Jeanne Feldkamp working on a dress for the St. Vincent de Paul Discarded to Divine auction. Photo credit goes to T. Shane Gilman.
Currently on her fourth collection, Jeanne Feldkamp Creative Director of The 615 Project, was not always designing beautiful evening dresses and jackets. Graduating from the University of Southern California with a degree in Communications and a minor in International Relations, Jeanne worked in a software company for a few years until she moved up to Northern California.
Inspired to create her own shoes by a pair of sandals she owned with beads that constantly fell off and needed to be re-sewn, Jeanne consulted a shoe cobbler and attempted to make shoes and purses. Realizing that she was probably using excessive amounts of material, Jeanne decided to move up to San Francisco and take a more structured route by enrolling in a pattern making program at Apparel Arts. Three years, a couture and fashion seminar, and countless lab hours later, Jeanne completed her studies and began The 615 Project.
I had the chance to speak with Jeanne at her wonderfully, self-decorated San Francisco apartment about her line, fashion, and other fun topics. Here is what she had to say:
What does your label name mean? How was it chosen?
It’s a reference to the address of my first studio—615 Indiana Street. I wanted to keep it simple and something you can find on the Web.
How would you describe your clothes?
I kind of have a person in mind when I design the clothes for my line. She runs around traveling. She’s adventurous, jet-setting, but at the same time she’s not wearing suits. She’s comfortable in lots of situations. Right now I am doing more dresses and jacket with fabrics that travel well like silk-jersey. Materials that you can wad up and throw in a suitcase, but just as easily take a blow dryer to it, and it’s ready to use.
Where do you grab your ideas from? What inspired you most when you create?
Everywhere. My collections end up looking a lot like the space I’m living in, the interiors of houses and architecture. I also grab ideas from my travels. I’m currently starting a little India phase.
What was the theme for this collection?
Peace Corp meets Park Avenue—sort of urban safari. Urban edge, but the colors, textures, and some of the fabrics are more travel safari.
Who do you see wearing your clothes?
Everyone should wear my clothes! Most of the pieces are applicable for everyone. It has an element of casualness, and a feel of t-shirts because they are knit.
Favorite designer? Designers you love/would love to collaborate with? Mentors?
Christian Louboutin, Michael Kors, Narciso Rodriguez, and Isabelle Toledo.
What’s your favorite piece that you’ve created to date?
Fiona, which is a tan halter dress made from one piece of fabric. There was no cutting involved in the creation of the dress, and it only has 3 seams.
What do you think the effect on fashion is of popular shows like Project Runway, What Not to Wear, etc.? Do you see these shows as a negative or positive?
I love Project Runway. On the one hand, it’s good to have people interested in the process of designing. On the other hand, Project Runway is unrealistic in that the deadlines are not as tight as the shows. You’ll never have to make a dress in four hours. The show does not take into consideration the production side of the industry, nor do they show how to communicate with the production team regarding pricing, etc. Those things are just as important as the design.
How do you feel about the recent focus on greener/organic methods of design?
I think it’s really cool. The awareness of green processes is always a good thing, but I think it’s also maybe a little misleading. If you have a fabric that’s made from bamboo, bamboo is a sustainable plant, but if that bamboo is grown in China where the land is an old forest, that is a lot of resources being used. Is that bamboo greener than cotton grown in Texas for example, when you take into consideration the shipping, etc.
Overall, I think the general public being aware that the apparel industry isn’t the greenest, people learning more about it, and pushing for greener processes is a good thing because it can bring about good changes.
Why choose San Francisco over more highly recognized cities in the fashion industry like New York or Los Angeles?
I like living here. I used to live in L.A., and I didn’t design clothes when I moved here. It just so happened that I lived here when I was designing. I think it’s good to live in a less recognized city because you get more opportunities to stand out. People are really interested in small designers here, and people in San Francisco are always looking for new and different things.
What direction would you like to see your line develop towards?
I think the sort of direction I’m taking with this collection is where I am heading, which is more cocktail dresses and jackets. Lots of people ask me about Menswear, so I may do some Men’s jackets next season, but that was not my plan originally.
Advice you’d give people trying to break into the fashion industry.
When I started, people asked if I was going to work for someone else. I felt I knew just enough to be gung-ho about it. I didn’t quite know enough to be scared, and I think that’s a good place to be to start any venture of any kind.
In retrospect, I’m glad I did it and did not go to work for someone else and freak out about it. I wish I spent time learning more about other things like fabric pricing. You can either learn as you go and spend a lot of money doing it, or you can do a ton of research, especially on the production side because that is what costs money.
The business has 2% to do with the design, and 98% with everything else. Don’t rely on your design business to give you income for a few years. You will need another means of making money while you are building your portfolio.
A good book to read is The Entrepreneurs Guide to Sewn Product Manufacturing by Kathleen Fasanella, although it might scare you.
Typical day in the life of The 615 Project.
It really depends on what I am working on at the moment. Everyday, the first things that happen is I get up and check my emails and stagger outside to get a latte, sometimes in reverse order. I usually spend a couple of hours on writing projects.
The design process is very cyclical. The actual designs take about a month. I spend about a month or two sketching and coming up with concepts and diagramming. 2 months are spent for every collection to really focus on fabric sourcing. I make lots of phone calls, calling and describing what I want and talking about prices. A huge amount of time is spent making sure all pieces have other pieces that they relate to. I try to use the same construction details. There is a lot of editing involved. I never make out more samples than what ends up in the collection.
Favorite things to do when you’re not working.
Decorate my apartment. Architecture and design. I’m sort of obsessed with the San Francisco real estate market. I love to travel.
If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be?
I love San Francisco. I could also live in a ski house in Whistler.
If you weren’t designing, what would you be doing?
If I wasn’t designing, I’d be renovating and flipping houses.
Book you’re reading right now, or last book you read.
Harry Potter.
Right or left-handed?
Right.
If you were to create a “Soundtrack of My Life” compilation, what songs would be in it?
These are Days by 10,000 Maniacs; Open Road Song by Eve 6; I Am the Highway by Audio Slave; Whiskey and Water by Uncle Kracker (I think it’s a funny song); and Problem Child by ACDC.
If you could have anyone’s wardrobe (dead or alive), whose would it be?
Diane von Furstenburg! That’s whose wardrobe I’d steal! 
She looked amazing in the 70s, and she looks amazing now. She really embraces color and texture and bold prints, which I love. She exudes confidence and creativity and elegance. And she’s evolved the way she dresses over the years, so it’s always appropriate for where she’s at in her life. I think I could probably grab anything from her closet and look fabulous now—or 30 years from now.
Favorite time of the day?
Early evening.
Piece of clothing or jewelry you could not live without?
Stretchy jeans. If stretchy jeans did not exist, I would be an unhappy camper.
Best part about being a designer? Worst part about being a designer?
The best part about being a designer is in situations when a person walks into a store looking for something, and they can’t find it anywhere. When that happens to me, I can go ahead and make it.
The worst part about being a designer is designers make a tenth of what people think they do and work ten times as hard. Small designers are constantly seeking media opportunities, making new clothes, putting out money for fabric, selling, and staying on top of a ton of things. If I didn’t like it, I wouldn’t do it. It’s also harder to travel.
What are you obsessing on these days?
The interior of my apartment. Food and cooking—I am already planning Thanksgiving dinner.
If you could choose between sleeping, eating, or being clean, which would you choose? Why?
I’d choose being clean because I’ve gone without sleep and food, but I can’t function without being clean.
Favorite holiday?
Thanksgiving because it’s not about the presents. It’s just about hanging out with the family, eating, watching football, and playing boardgames.
Five pieces of clothing every girl should have in her wardrobe?
Stretchy jeans
Really hot black pencil skirts
Super cute cocktail dress
Great leather jacket
Some stilettos
Take away message for your line?
Wearing something special and sophisticated can be as easy and comfortable as wearing a t-shirt and jeans. Eveningwear doesn’t have to mean formal wear!
Where can we find your items?
Check my website.
