Life and Work with Madeline Cook

Today we’d like to introduce you to Madeline Cook.

Madeline, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
I learned how to make clothing during my time at CSU as I pursued a degree in Fashion Merchandising with a concentration in Apparel Design and Production. Before I went to CSU, I loved watching Project Runway and readily had ideas for dresses I wanted my mom to make for me for all the High School Dances but had no idea that is really what I wanted to do. I had never sewn or used a sewing machine before I got accepted into CSU’s design program so the learning curve was huge but I pushed through. During my last year, I interned for a company in Denver, called Grassroots California which showed me so many sides to the design world. I was an intern on the design side for the women’s fashion department but after getting hired on I continued with that as well as Project Management for all projects and collaborations with international artists. Working for such a small company (less than 20 employees) allowed me to see what it is like to own a small business. After a year with the team, I realized that I wanted to create my own designs and let my own design aesthetic shine so I left the company to start my own Etsy shop. I was inspired by festival fashion at the time and that is how I branded myself, but within the last year, I have switched over to more ready to wear, eco-friendly fashion pieces. My newest offerings are all made out of hemp or bamboo blends and dyed by my own hand with low impact dyes or sometimes even natural dyes such as avocado pits. The footprint left by the Fashion Industry is huge and I want my business to help the environment and guide consumers towards slower fashion practices one piece at a time.

We’re always bombarded by how great it is to pursue your passion, etc. – but we’ve spoken with enough people to know that it’s not always easy. Overall, would you say things have been easy for you?
The road has been fairly bumpy! The decision to leave the company I started out with was hard because it is scary to take the leap of faith to pursue your own business and dreams. I had plenty of people discourage me from making that step. I also stuck with my course and stayed patient with my business as it was very slow to start. This is normal! A huge piece of advice I would have is to stay patient – plenty of my friends and family asked me within the first week of opening my shop how busy I was. Truth was I had made no sales and that’s what they expected to hear. Marketing a new brand and product takes time. I stayed patient, I continued to build my product and I believed in myself. We cannot rely on others to believe in our successes, we have to believe it ourselves and let that guide our paths. If you tell yourself no, that is your answer. Know that your voice is just as valuable as your colleagues, and if you never take the leap of faith you will never know what the outcome is.

Please tell us more about what you do, what you are currently focused on and most proud of.
I hand make women’s clothing items from start to finish. My hands create the clothing patterns, dye the white fabric that I receive beautiful colors using fiber reactive dyes which are certified low impact (a.k.a. they are non-toxic and most do not carry heavy metals) or sometimes natural dyes such as plants, flowers, and food waste. I cut out every order myself and stitch every piece myself. To be more eco-friendly, I have many practices during this process that cut down waste and resources as compared to a large fashion company or manufacturer. When I rinse the dyes, I swap time for water in order to conserve and do soaks to wash the colors out rather than running water for an extended period of time. The amount of fabric I throw away is very little, if the scrap is of the usable size I save it for a later time. If an item in my shop is not hand-dyed or organic fabrics, it is upcycled from old scraps of fabrics I have used in the past, which is another form of slow fashion as it is putting those to use rather than letting them sit in a landfill. I’d say my biggest success at this point is my hand dyed full-coverage underwear. It is something I am really proud of because I think they make women feel comfortable, supported, and cute. I say they feel like a hug for your body, and it is a beautiful way to practice self-care. It is also something I worked on for a long time through many trial patterns and samples to perfect. My designs set me apart from others because of the colors I tend to use: they are bold, bright and fun. The reason I have Zinnia in my brand name is because zinnias are just that – whimsical, fun, and found in many different colors. I create ready to wear items such as underwear, dresses, tanks, and bell-bottoms but I have fun color pops and whimsical details in each design like ruffle hems and interesting style lines.

Were there people and/or experiences you had in your childhood that you feel laid the foundation for your success?
One of my favorite shows growing up was Project Runway. I was always fascinated by design in general but I never really knew it. My grandmother and my mom both knew how to sew, my mom made a lot of my Halloween costumes and when I got to high school we had a really fun time with the dances. Each year, I would tell my mom what kind of a dress I was wanting, style and color and she would end up making it for me. It made the garment really special, much more special to me than it would have been buying it from a large store. At this time, I still did not realize I wanted to design, submitting my portfolio to try to get into CSU’s Apparel Design program was a pretty quick snap decision. I went in my freshman year undeclared, and after meeting with an advisor decided I wanted to try it. Looking back at these childhood experiences, I suppose it makes a lot of sense!

Contact Info:

• Website: www.madzinnia.etsy.com
• Email: madzinnia@gmail.com
• Instagram: @madzinnia

Image Credit:
Emily Behnke | Lemon Milk Media

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