Francesca Sterlacci
Born1951
Hoboken, New Jersey
Alma materFashion Institute of Technology
OccupationFashion designer
Websitefrancescasterlacci.com

Francesca Sterlacci is an American fashion designer, author and entrepreneur. She launched her clothing brand, Francesca Sterlacci Ltd. in 1980, and continued designing clothes under her label until 1989.[1][2] Sterlacci joined the Fashion Institute of Technology as a teacher in 1990, and became the chairwoman of the Fashion department at the institute in 2001.[3]

In 2013, Sterlacci launched University of Fashion, an online library of fashion design videos.[4]

Early life and education

Sterlacci was born in Hoboken,[5] and raised in Union City.[1] When she was ten, she used scraps from her mother's sewing machine and prepared Barbie doll costumes. Her mother did not allow her to use the sewing machine herself, so she had to hand stitch dresses, and that helped her improve her hand stitching skills. She kept some of these dresses and sold others to neighborhood friends.[6]

While studying at the Emerson High School in Union City, she collaborated with a friend on making mini and maxi skirts and selling them to boutiques in New York.[6] After completing high school, she joined Fashion Institute of Technology and received Associate of Applied Science degree in fashion design.[7] Upon graduating, she joined Jersey City State College for a bachelor's degree in art.[1]

Career

Sterlacci started her career in the late 70s working for a body suit company. She later joined a junior sportswear firm, Sunday's Workclothes, who sent her to a lot to countries like India, Hong Kong, Italy, France and Taiwan. She became a head merchandiser at Time and Place where she managed five divisions. Sterlacci developed a label of her own in her spare time.[1]

She founded Francesca Sterlacci Ltd. in 1980 and the first collection consisted of 15 sportswear pieces. Her designs were greatly influenced by her travel while at Sunday's Workclothes. By 1981, she added leather to her collection. The top-selling clothes in her line were in leather and suede.[7]

In 1981, after positive feedback on her designs, she quit her day job and started working on her label full-time. Sterlacci started her business using savings and a few loans and did not have financial backers or factors.[6] In 1983, she added a selection of knit and weave sportswear to the line.[8] She opened her own showroom,[9] and kept producing clothes under her label until 1989. In 1990, Sterlacci opened a freelance design service called Design Instinct, designing clothes for other designers.[2]

In 1990, she started teaching at Fashion Institute of Technology and in 2001, she became the Chair of FIT's Fashion Design Department. She held that position until 2004, when she moved to San Francisco and started teaching at the Academy of Art University where she taught until 2010.[3][10]

University of Fashion

Sterlacci launched University of Fashion, an online library of fashion design videos, in 2013. Sterlacci felt that fashion design was declining in the US due to companies manufacturing off-shore, and she wanted to promote fashion design education. She got the idea of launching University of Fashion while teaching at Fashion Institute of Technology and the Academy of Art University and felt that students "didn’t want to rely on books; they wanted videos."[4]

In the media

During the 80s, her designs were featured in magazines such as Vogue, Elle[11] and Glamour and her work has appeared on the covers of Women's Wear Daily and Harpers Bazaar,[12][13] as well as in The New York Times and The Record.[14]

In 1982, Women's Wear Daily wrote about her leather collection that "in a year when leather clothing of all kinds and qualities is flooding the market, Francesca Sterlacci's Maderia-work leathers for Penthouse G stand out for the quality of their execution and the success with which they translate traditional techniques to modern sensibilities."[15]

In 1986, Women's Wear Daily called her a "shoestring entrepreneur" referring to the fact that she worked without financial backers or factors.[8] She was featured in Chicago Voice in August 1988 that wrote about her "a young fashion designer who is fast becoming a fashion leader is Francesca Sterlacci. Her trendsetting spring collection is designed for now with one foot in the future."[16]

Bibliography

  • Historical Dictionary of the Fashion Industry (Second Edition), with Joanne Arbuckle (2017) ISBN 978-1442239081
  • Leather Apparel Design (1997) ISBN 978-0827377721
  • Historical Dictionary of the Fashion Industry, with Joanne Arbuckle (2007) ISBN 978-0810854543
  • The A to Z of the Fashion Industry (2009) ISBN 978-0810868830
  • Leather Fashion Design (Portfolio Skills) (2010) ISBN 978-1856696715

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Designing Her Own Destiny". The Record. January 28, 1988. p. U-5.
  2. 1 2 "Designers for Hire". Sportswear News. September 5, 1990. p. 24.
  3. 1 2 "Colors, Prints, and Patterns Make Comeback for Spring". The Post and Courier. April 25, 2013. p. 1.
  4. 1 2 "Fashion Industry Veteran Launches Online Library of Design Video Tutorials". Fashionista. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  5. ↑ "Wide Selection of Colors, Fabrics During Fall Season". The Sumter Daily Item. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  6. 1 2 3 "Up on the Rooftop... N.Y. Designer is Scaling New Heights". Deseret News. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Designer, Make up Artist Show Their Stuff". The News and Courier. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  8. 1 2 "Shoestring Entrepreneurs". Women's Wear Daily. August 4, 1986. p. 40.
  9. ↑ "From Rags to Riches: New Name in Fashion Gaining Strong Following". Lifestyle. July 25, 1988. p. B-11.
  10. ↑ "Introducing the University of Fashion". All Things Fashion. Archived from the original on March 22, 2014. Retrieved April 5, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Fast Times". Elle. August 1988. p. 79.
  12. ↑ "Bali Highs: Naval Power". Harpers Bazaar. May 1988. p. 102.
  13. ↑ "Francesca Sterlacci". Harpers Bazaar. March 1988.
  14. ↑ "cover". The Record. January 28, 1988. p. U-4.
  15. ↑ "Sterlacci Leather Perfect". Women's Wear Daily. July 28, 1982. p. 79.
  16. ↑ "Sweetly Sexy". Chicago Voice. August 1988. p. 12.
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