Lifestyles with Elena Kanagy-Loux | Fashion Culture

Lifestyles is a six-episode original short podcast series from The Museum at FIT. Join MFIT Digital Media Manager Tamsen Young as she sits down with people whose distinct expression of style is outside conventional fashion trends. Discover how they use clothing to define themselves on their own terms. This is the final episode of the season. View images of our all six guests, and learn more about the Lifestyles podcast series, on our website.  Lacemaker and textile historian Elena Kanagy-Loux has followed a remarkable path leading to a personal style that beautifully bridges historical research and the handmade arts. She asserts a true individualism: “Wear what you want to wear because, as far as we know, we only have this one life. So we might as well be true to ourselves and our vision for ourselves.” Elena’s creative journey began in both the United States and Japan. She descends from the Amish and growing up was immersed in traditional Mennonite crafts, as well as the DIY fashion scene in Tokyo's Harajuku neighborhood. In 2007, she moved to New York City to work in fashion, and was hired as the costume designer for the rock musician Courtney Love and worked for the independent fashion brand Electric Feathers. In 2015, Elena won a grant which funded a four-month trip to study lacemaking in over a dozen European countries. Upon returning to New York, she co-founded Brooklyn Lace Guild, an organization dedicated to the preservation of making lace by hand.  Transcript (pdf) The Museum at FIT (MFIT) is the only museum dedicated exclusively to the art of fashion in New York City. https://www.fitnyc.edu/museum Instagram: @museumatfit & @erenanaomi