Allyce King
Host, Designer, Author
Allyce is our "original" Creative Chick at DIYStyle. She is a recent graduate of Stephens College in Columbia, MO with a BFA in Fashion Design and Product Development. Allyce has been sewing, crafting and making "unique things" since the age of six. Her first love though is Paddy, her VERY spoiled Yorkie, who thinks he can go everywhere with her (and sometime does—he's a regular at the fabric store)! She adores fashion, sewing, designing, draping & patternmaking, drawing, scrapbooking, and (in limited doses) the outdoors. Always creating, Allyce continuously comes up with more sewing and creative project ideas than she can possibly execute! Now that she has completed her first Fashion Collection, she's ready to find her place in the fast paced world of fashion design. Allyce writes for several magazines, and is the co-author of the book My Style, My Place, published by Krause Publications. She is also the co-designer of the DIYStyle pattern line from McCall's Patterns. Allyce continues to add her many ideas and direction to the Creative Chicks team and DIYStyle.
Sarah Cecchettini
Creative Chick, Model, World Traveler
As one of the newer Creative Chicks at DIYStyle, Sarah looks forward to sharing fun experiences about sewing, the fashion industry and style from around the world. Currently, a college student majoring in International Business and Fashion Merchandising, she is also studying Spanish. A well heeled traveler, Sarah spent two months in Africa last summer working in a children's orphanage, and has visited Mexico, the Caribbean with more to come. Soon Sarah will be off to Spain, studying in Valencia this fall! Besides fashion and travel, she enjoys modeling, working both in fashion shows and print work. After graduation she plans to earn an MBA and dreams of working in the fashion industry, managing the business side of a fashion related corporation!
Meghan Petty
Creative Chick, Designer, Entrepreneur
An award winning designer, Meghan Petty joined the Creative Chick's team right after graduating from Stephens College and moving to New York to pursue her fashion design career. This Missouri native has been very busy with learning the in's and out's of starting her own business, MegsCouture.com, along with exploring the little girls clothing industry for the first time. Other than designing and being artsy, Meghan also enjoys the great outdoors along with being environmentally concious, reading comic books (thanks to her boyfriends influence), vacuming the dog so that she doesn't have to vacum the floor, and cooking and eating. She hopes to have the grand opening of her site, www.MegsCouture.com soon, and to kick off 2009 contributing helpful hints and great design ideas for the DIYStyle.net fans!
Cindy Cummins
President, Executive Producer
Involved in the sewing industry for over 25 years, Cindy Cummins is finely tuned to the next new trend in sewing. She designed some of the first serger patterns, has written numerous articles and books, and has taught professionally all over the US. Before creating DIYStyle, she was the Education Director for the Sewing Dealers Trade Association. Cindy's passion for sewing was encouraged at an early age, and she is aware of the importance of education in reaching the next generation of sewers. With an M.S. Ed degree in Instructional Technology, as well as a B.S. in Clothing and Textiles, Cindy leads Creative Chicks Productions, devising instructional and entertaining content for the 20-something market.
Elizabeth Ann Cecchettini
Creative Director
Elizabeth is a freelance designer and writer specializing in fashion and home decor sewing, as well as quilt design. Her work has appeared in a variety of sewing, embroidery and quilting publications. Always scouring for unique ideas, Elizabeth finds inspiration in many places, from couture designer shops and flea markets to magazines and especially the environment around her. The possibility of one more person sewing something truly original motivates Elizabeth to create exciting and fashionable designs for DIYStyle.
Marcella Hawley
Art Director, Web Designer
As owner and creative director of Marcella Hawley Creative LLC, Marcella delights in creating "enthusiast" communications: web design and development, printed catalogs and advertising, illustration, logos and branding strategies. DIYStyle is a terrific collaboration, because do-it-yourself decorating is a major part of her everyday life! Before starting her own business in 2005, she was the art director of Mary Engelbreit's Home Companion magazine. Marcy was previously assistant to the art director at Martha Stewart Living.
Matthew Schmitt
DIYStyle Video Producer
Matt has a longheld fascination with video production, ever since his parents bought him a Fisher-Price movie camera at age 10. Matt went on to study film and television at Columbia College in Chicago. In 2003, he started The Art of Film Productions, and has produced several programs for the St. Louis market. Matt also works closely with Drury Marketing, assisting with a nationally broadcast television show. Quite the young hipster himself with a keen eye for videography and video production, Matt delivers a great experience to the DIYStyle audience.
Megan Cissell
Season 1: Cinematographer
Megan's cinematography is featured in the premiere season of DIYStyle vodcasts. A graduate of Columbia College with a B.A. in Cinematography and Producing, Megan is now in Los Angeles where she gets to work and play in the heart of the film and television industry. She has worked alongside top directors, producers and actors: Mark Stouffer, Deborah Martin Chase, Robert Duvall and Devon Sawa. She is an instructor at Freshi Film Worx where she teaches children the art of filmmaking.
John Dunne
Season 1: Vodcast/Video Production
The slicer and splicer of the video footage in our premiere season, John is pursuing his film career as a director/editor in LA. Experienced in set construction, light design and directing, John is a former member of a circus troupe, and later taught his own circus arts classes for 3 years. John grew up in Chicago and graduated from Columbia College.
What is DIYStyle?
DIYStyle is a weekly vodcast (video podcast or web video), a project database, an online community, and sew much more. We create an upbeat, fashion-forward show for a fresh audience of sewers and fashion-minded young women. Each vodcast program features a segment on sewing a project, how to design, a sewing tip, a designer interview……all things DIY! Each vodcast is ready to watch whenever, wherever on an iPod/media player or a computer.
Design It Yourself
Whether you choose DIY to mean "Do It Yourself", or our version, "Design It Yourself", the name DIYStyle says it all. Style. Fashion. Hip Home-Decor. We teach our audience to sew, from the ground up, sharing plenty of tips, suggestions, and new products along the way. DIYStyle segments include Design Inspiration, Projects, Superfast Sewing Tips, Rising Star Designer Interviews, Trendy Places, and Creative Spaces. But we've got a lot percolating for future seasons, so stay tuned.
Show and Tell
DIYStyle.net is an interactive community and meeting place for Creative Chicks (and a few Creative Guys, too!). Blogs wrtitten by our Creative Chicks team give us a peek into their thoughts, ideas, and sometimes crazy—but interesting lives. Look for new community features in the months to come…... we can't stop coming up with ideas to share (and we want to give you the chance to share yours too)! Our Creative Chicks sleuth the top fashion websites, stores, magazines, and thrift shops to come up with the most current fashion and home dec projects for you to create. And we figure out how to make them FAST and EASY! We forecast the trends, and bring you the skills for recreating your own style. Subscribe to the DIYStyle Vodcast & Blog…..sign up now….you won’t want miss the important stuff.
