Growing up with ‘sick health’ and failures during school days was never a ‘regret’ for Lipoknenla Jamir but was indeed an adventurous journey that opened doors for brighter days. Lipoknenla popularly called ‘Lipok’ by dear ones is a fun loving simple girl who today is living her second life surviving a life taking ailment that completely changed her life in so many ways.
She is positive about every step that life has in store for her. Lipok with her very little learning and experiences as a fashion designer from outside the state hopes to come back and become a renowned fashion designer one day
Eastern Mirror: Tell us about yourself. How did you end up studying fashion designing?
Lipoknenla Jamir: Growing up good health never favored me and I was unsure of what I should do as I was in a point of life where I could not carry on with my education. But after my +2 I enrolled myself in a vocational training institute in Dimapur where I was trained for a year. That opened doors for me and I later worked with Leejen-Colors of Nagaland a fashion house in Dimapur. There was no turning back for me as I was always fascinated with the fashion world. With ‘good luck’ favouring me all the way and with the help of the governmenr I got the opportunity to undergo 1 year fashion designing training at the National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT) Kolkata, which is the dream institute of every aspiring fashion designer.
EM: Does fashion design world seem as competitive to you as it seems to others?
LJ: There is of course pressure and it goes up and down like a roller coaster but at the end of the day you love every second of it. With everyone so good at their creative process, there is an atmosphere of a modest competition among us students though there is no space for comparison. This makes us work on creative pieces which is a positive thing for us. At the end of the day we are all friends and we support each other with our creative practice and more importantly we are good friends.
EM: How would you describe yourself as a designer and what do you think of when you design?
LJ: A person who puts in a lot of effort, who keeps in mind the comfort level of my clients and consumers is what I am. The relationship between the clothes and the body fascinates me most and when I am working on a piece I think of the body of a person and make sure than more than the design and elegance of my piece, my client should be comfortable with the piece and should have a comfortable relationship with the clothing she is wearing.
EM: What is the most challenging thing being in the industry?
LJ: The fashion industry is fast growing which in a way is also easily accessible. People love fashion and being fashionable. So the most challenging thing is the competitive atmosphere around you. You can’t be stagnant and lagging behind ideas when there are thousands out in the world with the same thought as you have ‘to be on top’. So it’s pretty challenging and frustrating at times when you can’t think out of the box.
Considering the scenario of people accustomed to technology I find social media the best platform to promote anything. It reaches people in a fast way and bearing in mind the speed of social media, I would definitely love to make use of the social media available. It’s fast, convenient and friendly reaching the mass at large.
No matter whether you are working on a new project or planning your dreams, working on a thing you love the most is very important. My pieces are mostly feminine and I love gowns……hehehe….So I always find a way to work on gowns and when I’m at it I do not realize how time passes by (hehehe).
With more into feminine touch I am loving this floral and digital print and making use of the floral print that is in right now. I am not much into trend as I work on what my creative process leads me to but I have never avoided any trend and make use of the trends that are in with my twist on it.
As a fashion-designing student I would love to create a trademark of myself, which will make people familiar with my designs. I cannot say what my future holds but in a few months I’ll be working with a fashion house here in Kolkata and I’m planning to stay out of the state for some years so that I get to know the real world before I embark myself in my hometown. I need to save the best for my people hehehe…..
