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CREATIVE MARIST STUDENTS CREATE PROFITABLE DESIGNS
By Catie Becker
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y., November 19 - Marist College is home to many innovative, creative, and fashionable students who not only dress in current stlyes but also make their own wearable fashions. Both Jon Infanti and Keri Resendes are two Marist students who use their inventive ideas to create fashionable accessories.
Senior, Jon Infanti started making hats in the summer of 2006 after his sophomore year. Tired of wearing the same hats as everyone else, Infanti decided to create his own that would stand out.
“I didn’t start making hats for money, I made them for myself and then people started to gain interest and it kind of started a snowball effect,” Infanti said.
After word spread about his hats, Infanti created his own brand, Entity Hats.
For inspiration he looks at surfing magazines and the advertisements inside the magazine. The different colors, graphics and surf scenes gives Infanti the ideas he needs to create hats that no one has seen before.
When asked how he learned how to sew, Infanti credits his mother. “At first I would pin the different fabric on the hats and my mom would sew it on. After awhile that got annoying and I didn’t want her to have her sew all of the hats anymore so I asked her to teach me,” explained Infanti.
Depending on the amount of different materials used, the creation of an Entity Hat can take anywhere from 45 minutes to two hours.
Because the hats are so inventive and different Infanti has now gained a cult following of Marist students. Entity Hats are sold at Fashionology, the Marist Fashion Department’s Boutique, and recently, the company Kill Brand, that specializes in surfing and snowboarding apparel and accessories has begun selling his hats.
Infanti was spotted wearing one of his creations on the beach while surfing this past summer by one of the co-founders of Kill Brand and was asked if he would be interested in working with company.
Because of his involvement with Kill Brand, Infanti was also discovered by a German company called Hotter than Hell. Working with both companies, selling his hats at Marist, and gaining customers through word of mouth Infanti’s Entity Hats have become very popular at only $15 a hat.
When asked about the future of Entity Hats after he graduates from Marist this May, Infanti said, “ I’m always going to make hats because it’s a form of art, more people will see my hats than my paintings. It’s wearable art.”
Keri Resendes, a junior at Marist also creates wearable art. She and her sister Holly have been making jewelry, head-wraps, and birdhouses for two years.
Two years ago they decided to rent out a space at an arts and crafts festival in Warwick, Rhode Island with nothing made yet.
“We worked hard for a few months and found the festival to be very successful,” Keri recounted. “ Since then we’ve done one other arts and crafts festival, created a website, (www.sifstahs.com) and sell our jewelry at the Fashionology Boutique.
Since Keri and Holly are sisters they thought the name of the company Sifstahs would only be fitting. The name is eclectic and original, like the sisters themselves, and their creations.
To create the many interesting and different pieces Keri and Holly look to themselves for inspiration. “We like to be as unique as possible. We’re not really interested in trends because our accessories are more like conversation pieces,” said Keri. “I think we inspire each other by just having fun with what we are doing.”
By using old broken jewelry, antique hand-me-downs, their mom’s button collection, small toys, and Barbie accessories the Resendes sister’s jewelry is anything but ordinary.
Because of the varying materials, a Sifstahs design can take anywhere from ten minutes to four hours to construct. Some pieces require painting, wire wrapping, and hand sewing which takes patience and time.
The pricing on their pieces varies depending on the amount of work that goes into the creation, ranging from $5 to $40. The money they earn goes right back into the their company. They buy materials and new things to create with.
Right now Keri and Holly are working on new items just in time for Christmas. Check out their Website for creative, fun, and interesting gifts for your friends and family.