From a very young age, creativity was something people in my environment embraced. My father, having previously been a professional musician and my mother being one of the craftiest people to walk the earth, I was consistently encouraged to express myself and think of creative solutions to problems I encountered. Now, at 22, I find myself able to embark into unknown territory with a level of confidence, knowing I can creatively navigate most situations and use my creative abilities every day here, at Allbrands. However, far too often in modern society, creativity is viewed as less of a valuable trait. Being able to follow the status quo and act within certain guidelines is typically viewed as being the “smart” way to act, and that makes sense. When a society functions as a hivemind with no creativity to push change, things run more smoothly; there are no desires for social change, no desire for progression. It just stagnates and everyone simply exists in a monotonous, flavorless, colorless society.
Creativity is the driving force behind change. Every single social movement, societal improvement, or trend has had a passionate and creative mind behind it. With no creativity, there would be no cars for us to drive, no lights to help us see in the dark, no paintings for us to look at with a mundane sense of wonder and simply ask ourselves “how?” As a company within a creative industry, we at Allbrands believe it is our responsibility in our community to encourage youth to embark on their own creative journey and keep that same hunger for creation alive into adulthood.
Allowing our children and youth to fully express their creativity is incredibly important. Not only are we nurturing our future leaders and innovators to have minds that solve problems creatively, but the immediate payoff is huge. Students who participate in arts and other creative programs during or after school tend to perform better academically, develop a stronger sense of self-worth, and have a more efficient work ethic.
In an effort to encourage our youth we have been partnering with 4-H to provide a prize to one of the division winners of their Summer Fashion Revue. The mission of this specific 4-h Program is to grow confidence, encourage creative expression, develop confidence and poise, and allow students to familiarize themselves with the process of organizing and participating in a Fashion Revue. This year, we donated a Brother SB170 to the winner of the Ready to Wear division. In this division, participating high school aged students had to gauge market interest and sew a garment that could plausibly be successfully sold in a retail setting. From the design of the garment to the fabric selection and full outfit styling, the participating students embraced their creative talents and showed us what they were capable of. The winner of the division, a student from Caddo Parish named Lillie Christaw (pictured in her garment above, below with her prize), won judges over with a summary and playful one-piece romper. Despite her excellent styling and design, what ultimately separated her from the other contestants was her exceptional construction and execution of all techniques used to make the garment. Allbrands would love to send congratulations to Lillie, and all young creators like her who embrace their creative sewing talents.
See more looks and photos from the 4-H Fashion Revue • Learn about 4-H
The night was kicked off by the styling competition. Students selected garments from Time Warp, a locally owned vintage boutique, to compose a complete head-to-toe look. Following the styling competition was the Junior garment show. This show highlighted the best garments completed by juniors in their apparel design lab at LSU. The winner of this section (and the winner of a Brother/Project Runway sewing machine courtesy of Allbrands.com), Natalie Welch, floored the crowd and judges with her lively and colorful garments. “To me,” stated Welch, “my garments stand for spreading peace and happiness to loved ones and strangers. I used [bright] colors that creates an eye catching, bold statement to continue the anti-war movement started in the 1970s.” With two trendy two piece sets and a flirty mini dress Welch has developed, her award is very well deserved and we at Allbrands look forward to seeing what this young talent has to offer!
Carley Pere
Mary Virginia Ayres
Tommy Do
Jarithza Carlson
Jennifer Huddleston
Angelle Jurasin
Please welcome our new Allbrands Lake Charles store manager Sharon Smith
On Wednesday, May 10th Allbrands owner John M. Douthat, and 
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Baton Rouge, La Store Manager
To bring you behind the scenes for this story I wrote a blog post called Sew, tell me . . . You’ll see why Denise stopped playing tug of war when she discovered the 
Donna was on the hunt for a new creative challenge when she was asked to make a top for charity. Thanks to a background in sewing, she was prepared to take on the task. Although she was not initially drawn to the process of piecing, the creativity found in finishing quilts quickly became her primary focus. Donna completed her first quilt in January of 2014 – she never would have guessed that only a few years later, it would be “all about the quilting”.