DESIGN GAL IS ON A 'TEAR'
Rips NYC coats for sew cool art
A New York fashion designer is stopping people on the street, taking the clothes off their backs and tearing them apart — and people are begging to be next.
Layana Aguilar, a former “Project Runway” contestant, is revamping strangers’ clothes into one-of-a-kind, handmade pieces — which she typically charges at least $600 for — free of charge.
Since posting videos of several jackets she’s transformed, strangers have been flooding her DMs with requests to revamp sentimental pieces, including a wedding dress from a failed abusive marriage and a grandfather’s military jacket — which she plans to do.
The 39-year-old has always known that designing was her “superpower” and that with it, she could “genuinely make people happy.”
“You know, as an immigrant, you have something to prove. When I was growing up in a small town in Brazil, I didn’t have a voice, the clothes gave me power, so I want to share that with the world,” Aguilar, who graduated from the Fashion Institute of Technology, told The Post.
‘Anything in NY’
Since her Bravo TV debut, Aguilar has used her skills to give back to the city that launched her career and eponymous brand, teaching young girls to design and sew at her Fashion Squad School in Tribeca.
But she wanted to give back in a bigger and more personal way.
Inspired by the many man-onthe-street interviews that populate her social media feeds, Aguilar added her own fashionable spin — asking strangers if she can rework their jackets into upcycled couture.
Her team thought she was crazy, but she knew: “You really can do anything in New York.”
So Aguilar and her cameraman started approaching strangers in Washington Square Park. After four hours, they found a brother and sister, Tatiana Gonzalez, 25, and Diego, 31, willing to hand over their jackets and meet her back in the same spot in three days.
‘Sheer happiness’
When the siblings returned, they were “very surprised” and completely in awe of how Aguilar had transformed Tatiana’s basic black puffer and Diego’s classic denim jacket into funky one-of-a-kind creations, Tatiana said, calling the result “art,” not clothes.
Seeing “the sheer happiness” that her designs brought to the pair, Aguilar kept going.
‘Very intense’
But the process of revamping strangers’ clothes is “a lot of work,” Aguilar said, and nervewracking.
Once she finds the perfect
subject, she asks them a few quick questions to determine things like their favorite color or style icon.
“I have to think about the person’s essence, but I barely know this person. I had, like, a fiveminute interaction, and what if they hate it?” she said. “How am I going to know? It’s very intense.”
But Aguilar’s sewing needle has yet to miss the mark. Everyone
who has had their jacket revamped by her has been amazed by her work — including Jawan Harris, 26.
“When I saw the jacket, I was genuinely surprised. Not only because it looked so well, but the way that she designed the jacket had almost a personal connection to me,” Harris said.
Said Aguilar: “Wearing a custom [piece] is like wearing a piece of your own story. It’s not just clothing; it’s a statement.”