Monthly Archives: February 2012

It’s Friday afternoon.  Most SMU students are finishing classes and getting ready for all the Super Bowl weekend has in store. Not sophomore Kira Plastinina. She’s packing her bags, getting ready to casually jet off to her hometown of Moscow for the week.

While Plastinina travels to Moscow around four times per semester, this trip is special.  She has put a week of school aside to celebrate the five-year anniversary of her own fashion company: Kira Plastinina. If that excuse doesn’t fly with her professors, I don’t know many that will.

Fortunately for me, Plastinina was able to squeeze an interview into her forever-busy schedule before heading to the airport. Dressed in black ripped jeans (which she customized herself, of course) and an oversized knit beige sweater with the word “LOVE” boldly embossed across the front and holding a light pink Stella McCartney ‘Falabella’ purse — Plastinina is clearly a true fashionista, even on her way to the airport.

Plastinina makes comfy look cool and style look effortless, and the more I talked to her, the more I realized that her personal edgy, yet laid-back feminine style is exactly what’s reflected through her brand.

“Time flies so fast!” the 19-year-old fashion designer exclaims, about celebrating the opening of her first store exactly five years ago. No need to double-check your math. It may be hard to believe, but yes, at the impressive age of 14, Plastinina managed to set up shop in Moscow.

Fashion seems to have interested Plastinina for as long as she can remember.  She recalls first honing her skills by designing various outfits for her dog at the age of 7. But by 2007, with Plastinina as the designer and her supportive and encouraging parents as her business partners, “Kira Plastinina” the brand was born.

Plastinina currently has two lines. The first, “Kira Plastinina,” she describes as a line for girls her age, girls whose style tastes are similar to her own. “I never let anything be in the store that I would not love and want to wear myself,” she says.  “I feel like that would be unfair to the girls that like what I do.”

Her second brand, “LUBLU Kira Plastinina,” is what she presents at fashion shows. She describes this line as a contemporary fashion brand, one that is more luxury and targeted toward a different, more sophisticated audience. The word “lublu” means “I love” in Russian. The inspiration behind the name is her love for her work and all that she does.

“I feel like it is very important that there is love in everyone’s life,” says Plastinina, “and it can be any kind of love, but it is important because it brings inspiration.”

One obvious question that arises when tracing Plastinina’s success is, of course, “Why college?” and, more importantly, “Why SMU?” Plastinina’s answer is simple:  “I think it is very important to have a higher education regardless of if you already have work,” she says. “This might sound nerdy, but I love learning new things.”

Plastinina came to SMU to experience something different, something new – and was not disappointed.  She says she loves Dallas. Design school wasn’t an option for her, explaining her theory that “you get the best knowledge actually doing something, through experience.” By the time she was a freshman, Plastinina had already spent four years – the time it takes most people to graduate from college – working as a fashion designer.

Although commuting between Dallas and Moscow isn’t easy, especially while keeping up with school, Plastinina doesn’t allow distance to become a dilemma. “A lot of traveling, a lot of Skype and emailing, but I make it work. I plan in advance and plan to do a lot in a condensed period of time,” says the designer. This often involves working from early in the morning to late at night, but Plastinina’s passion and determination keep her going.

Somehow Plastinina has also managed to squeeze a social life into her packed schedule. For instance, she is active in a sorority, Kappa Alpha Theta.  Sorority sister and close friend, Paige Parker, describes Plastinina as “humble, charismatic and genuine.” Parker adds, “She pursues her fashion career because that’s what she loves to do and doesn’t talk about it unless you ask her about it.”

Now in her second year at SMU, Plastinina is undecided on a major, but she is taking classes in the Meadows School of the Arts, while minoring in French. “I feel like knowing French is really important for people in the fashion world because Paris is one of the biggest capitals of fashion,” she says.

Whatever degree Plastinina decides to pursue, one thing is for sure — she will continue working on her line after she graduates.

For more information on Kira Plastinina and her brand, visit: kiraplastinina.com.