Meet Ian Holder | patternmaker/tailor & creative director

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ian Holder and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi ian, is there something you can share with us that those outside of the industry might not be aware of?
the sheer amount of labor it takes to create a garment. every single item in your closet was made by human hands, not automatically. that requires knowledge, dexterity, patience, and energy. i feel like due to fast fashion people have almost become calloused to pair of jeans. a leather/vegan leather jacket. an intricate blouse. but these are garments that did not just appear out of thin air, somebody made that.

Alright, so let’s move onto what keeps you busy professionally?
How I got to the point I’m at today is through dedication to what I love and allowing that to be the driving force in my life so far. I began my path at around 15-16 when a girlfriend at the time’s mom who is a stylist for TV productions had brought me into the styling rooms of my neighborhood mall’s Macys during the summer and it was my first exposure to the world that runs behind the clothes that I already loved at the time. I started to ask more questions to which she gifted me a sewing set with hand sewing needles and some different types of threads and embroidery flosses. I wanted to create my own brand, so I landed on a name “JIKAN”, which means time in Japanese and started to embroider that onto t shirts and jackets and sold them around my school and friends. I was making my own motions and selling clothes to people around me and instagram until I met another young creative who goes by @clover.punk on instagram who founded a brand called elevate.presents at a mutual friend’s kickback in 2021. We connected over our shared love for culture and art, and began to work together. I would style him for the events he was throwing/DJing, and we bonded more as friends. During that time we met a mentor of ours who I eventually began to shadow and work at his operation. I learned how to screenprint, embroider, sew properly with industrial machines, and the real craft of making clothes, not just designing them. Me being gifted the opportunity to work in that environment along with my connection to elevate at the time, culminated into clover and I deciding to switch the brand name to @elevate.angel and throwing our first fashion show. this show was completely produced by me, a good friend of ours @kiyo5hi , clover, and the other people that surrounded elevate at the time but the people who really put in the hours to make that first show happen, were the three of us. kiyoshi and I upcycled thrifted clothing and bought hoodies/ sweats in bulk with the help of elevates funding and screen printed our logos all over them. We then casted around 40 models, and threw our first event, with around 250-300 people in attendance. It was a hit. From that point forward we had our foot on the gas, throwing 15 more fashion shows after that, each with no less than 400 people in attendance and averaging of around 30-50 fully handmade/ cut and sewn looks that were given the opportunity to rock a catwalk and give an aspiring model that experience at the same time. In that time I honed in on my craft exponentially, met so many amazing, creative, and inspiring people along the way, and learned so many valuable lessons that I will take on with me for the rest of my days. The sheer amount of work, pressure, and stress that came with all of those beautiful shows that we put together definitely turned the coal that I was at the time into a well deserved diamond. That diamond is now able to put out quality work, and hopefully be able to sustain his living fully off of solely art. We’re getting there !

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I’d definitely take them to the beach firstly, maybe even right after the airport, no you are not settling in, you need to see the Pacific Ocean first. After that I’d probably take them to the Griffith observatory, and maybe some type of museum. I’m not really sure, there’s not many places that I’d recommend to a tourist to that isn’t a fabric store in the fashion district to be honest

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
most definitely and without hesitation Peter Cepeda, he and I met at a mutual friend’s birthday a couple of years ago and since then he has done nothing but supported me and put me in opportunities like the one I’m currently speaking to today (thank you!) to build up the new wave of creatives in Los Angeles.

Website: https://j7kan.com

Instagram: @j7kan

Image Credits
@digitaldiego1
artwork @kiyo5hi
@dxd_darius
@vive.le.feu