Good because we know each other so well that we have a shorthand language… but bad because we can push each others buttons! You know, I could have just went into business for myself, but I wanted to empower my family, and build a family legacy. I remembered the first shows I ever attended… I like shows like Todd Oldham held … I want it to me like that – a cool cocktail party! SCS: So what is it like working with your brothers? ES: (Laughing.) It is the best of times and the worst of times. He went on to tell me that the first esosa Collection will debut during New York Fashion Week, on February 10th! (He invited Second City Style, so stay tuned.) ES: It will be a presentation, with 2 hours of cocktails. Everyone can always see and remember them! ES: Yes, I did not think of it at the time but on Project Runway… it is like everyone will see those pieces…forever! (laughs). SCS: I know! I just checked back to look at Season 7 and I remembered your specific designs. Emilio Sosa Winning Design – Project Runway Season 7 You know it is always so great to hear that people remember me and are fans because of Project Runway. SCS : On Project Runway, you won a lot of challenges – five! Do you work well under pressure? ES: I was so focused… I had blinders on! I had to think of one challenge at a time. Fabric Selection is always the hardest…because I obsess over it! It can make or break your design. The costumes had to be washed and dried very quickly for the next day. But to design the costumes, the fabric selection was important: What stretches, and what will dry quickly. I toured domestically at first and then I traveled for the first time to Europe, to Greece, to Paris… I got to travel all over, and this was a great experience for me. ES: The Alvin Ailey job was my first out of school. SCS: I’m fascinated by your costume design experience for Alvin Ailey, because I have seen the company perform and personally I love dance. I’ve been doing a lot of design for off Broadway productions and I have personal clients, like Wynton Marsalis, and designing my own collection. SCS: So… what have you been up to? ES: It has been an amazing run since Project Runway aired in 2010. He is the kind of guy you want to hang out with and share lots of laughs, as well as the added bonus of talking about fashion! Upon meeting Emilio, I was immediately greeted with his warmth and humor. What Emilio Sosa Has Been Doing Since Project Runway Most recently, Emilio’s work can be seen in the new Broadway production of Porgy and Bess, Spike Lee’s upcoming film, Red Hook Summer and his esosa fashion line will make its debut at New York Fashion Week this February. His designs have appeared in over 50 theater productions in the United States and abroad and he has won several awards. He styled commercials for Spike Lee and was assistant costume designer on his film Bamboozled. Upon returning to New York, he began a successful career styling music videos for ground-breaking Hip Hop Artists, Salt and Pepa, Kid and Play and MC Lyte, to name a few. He began his career as the assistant costume master for the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, where he traveled the world. He continued his art education at Pratt Institute in Brooklyn. He said he was creating fashion sketches since he was 14, taking academic classes in Harlem, afternoon art and design classes on Manhattan’s Upper East Side, and free art classes on Saturdays at Parson’s School of Design in Greenwich Village. He hails from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic and was raised and educated in New York City. I also had a chance to find out more about Emilio’s background. Since then he has continued to promote “ esosa” designs, a line he co-created with his brothers. Emilio was also the one who used his initials and brand in the challenge where they designed their own textiles, which brought on a bit of controversy, (Tim Gunn did not love it but Michael Kors did). He was the designer who won 5 challenges and went on to the final runway show. If you remember, Sosa came close to winning Season 7. Emilio Sosa was in Chicago recently and I was presented with the opportunity to meet him and find out what he’s been up to since Project Runway.
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