Duke WBB Player Erin Mathias Designs “Play For Kay’ Game Outfit For Coach McCallie
Durham, NC – Erin Mathias – student athlete, designer, and visual and media studies major has come a long way from hand sewing denim purses from old pairs of jeans out of her mother’s closet. In the past two years, she has grown as a designer and her mistakes have helped her throughout the process. This year she has created an outfit for Duke Women’s basketball head coach Joanne P. McCallie. The custom outfit was worn at Duke’s annual “Play for Kay” game Monday, Feb. 19 in Cameron Indoor Stadium in which Mathias, a 6-foot-4 senior starting forward/center, played.
Being self-taught, Mathias has made a lot of mistakes. All of which have ultimately impacted her work today. She realized she wanted to sew when her mother’s friend, a designer, gifted her ‘a really cool denim jacket’ two summers ago. She remembered thinking ‘I could actually do something like this’ and decided to purchase her first sewing machine.
Last September, Erin had her first fashion show in front of the prestigious Duke Chapel. Lots of planning went into the show. Teammates participated as models and the turnout was great. Her parents even surprised her by attending.
Two words can be used to describe Erin’s designs…industrial and elegance. She is inspired by the cities that have cultivated her into the creative she is today. Growing up in Pittsburgh has had a huge influence on her looks. The “steel city” is home to hard workers and popularly known as a heavy hub for industrialization.
Erin describes her new home Durham, NC as having cool industrial vibes featuring brick buildings and architecture. Her summer spent in New York living in lower Manhattan has also influenced her creative configuration. She interned with Charles Harbison, who is creative director of Harbison, a luxury fashion brand, designed for the woman that embraces both her feminine and masculine sides. New York’s grunge and street fashion weave its way into her designs. Erin pulls the industrial aspects together with softer more elegant fabrics thus creating the perfect duo of ‘industrial elegance’.
The outfit: a black sleeveless blazer with a black cigarette pant. According to Erin, Coach P. has a very simple yet classy look about her. Mathias wanted to represent her well yet still incorporate her own style into the design.
“It has to incorporate my style. Combining both styles into one piece is the main thing I want to highlight through this design.”
Mathias explained that this process has been different from previous projects because when designing in the past it has mostly just been for herself. This time it has been more of a collaborative effort.
“I want to be sure that it represents Coach P. and isn’t something that is too out of her element,” Mathias said. “Even though she didn’t have a whole lot of input she’s very trusting.”
For Mathias, the process begins as she scrolls through her Instagram – next she prepares the first sketch. She then goes fabric shopping mainly ordering swatches online to test out the fabrics. After she creates the patterns and when the fabrics arrive she will trace the patterns.
She draws most of her inspiration from fashion powerhouses such as Haider Ackermann and the brand Off-White. After the game against #12 Florida State, which will air on ESPN2 the outfit will be auctioned to help raise money for the Kay Yow Cancer Fund – a charitable organization that is committed to fighting women’s cancer.
Check out more of Erin’s designs at www.erinmathiasdesigns.com/
By Terri King