I Grew Up Loving Fashion

I started falling in love with fashion when I was a little girl. I thought fashion would be my biggest dream and passion. From a little girl to a young beautiful woman, I would wear everything I want especially, pink which is my favorite color. I feel pretty obsessed with that color pink. Many grown-up girls wear everything pink. There are a lot of reasons why girls love pink. For instance, they behave like Barbie, pretend to be a girly-girl or a princess, and look beautiful as much as I do. Nobody can stop loving PINK!

As a little girl, I wore cute and adorable clothes including dresses, gym shoes, and Mary Jane shoes. I started wearing leg braces when I was a toddler because I needed the support due to my cerebral palsy. These leg braces can fit my comfortable shoes. I had short hair (my short hair looked like a tomboy lol). My hair started growing to be a medium length when I was around 13 years old. (In fact, I don't like short hair anymore because it's too tomboyish and too pretty, lol. Now, I have slightly lengthy hair- my hair is as pretty and elegant as me.) I would dress up like a princess. I feel like a Disney princess (in fact, I am kind of a Disney addict). Every girl loves princesses and they are always treated like a royal princess. Each princess has a signature color, object, and hobby/skill. My favorite Disney Princess is Cinderella. She is a fictional princess who becomes a maid/servant for her wicked stepmother and evil stepsisters. She dreams of marrying a prince. Cinderella attends a ball and dances with a prince. She loses one of her signature glass slippers at the stroke of midnight. In the end, she fools her cruel stepfamily and successfully tries her glass slipper on to marry a prince she dreamed of. Cinderella's signature color is sky blue. I dressed up as Cinderella for Halloween around the age of eight. Dressing up as a Disney princess was one of my favorite childhood memories- I felt treated like a royal princess and loved it all. 

When I was 5-6 years old, I started dreaming about becoming a fashion designer and entrepreneur while playing fashion games on my computer. Therefore, I discovered that I have developed an exceptional passion and a keen eye for fashion. I thought it would be fun, easy, and interesting to learn about fashion. My passion for fashion has grown stronger since I was a little girl. For instance, I would use a computer to design clothes and accessories, look for fashion trends, create fashion graphics, style women, provide fashion advice/tips, and even more! In high school, I started learning graphic design so I discovered that I have a natural talent for graphic design which makes another passion of mine. I took numerous fashion and graphic design classes in high school. Also, I have a unique interest in custom adaptive clothing which is a type of clothing that is designed and modified for people with disabilities and elderly people. I have acknowledged adaptive clothing since I was in my early twenties.  I noticed that people with disabilities struggle with manipulating fasteners like buttons and zippers while they are wearing clothes - I know how difficult that is. However, I have a deep confidence in creating innovative solutions that make dressing much easier for them.  

I am incredibly grateful to have grown up into a young fashionable woman. I feel privileged and blessed that I grew up loving fashion and have developed unique skills and talents for the world of fashion. Personally, I am a huge fan of iconic fashion brands like Chanel, Dior, Michael Kors, and Lilly Pulitzer. These fashion brands create unique, innovative, and sophisticated designs I admire. They have inspired me to become the next generation of fashion entrepreneurs.

I am proud to say that I am a fashionista with cerebral palsy/a disabled fashionista. Disabled women deserve to look and feel their best while wearing whatever they want like everyone else. They can feel like a model regardless of their ability and mobility, no matter what. I want to remind these disabled women to never let their disability stop them from loving fashion... they are capable of doing whatever they want in the world of fashion but they need to eliminate the barriers/stigmas in order to make the world of fashion more accessible and inclusive. It's very important that all fashion lovers including myself and others with disabilities know their own style and personality.... EVERYONE LOVES FASHION!! 

🩷 Marisa