Emilie “Emmie” Howard

[Editor's Note: Emmie's interview is the first in a series celebrating Southern Proper this week. Check back all week long to learn what it's like to work for the Southern fashion powerhouse.] Emilie Howard and her sorority sister shared two common passions among college-aged women: Southern men and fashion. Their uncommon pursuit of that passion?…

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Sara Jacobson

Sara’s online experience began early. At age 12, she started playing with the simple Web design elements AOL offered, and it wasn’t long before she was teaching herself code, designing killer presentations and even adding her creative touch to her friends’ MySpace backgrounds. Evolving from hobby to passion, Web design was the obvious answer when…

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Dana Forrest

In high school, Dana Forrest was the girl rocking the "weird and different" kicks; definitely not the same shoes as the rest of the crowd. Little did she know that love for footwear would become a career. As a footwear developer at Brooks Sports, Dana works with departments across the company to develop high-performance running…

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Debbie Sterling

Debbie Sterling, an engineer from Stanford University, had an idea to inspire the next generation of female engineers and address the industry's astounding gender gap: Give girls a role model. So, she invented GoldieBlox, a book series and construction toy starring Goldie, a girl engineer and role model who is smart, curious and accessible. Debbie felt…

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Erin Murphy

Erin Murphy was a fashion designer before she even knew such a thing existed. Wielding a needle and thread by the age of four, she was already seasoned when a friend's mother suggested a career in fashion when she was twelve. Years later, and almost totally by accident, Erin turned her passion into a vibrant…

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Emily Harrison + Jennie Engelhardt

After years of friendship through their alma mater, Jennie Engelhardt and Emily Harrison created fashion line Hare+Hart in the fall of 2009. Today, Hare+Hart has grown into a collection of ethically conscious leather accessories and jackets and has received attention from names like Vogue.com and Who What Wear. Jennie, a native of St. Paul, majored in American…

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Connie Majoros

Many girls grow up dreaming of a career in fashion, but to blaze a path into the Ready to Wear industry along with your sister? That's the route Connie Majoros, who is co-owner and co-founder of femme d'armes (meaning "women in arms") along with her sister, Fannie Chan, took. The two women grew up soaking…

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Danielle Kritz

A chronic doodler, Danielle Kritz started making her own jewelry as a creative outlet. The then-veterinary technician got her start with beading before taking the leap into metalsmith techniques, like hand stamping. And what began as creative exploration led to River Valley Jewelry, Danielle's custom jewelry line on Etsy. Featuring a minimalist aesthetic, Danielle's designs…

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Tanja Maduzia

Crafter Tanja Maduzia has always been a creator — even as a young child. On her website, she jokes that you'd be hard pressed to find another 8-year-old who "took side walk chalk art and crafting projects during rainy-day recess more serious than me." That creative side found an outlet in her mother's antique store, where…

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Colleen Smith

Colleen Smith grew up with the adage, “If you don’t see a job you like, make your own.” So after leaving professional ballet and dabbling in the famed design houses of New York City, she did just that, parlaying her love for jewelry and accessories into BEVIN. A hand fabricated jewelry line, BEVIN maintains the…

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