for the exhibition ‘Fashion Unraveled.’ 

AND, her creations are now on view at The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York for the Costume Institute’s “In America: A Lexicon Of Fashion” through September 5, 2022.

“Intricate hand embroidery, hand spinning, weaving, and knits in organic natural fibers, antique textiles, and local luxury wools. Created with artisan and women owned natural dye houses, fiber farms, and mills with the commitment to ethical production and preservation. Signature silhouettes include hand knits, motorcycle jackets, draped details, and 19th century inspired workwear reimagined into modern heirlooms.”

Mimi has long had a passion for finding and preserving fragments that were discarded at some point because they no longer had a use. 

She sources heirloom antique fabrics from the 18th to early 20th centuries at auctions and markets, and sometimes individuals reach out to her when they’ve inherited something that holds meaning for them, but they don’t know what to do with it.

Her philosophy is based on a desire to create mindful pieces and bring to life the stories embedded in them, sharing them with the next generation. 

“There’s so much work that goes into making a garment, consumers don’t always realize that it’s not automated.”

“We live in a society where it’s so easy to forget about where we came from,” Mimi says. “So much is mass produced these days, and it’s a whole different mindset. I appreciate the detail from the past.”

Her company has invested in community engagement, and she has partnered with a female-founded, all-women-run natural dye house in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, and a women’s lace guild in Kollam, India. A certified sustainable and organic factory in India that makes materials for her ready-to-wear line also provides full funding to all the female employees and their children to attend school.

On this episode, Mimi shares her love for sustainable luxury fashion and a deep appreciation for history and handcraft, while your hostess with the most-est Holly Katz masterfully asks all the great questions:

• Where does Mimi get her inspiration and passion for vintage textiles and the repurposing of materials? 

 

• How did she get started?

 

• How does she source her materials and create her designs? 

 

• Why is sustainable fashion important to her – and to all of us? 

 

• Who are the artisans and creators she works with? Where does she find them?

 

• What does Mimi herself wear every day? What are her favorite fashion pieces? 

 

• What is next for the Mimi Prober brand? 

 

• What is her point of view of the fashion industry?

 

• Where can everyone find and purchase her designs?

 

We don’t want to give you all the answers here – you need to hear Mimi’s voice to feel her passion as an artist and a designer. Her ideas are big and creative, and she gives us so much to imagine and think about. 

This is one podcast episode you will want to immerse yourself in for a minute and learn about a myriad of philosophies and ideas that you just may not have ever heard before! 

Mimi Prober’s ethereal designs are evergreen, collectible pieces. And her ideas and concepts are intentional and thoughtful.

Join us for this refreshing point of view on fashion and the fashion industry. Mimi Prober is an inspiration, and we are so pleased to introduce you!

Learn more about Mimi Prober at www.mimiprober.com or find her on Instagram.

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