Spotlight Series: OLIVIA EWING

Today’s Spotlight is on Olivia Ewing, a sophomore Fashion Marketing and Management student at SCAD, with a passion for lifestyle blogging, shoe design, and all things feminine and fun. Check out our exclusive interview with Olivia as she tells us all about her personal aesthetic, inspiration, and how she has established such a clear brand (Lifestyle by Liv) for herself.

Tell us a little about yourself. Have you always loved fashion? How did you get started?

Surprisingly enough, I haven’t always “loved” fashion. I never honestly put much thought into what I was wearing until high school. However, my mother has always been really into fashion so I was always familiar with trends and styles.

You are a Fashion Marketing and Management major! Very cool! Can you tell us about it? Why did you decide to go into this area of fashion?

I’ve loved to write pretty much all my life. I get it honest, my mother having a journalism degree. My junior year of high school is when I started being heavily influenced by fashion culture, and I wanted to give my opinions on how I let that influence my life. That’s when Lifestyle by Liv, my blog, began. Ever since starting a blog, I knew that the writing, marketing, and business end of fashion is what I was the most interested in.

You also are interested in accessory design, specifically shoes. What drew you to go into shoe design?

I am not someone who was “always sketching” in their notebooks growing up. I was never that artsy. But I had always been able to pick a heel or flat and say what I would do differently or how I thought it could improve. It became to the point where I started making my own designs and I was obsessed with that process. I’m the type of girl who plans her entire outfit base on which shoe she wants to wear! I think of it more of a side hobby, reasons why it’s my minor and not my major. If I’m lucky enough, maybe it will take off one day.

Can you share your favorite project you’re working on?

I like to think of my blog as an ongoing project that I’m constantly working on and editing, using the information I’m taught in FASM to guide me; however, when it comes to my school work I enjoy all my major related projects.

You have such a clear aesthetic, it’s beautiful! How do you maintain such a focused vision? How would you describe your aesthetic?

Thank you! That means so much to me. I spent a lot of time before I came to SCAD deciding on how I wanted to represent myself and market myself. I find my most inspiration in past travels, blossoms, and beautifully written poems/novels. When I would put all these things together, I felt like my aesthetic was very evident: chic, lively, elegant, and feminine.

Where do you draw your inspiration from?

My trip to Europe when I was sixteen really inspired me and still does to this day. I was able to go to Paris and Barcelona with the French and Spanish clubs in high school. France, specifically, is a place I feel really aligns well with my design style and personal style so I’m always looking at French culture and fashion for ideas. That’s initially where my love of peonies and lavender comes from. F. Scott Fitzgerald was also a writer who to this day inspires me with his writing style.

Can you tell us what it’s like to attend SCAD?

SCAD is the best thing that has ever happened to me. I’ve never felt so involved in a school, and I was still fairly active in high school. The connections and opportunities they present to us are truly once in a lifetime.

Where do you see yourself in the fashion world?

I’m so excited and driven when it comes to my future. I would love to work in the business of fashion to gain industry experience, while growing my lifestyle blog – hopefully one day creating a lifestyle book and publishing it. Finally, I want to create my shoe line after a few years of working in industry.

Any advice to aspiring fashionistas?

I feel like motivation is majority of getting to where you want to be in fashion. You can be extremely talented, but without motivation nothing will come your way. Work hard, everyday towards your future. Keep an agenda and live by it! Lastly, be KIND. You do not have to live up to the stereotypical “Miranda Priestly” attitude.

Check out Lifestyle by Liv and her stunningly beautiful Instagram! We are so proud of all of the work Olivia has done, and can’t wait to see her journey through the industry and make a difference in the fashion world.

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