Stitching her way to the top one garment at a time
Young fashion designer and owner of 'Pardon' Charnice Mani (17) loves how the fashion industry is always changing.
POLOKWANE – She says it allows her to be creative, and she always thinks out side the box every time she makes or designs a garment. Born and raised in Westenburg, Charnice attended her primary school at Boiketlo Primary School and is currently in Hoërskool Westenburg Secondary.
“I discovered that I wanted to be a designer years back. I was nine years old when I was watching Victoria’s Secret and I just fell in love with all the fashion style and trends that they showcased, and I never looked back since then, I could see myself hosting a big fashion show and running a huge clothing empire,” she added.
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What Charnice loves about the fashion industry, is that it’s challenging, as she explains that she’s always looking forward to challenges. “The whole process of making clothes is just magical and seeing somebody wearing my clothes and bringing them to life is the best part of this job. I design clothes for women, men, girls and boys. The current collection I’m working on is called The Black and White Riot. It consists of a lot of ripped T-shirts for all kinds of body sizes and shapes,” she added. Besides designing, Charnice is focused mainly on school, though she does write short stories in her spare time. “I would advise young up-coming fashion designers to believe in themselves and their work, because if you don’t believe in yourself, then how are other people suppose to believe in you?” she said. Seeing that she’s just finding her way in the fashion industry, Charnice aims to dress well-known artists and getting her clothes out there for people to see and fall in love with.
“My family is very supportive towards my fashion career, as long as it does not distract me when it comes to my school work. It’s actually a good thing to always have an educational back-up when taking a risk, such as being in the fashion or entertainment industry,” she said. In the future, Charnice would love to work with fashion designer, David Tlale. “I love his work, he’s a professional at what he does and I love his sense of style too. I love the fact that he’s also strict and will call a-spade-a-spade,” she said.
The biggest challenge Charnice has experienced thus far is finance. “You have to get photographers, models, book venues, and buy material, and all of that can be very pricey. I’m thankful now because I have overcome that challenge, my mom, Adolphina helped out on some of the things that I needed to start my business, and for that I’m beyond grateful,” she concluded.
