Alan Del Rosario Finds Creative Spark in Fashion

Bobbin, Oct, 1999 by Julie McElwain

A Focus on Innovative Fabrics and Construction

Fabrics are important to Del Rosario. He works with three Los Angeles-based fabric vendors that were willing to take a chance on his fledging company. "They've been very supportive of me," Del Rosario says. "I'm very fortunate to have found them, because most fabric companies have 3,000-yard minimums for production, and ... I'm not quite there yet to consume that kind of yardage."

The fabric vendors also work with Del Rosario to develop fabric designs. For the mermaid skirt fabric, for instance, Del Rosario wanted tiny mirrors sewn into the tissue silk. In other instances, the fabric firms have embroidered sequins and beads onto frothy organza, and even flocked tiny flowers on fabric to create the appearance of embroidery.

Of course, there are times when Del Rosario is simply inspired by what he happens to stumble across. He found the open-weave silk for his Cinderella dress languishing in the back of a closet at the offices of one of his fabric vendors. "They were not getting any reaction to it -- nothing," Del Rosario remembers. "I saw it and thought it was an incredible fabric, so I requested that they make it in my colors, and used it in the collection."

Not surprisingly, other manufacturers have now begun demanding the open-weave silk, just as they have begun using the tissue silk "millennium" fabric. However, Del Rosario says he's not concerned with knockoffs, noting: "I'm already on to the next thing. My spring line is completely different than the holiday collection."

It's not only his fabric that keeps Del Rosario one step ahead of his fashion competitors; the construction of his line is innovative too. Those who know Del Rosario credit his engineering background for the profusion of gathers, darts, puckers, tucks and pleats in the collection, often giving simple designs a unique -- and tailored -- twist. Del Rosario says that much of the inspiration for creating the line's silhouettes is internal. "I have a tendency in the middle of the night to just wake up and drape," he confesses.

Understanding the Business and the Individual

While Del Rosario relishes the fashion industry's creative energy (even midnight draping sessions), he understands the unglamorous, pragmatic side as well. "I was exposed to the business side of fashion when I worked for other manufacturers. If I hadn't had that experience -- if I would have tried this right out of college -- I think I would have failed," he observes. "The reality is that this is a business, and it's not enough that I can design, and make something great. Even if I have incredible sales, if I don't produce the line, if I don't know how to produce it, then I'd fail. Those orders would just sit there as paperwork."

Del Rosario, who financed his business with a silent partner, is adamant about monitoring his production, and carefully selected the Los Angeles area contractors who produce 85 percent of his collection. (The remainder is produced in-house.)

And he is solely responsible for designing the line, which has garnered a loyal and broad consumer base, ranging from teens to women in their 40s. Del Rosario attributes the diverse age range of his clientele to the flattering and functional nature of his designs, which easily can be incorporated into one's personal style. Teens, for instance, have been known to wear his layered tulle skirts with boots, tank tops and denim jackets, while his older customers, attracted to the same skirt for its flattering waist line (cut on the bias with no gathers to pouf it out), will glamorize it with a beaded top and strappy heels. "I make sure that whatever I'm doing, it doesn't come out like a costume," says Del Rosario. "I want my clothes to reflect the individuality of the woman wearing it."