I had the pleasure yesterday of spending the afternoon with Tim Gunn.

For those of you that don’t know him, Tim Gunn appears on Project Runway as mentor to the designers and basically the glue that holds the show together. If you don’t know what Project Runway is….well, this post will mean nothing to you.

Yes, Tim Gunn is a celebrated and loved TV personality, but to me he is so much more. As many of you know, I graduated from F.I.T. with a degree in Fashion Design. Tim Gunn was an Associate Dean and Department Chair at our rival fashion school, Parson’s.

Having lived in New York City  and worked in the fashion industry for 13 years, I can tell you that Tim Gunn represents all the best of the rag trade (garment industry); Class, sophistication, knowledge, eloquence, grace and, most importantly, he can dish the dirt without getting his hands dirty.

I wish I could tell you it was a long conversation over tea or cocktails, but, alas, I had to share his company with a few hundred others at the Georgia State University Auditorium. However, Tim is so engaging, I did feel that it was a much more personal encounter.

In fact, I was the first one to pop out of my chair to ask a question at the end of his talk. You may have seen me on CNN. Not really, but it was that monumental to me.

I asked a simple technical question about whether the designers were allowed to use slopers (a very basic pattern or template for the shape of a sleeve or pant) or if they had to rely solely on their draping skills to provide patterns. His answer was no that the designers had to rely on their draping and innate pattern-making skills to construct their garment. He then elaborated on the process.

I don’t expect you to understand the relevance of this question or the answer. What I will tell you is that right after I asked my question, the mere fact that TIM GUNN was listening to me, said it was an excellent question and addressed me directly when answering..well what can I say, it was a rush. Yes, I’m a nerd. This fact has been previously established.

Since I left New York, there are times I feel a little lost and disconnected from the heart of my passion which is design. Design in and of itself. The creative process and being around those who are in the same world who can appreciate and share the headache, heartache and reward it brings. I thoroughly wallow in the rare moments  when it all comes rushing all back. Thanks Tim.

Although Tim was there to speak about his book, Tim Gunn’s Guide to Quality, Taste and Style, we also learned he has a new book coming out this fall called Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, February 23rd, 2010 at 8:22 am and is filed under daily diva, style. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.