BEHIND THE NAME

I am a self-taught photographer turned fashion designer, inspired by stories you'd see in a photo.

My fashion design journey started before I knew it would turn into anything. I wanted to create my first dress using a sewing machine a friend donated to me. After completing the project, I was hooked. It was a way for me to add to my already established photography talent. To be able to also incorporate another piece of art into the photo felt like a dream. I felt like an imposter for the first few projects, but decided to embrace the phrase, "I am a fashion designer."

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​Fashion became a natural extension of my creative journey. I started watching videos on YouTube of other sewists and designers creating princess dresses, bustier bodices, corsets—anything that sparked my interest in fashion. After I became pregnant, I wanted to get back to it because I had taken about a year or two off due to personal reasons. When I came back to it, I never looked back and have been doing it almost full-time since 2022.

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​I've always seen dresses the way some people see book covers. Before a single word is read, a book cover invites you into a world. A dress can do the same. It can hint at a character, a place, a feeling, or a memory. The pieces I create are designed to spark imagination and tell a story before a single word is spoken—a philosophy that anchors my independent fashion brand launching later this year. The photographer in me has always seen art from the lens, after all.

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​My work is inspired by years of daydreaming, vintage romance, fairy tales, and music. As a musician as well, I think in lyrics and imagine videos that would go well with them, and they always contain a dress flowing in the wind. Every design begins with a feeling—a forest path at golden hour, a forgotten photograph, a beloved vintage dress, or a scene that exists only in my imagination. From there, I translate those stories into fabric, silhouette, and detail.

Right now, I am poured completely into preparing for our official brand launch and fundraising for my upcoming New York Fashion Week runway collection. Each piece in this debut drop is thoughtfully designed with the hope that when you wear it, you feel as though you've stepped into a story of your own.

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Thank you for being here, for being part of this pre-launch journey, and for supporting my work. It means the world to me to share these stories with you.

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Love,

Stephanie Harford

Fashion Designer, Photographer, Filmmaker, Musician, and Mother