From Cutting Up Clothes at 4 to Paris: Sofia’s Journey at The Unincorporated Life.

Sofia Campbell — College Essay

I used to believe "fashion" was a curse word. It was not a word ever used in my household. I was raised by two fundamentally creative people whose perception of art was academic and intellectual, who seemed to think of vanity and clothing as superficial and unnecessary. My parents did not stop me from exploring creativity, and so I was put in dance, music, and art classes before I could talk. I'm sure they both would've preferred if I had taken to oil painting, but once I learned how to hold a pair of scissors correctly, I was immediately cutting my clothes into different silhouettes and redesigning my outfits. I couldn't help myself. I was fascinated by fabric textures, experimenting with sequins and fur from a young age. Getting in trouble for ruining my wardrobe just led me to sneak leftover fabric scraps into the trash when no one was looking. Fashion (or what I perceived it as at the age of 4) was the one creative outlet I yearned for, but my way of pursuing it was not a sustainable habit. Happily, a few years later, my mother caught on and decided to put me in fashion design classes so that I could continue being creative and keep the sleeves on my t-shirts.

I attended a fashion camp at a design school called The Unincorporated Life. Upon walking in, all I saw were other students and instructors in flamboyant, textured, audacious clothing walking around with fashion magazines or pinning bright fabrics to a mannequin. My first instinct was to be petrified. I was looking at the things I thought my mother considered frivolous, but she was standing right next to me. I did not understand why she had willingly brought me to this otherworldly place.

I was led in by a woman who would later become my role model, Summer. She wore platform shoes, cargo shorts, a bralette under a mesh top, and her hair pulled into space buns. My mother left, and she told me to look through magazines and cut out what I liked. Still intimidated by her expressive energy, I looked through each page, cutting out pictures of sparkly white lace dresses and black roses. My instructor asked me what kind of fashion I liked, and I told him "black and white." Disbelievingly, his response was to hand me a design croquis and a pencil. I drew a black mermaid silhouette dress with white lace fabric at the flare and a thick white belt along the waistline with a black rose on the side. I created a brand, which I decided to name "Feather." I now like to think the name had to do with feeling truly free for the first time.

Summer taught me how to sew, among other things like customer profiling and brand identity, and I made my own first dress. At the end of the camp, I walked a small runway in my black and white mermaid dress, surrounded by the families of students, feeling incredibly proud of my design. My perception of the word "fashion" went from thinking it was a bad word to wanting to dedicate my life to it.

After discovering and studying the work of Coco Chanel, Miuccia Prada, and, more recently, Elsa Schiaparelli, I have learned how vast fashion is, and I found a community of people who were supportive in helping me achieve my true expression. I have been attending the same after-school fashion design classes ever since, growing closer to my chosen family, who have taught me so much more, including marketing and collection design. I consider The Unincorporated Life a second home, and I have my instructors and the owners, Summer and her co-founder, Shane, to thank for my newfound freedom in the art of fashion. My passion has never escaped me, and I eagerly continue with the desire to learn more about this world and the industry that revolves around it… continuously chasing that feeling of finding myself, that I experienced at The Unincorporated Life.

Sofia was accepted to Institut Français de la Mode in Paris, one of the world’s top fashion schools, Fall 2025.