Fall 2006
Hiywet “Mimi” Girma is one who has turned her art into fashion. If you are a woman, chances are, Mimi’s designs are in your closet without you even knowing it.The labels may read Armani Exchange, BCBG, and EXPRESS, but many of those designs sprung straight from Mimi’s imagination and inspiration.In her 14 years in the businesses, Mimi has designed knit and sweater sportswear for a wide range of stores everything from Wal-Mart to Barney’s.
She was born in Addis Ababa, but left for the Cote D’Ivoire when she was three. Her father was a diplomat and got a job there with the African Development Bank as a diplomat. Her mother was a businesswoman and ran her own health club in the city. It was Mimi’s mother who became her first experience with a living fashion plate.
She was born in Addis Ababa, but left for the Cote D’Ivoire when she was three. Her father was a diplomat and got a job there with the African Development Bank as a diplomat. Her mother was a businesswoman and ran her own health club in the city. It was Mimi’s mother who became her first experience with a living fashion plate.
“My mother was always very chic,” Mimi recalled. “Living in Africa, you could always go to the tailor.”
And wherever she went, Mimi followed, pocketing some of the scraps of material left behind. She would play with them; arranging and coordinating them by colors and textures, seeing what worked and what didn’t. At age 13, Mimi moved to England for boarding school and ended up staying for college. There, her love of fashion grew. She would spend her weekends in thrift and fabric stores and “just goof off, make things,” she chuckled.
And wherever she went, Mimi followed, pocketing some of the scraps of material left behind. She would play with them; arranging and coordinating them by colors and textures, seeing what worked and what didn’t. At age 13, Mimi moved to England for boarding school and ended up staying for college. There, her love of fashion grew. She would spend her weekends in thrift and fabric stores and “just goof off, make things,” she chuckled.
Her father took notice of her talent, not just in fashion, but also in painting and sculpture“My dad always encouraged the artistic side, but as a hobby, not a career,” Mimi explained. “He thought maybe I could incorporate art with math… like in architecture. I almost went to a university for architecture in Toronto. I was accepted, but said, ‘Oh no. I can’t do this. It’s not me. I have to go to New York and do fashion.”
After a year in Chelsea College of Art and Design and another year at Middlesex University, both in London, Mimi moved to New York. There, she attended the Fashion Institute of Technology. She’s been in New York ever since, except for a brief stint in Los Angeles.
“I was lucky,” Mimi said. “I never took a job as an assistant. I went straight to designer. I was only an assistant while in school and that was not a true job.”
“I was lucky,” Mimi said. “I never took a job as an assistant. I went straight to designer. I was only an assistant while in school and that was not a true job.”
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