Chicago Fashion Designer, Vanessa Walilko of Kali Butterfly
http://www.examiner.com/fashion-designers-in-chicago/chicago-fashion-designer-vanessa-walilko-of-kali-butterfly
Trs cool. Recyclable, unique and fabulous! Vanessa Waliko's glam one-of-a-kind aluminum chainmaille futuristic collection definitely brings the future into the now. Kali Butterfly's metal jackets and accessories are made using thousands of anodized aluminum jump rings and anodized aluminum leaves and can take as much as 200 hours to create. With rock star and celebrity looks, the Kali Butterfly line is the most creatively styled metal accessories I have seen so far.
Emerging talent, Vanessa Walilko, is the creative genius behind her brand, Kali Butterfly. Vanessa says, "The Urban Armor series began five years ago as a way to explore the possibilities within the mediums of beadwork and chainmaille. I wanted to create striking, modern designs using centuries-old jewelry-making techniques." Vanessa also teaches jewelry-making throughout the Chicagoland area. She says she specializes in the "unexpected."
While growing up as an over-acheiver, Vanessa knew she wanted to be a designer. But, it was not until much later (when she was supposed to enter college as a political science major), that she realized she wanted to make jewelry for a living. So, after graduating from DePaul University with a degree in Sociology, and working as a research assistant, and later for jewelry designers (where she learned all she could about the industry), she decided to apply that knowledge to making her own dreams become a reality. She says working with the jewelry designers was like "a specialized MBA program." Using her savings, she worked hard to develop a viable jewelry company.
Vanessa also credits her grandfather (who suffered from dementia) with steering her into starting her jewelry business. She says her grandfather told her, with tears in his eyes, "Enjoy every minute of your life because it's all you get." Vanessa said, "I realized then that if after all the suffering he had experienced (he was in forced labor camps during World War II), the lesson he wanted to pass along was one of freedom and happiness, then the only way I could honor his memory was by pursuing my dreams with the utmost passion."
Vanessa's advice to young designers is, "Develop a vision, because there are a lot of people who are able to design for the body, but if you want to be recognized for your design sense, you need to be able to have an original interpretation of the materials." She also says, "Do not be afraid to take risks, be willing to make a public spectacle of yourself, and don't give up."
In describing her design philosophy, Vanessa says, "Every woman should have a piece of jewelry that makes them feel like a queen, and I always design pieces with that idea in mind." She says she has fun creating bold, beautiful things that have the "least amount of environmental impact". Her aluminum jewelry has an endless recyclable life cycle.
Vanessa has won many awards, including Fashion Fever Challenge (a sewing and fashion design competition at the CHA Craft SuperShow in Rosemont). Her chainmaille jacket also took home second place in the Wirework category. She has also been featured in Lapidary Journal Jewelry Artist magazine.
The Kali Butterfly line range in prices from $10-$350, and can be purchased at
Kali Butterfly, and on Etsy.
Kali Butterfly is on Facebookand on MySpace. You can also follow her on
Twitter.
Chicago Fashion Designer, Vanessa Walilko of Kali Butterfly
By: A. Finney
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