Wearable Art Designs

   It’s been a long time coming, but Susan Hollingsworth, originally from Natchez, Mississippi, has gone all over the world to discover and develop her unique talent, designing and putting together unique “art” jackets. Growing up in a home where she went to sleep at nights to the humming of the sewing machine at the hands of her mother, Ruth Colter, Hollingsworth has always had a passion for the needle. She has studied pattern making, designing, and fabric art design and has been working on her unique jackets since 1991. She and her family have lived all over the world, have returned to the States to live in Natchez with a home in Texas as well, and are now ready to begin showing her work.
   Hollingsworth’s lifetime friend Becky Mason Jones—the two grew up in the same neighborhood in Natchez and their mothers were best friends—has now teamed up with Hollingsworth, contributing the fiber art designs in the jacket panels. It all began while the two were on a morning walk with Hollingsworth’s talking about needle felting, a technique she learned while living in London, England. Intrigued, Jones began to explore this amazing technique in which something that looks like dryer lint can be transformed into beautiful fabric. The wool in a “cotton candy” state, placed in layers and immersed in hot water and liquid soap, kneaded and then dried, becomes fabric that can be used for clothing and accessories.  
   For her earlier jackets, Hollingsworth scoured the markets in Russia for beautiful silk fabrics and then took them to be embroidered for her panels. Thereafter, she found striking buttons and other accessories to add to each jacket. As she reflected on the process, she explained that the elements in her jackets have a story. The unique buttons, some glass, some jewels, some brass, or a bit of gold or silver all have been hand selected for each jacket. Initially, Hollingsworth personally sewed together the sections of her jackets but now finds it much easier to have a seamstress put them together. 
   Having all of the people involved understand the vision of her designs and work is essential according to Hollingsworth. With Jones’s talent in this discipline and their mutual understanding of the artistry, the cooperative effort from conception to completion is ‘a perfect fit.’
These one-of-a kind, exclusive jackets are not assembly-line merchandise, mass made and duplicated. Each is inimitably crafted. The selection of the unique fabrics, the design of the artistic panels, and the choice of trim and buttons go through the same artistic process as the shades and textures for a painting or sculpture. All this meticulous preparation and creation, fused with time, passion, patience, and collaboration fashion these amazing jackets.
   Having worked on these high-fashion pieces for almost twenty years, Hollingsworth is ready for the next step of sharing them with others, making them available to a select and appreciative clientele. “These jackets have developed me in three significant ways over this creative process,” remarked Hollingsworth. “They have introduced me to people and places all over the world; they have annihilated my pre-conceptions of foreign cultures about how other people live their lives, their thinking processes, and their unique crafts; and they have forced me to speak Russian and now to learn Spanish. Understanding what these jackets have done for me allows me to maintain the integrity of each jacket I create.”
   However, don’t expect to find Hollingsworth’s wearable art in department stores, for these are not the sites through which she shares her distinctive designs. She introduced them to friends and family recently by hosting wine and appetizer gatherings in Natchez, Mississippi, and Austin, Texas, several months ago. These showings marked her first experiences as designer and moderator, introducing each of her modeled jackets to an awed and eager audience. As Hollingsworth continues to explore selective venues for sharing her exceptional couture, more heads will begin to turn….and ask about….and desire to own Susan Hollingsworth’s wearable art designs.