Chatting With Jay McCarroll
We heard that Philly native and Season 1 Project Runway winner Jay McCarroll was back in town, peddling his wares at local boutiques, so we caught up with him on his current projects, future plans, and favorite Philly stores
- One of Jay McCarroll's tote bags. Image courtesy of Darien Sutton
Philadelphia Magazine: So, are you really back in Philly?
Jay: No, I just travel through here in a tractor trailer. I am. South Philadelphia, born and raised.
PM: Actually, we heard you were homeless.
Jay: Uh, that was a big fat lie. You know what is the funny thing about that [New York magazine] story? I was in the transition to Philadelphia. So I was telling her I was homeless in New York, because at the time I was. But I still had my work studio with three more months left on it, so I was back and forth.
PM: As someone in the fashion world now living here, what do you think of style in Philly?
Jay: I have a friend in New York, and she describes Philadelphia as being scrappy. And I always use that term, scrappy. Philly definitely has its own vibe, its own style. It’s urban, it’s gritty, it’s, like … homemade and interesting. I like that Philly is more creative.
PM: Did you hear that we were voted the ugliest city?
Jay: Yeah, is that like our style or the way our faces look? I think that the people who make up these polls should find something better to do. There are other things to be concerned with, like the war we’re in.
PM: We were also voted sweatpants capital of U.S.
Jay: That has got to be impossible. Have they ever been to Texas?
PM: So tell us about the line you’re selling in boutiques around here.
Jay: It’s not really a line. Just some handbags, cotton tote bags and bowling bags. I’m selling at Mew and Topstitch. I just came here the end of the summer, so I’m still pretty new to town and I’m still setting up my studio. I’m just using these little boutiques to get back to the place I was before Project Runway.
PM: Your bags have your signature circles. Why are they your signature?
Jay: I’ve always liked circles. It’s like built into our system as a human being to like the circle, I think. Because of like the sun, moon, everything moves in a cycle. I just stacked them on top of each other. Been doing them for years and years.
PM: And here, as opposed to New York, as soon as you put something on a shelf, Philadelphia magazine calls you.
Jay: Yeah and ya know, that’s good. I just want to get back to being an artist again. Because I feel like that just kind of got lost in the past year. Get back to making some one-of-a-kind products and little stuff. I’m doing some mass market stuff for QVC and for my own line.
PM: Right, tell us about the QVC thing.
Jay: I have a little line coming out and I’ll be on TV selling it the end of February. I have like a color-block coat, a beaded sweater, a pair of jeans, a jean jacket, a tunic dress, some other things. Then I’ll have hopefully a larger line later on in the year. And I also have my own line of tees and tote bags coming out for the spring in February on my website, JayMcCarroll.com.
PM: Now, I know you’re watching Season 4 of Project Runway, because you’re blogging about it on Elle.com.
Jay: Yeah, it’s super fun. It’s hard blogging, which I had no idea about. I thought, Oh, it’ll take, like, 45 minutes of my day. But that turned into an entire day with editing and rewriting.
Jay: No, I just travel through here in a tractor trailer. I am. South Philadelphia, born and raised.
PM: Actually, we heard you were homeless.
Jay: Uh, that was a big fat lie. You know what is the funny thing about that [New York magazine] story? I was in the transition to Philadelphia. So I was telling her I was homeless in New York, because at the time I was. But I still had my work studio with three more months left on it, so I was back and forth.
PM: As someone in the fashion world now living here, what do you think of style in Philly?
Jay: I have a friend in New York, and she describes Philadelphia as being scrappy. And I always use that term, scrappy. Philly definitely has its own vibe, its own style. It’s urban, it’s gritty, it’s, like … homemade and interesting. I like that Philly is more creative.
PM: Did you hear that we were voted the ugliest city?
Jay: Yeah, is that like our style or the way our faces look? I think that the people who make up these polls should find something better to do. There are other things to be concerned with, like the war we’re in.
PM: We were also voted sweatpants capital of U.S.
Jay: That has got to be impossible. Have they ever been to Texas?
PM: So tell us about the line you’re selling in boutiques around here.
Jay: It’s not really a line. Just some handbags, cotton tote bags and bowling bags. I’m selling at Mew and Topstitch. I just came here the end of the summer, so I’m still pretty new to town and I’m still setting up my studio. I’m just using these little boutiques to get back to the place I was before Project Runway.
PM: Your bags have your signature circles. Why are they your signature?
Jay: I’ve always liked circles. It’s like built into our system as a human being to like the circle, I think. Because of like the sun, moon, everything moves in a cycle. I just stacked them on top of each other. Been doing them for years and years.
PM: And here, as opposed to New York, as soon as you put something on a shelf, Philadelphia magazine calls you.
Jay: Yeah and ya know, that’s good. I just want to get back to being an artist again. Because I feel like that just kind of got lost in the past year. Get back to making some one-of-a-kind products and little stuff. I’m doing some mass market stuff for QVC and for my own line.
PM: Right, tell us about the QVC thing.
Jay: I have a little line coming out and I’ll be on TV selling it the end of February. I have like a color-block coat, a beaded sweater, a pair of jeans, a jean jacket, a tunic dress, some other things. Then I’ll have hopefully a larger line later on in the year. And I also have my own line of tees and tote bags coming out for the spring in February on my website, JayMcCarroll.com.
PM: Now, I know you’re watching Season 4 of Project Runway, because you’re blogging about it on Elle.com.
Jay: Yeah, it’s super fun. It’s hard blogging, which I had no idea about. I thought, Oh, it’ll take, like, 45 minutes of my day. But that turned into an entire day with editing and rewriting.
Posted by Zoe | Jan. 2, 2008 at 10:12 PM