Cat Swanson
About
Born in Guam and raised in Port Arthur, Texas, Cat Swanson was in pre-medical studies at the University of Texas Austin when the fashion bug bit her.
So after graduation from UT Austin, she enrolled at Central St. Martin and Oxford University in England where she received BS in Fashion Design and BA in English, respectively.
After limited hands-on experience as an intern/assistant at London's House of Arkadius, she debuted her collection on New York Fashion Week's runways shortly thereafter.
The Look
Swanson says that she's inspired by "the symbolist ideal of the femme fatale." So what does that mean, exactly? If anything, Cat's been criticized for taking her fashion concepts a bit too haute—"fashion with a capital F" as one publication complained. Her runway debut included bright, primary-colored layered miniskirts, sexy asymmetrical dresses, angular tanks, high-waisted, Dietrich-style pants and tidy pleats. The look, at least in her first seasons, is eclectic, ranging from geometric high-tech to softer, more feminine draped silk.
Who Wears It
Britney Spears, Lil' Kim, Liz Phair