“(Fashion) was something that’s always been a part of my life. Junior year of high school is when I fully decided, but my whole life has led up to it.
“I vividly remember in preschool my mom let me dress myself one day. A different mother had an issue that I was wearing flowers in fall. As a preschooler, 4 or 5, I was like — why can’t you wear flowers in fall? I was so confused.
“From that moment I was like, I’m never going to let anyone say what I can and cannot wear.”
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
NEVER A QUESTION
Brock’s first fashion class was at Kenton Ridge High School.
“I learned how to sew and embroider. I was sewing on a home machine. Once I got to college, I sewed on an industrial machine which is very different. I had to re-learn.
“My family is very supportive of art and fashion. A lot of people that I went to school with got push back from family. It was never a question when I wanted to go to school for fashion design.”
As they grew up, Brock encountered curveballs along the way, including the outbreak of Covid-19 during high school, and the coinciding loss of their mother.
“COVID happened in the middle of my junior year of high school. I was gone from February of junior year and didn’t go back until January of my senior year. I had a whole year where I didn’t go to high school. I went (back) for the last semester, my mom died, and I didn’t go to college for the first year. That time was really tricky, and honestly pretty mentally straining.
“My journey was a little different because I started (college) in 2021. I was online my freshman year. I did not touch anything fashion my first year, which is not normal. After that, it was complete fashion.”
FIRST RUNWAY SHOW
Brock’s “Neapolitan” collection debuted at the 2025 CCAD Fashion Show. This annual event showcases the creative vision and technical mastery of CCAD Fashion Design program seniors in a runway show format.
For the collection, Brock blended childhood nostalgia with bold, whimsical design.
“My favorite color combination is pink and brown, (and) I have such a sweet tooth. I was talking to my teacher who taught the thesis class, and she was like, what about ice cream? Just add white, and it’s Neapolitan. It’s such an iconic color combination.”
Brock paired the colors with dress silhouettes that mimicked melting ice cream. Through their collection, they tried to encourage people to break down preconceived fashion notions.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
“I like clothes that are really fun and weird. I like them to tell a story. I like statement pieces. I added big cherry headbands. They also have three-inch wooden buttons down the back, which I made in the wood shop.”
A NEW ROUTINE
Brock has been settling into a new routine and staying on task by setting up a home studio.
“I’m an early riser. My dad leaves for work at five in the morning. I’m not that much of an early riser! By the time I get up, it’s just me and my cats, Roman and Jackson. Waking up, chilling with them, breakfast.
“I have one sister who is older than me. Her name is Avery. She’s currently in England getting her Master’s degree in Museum Studies. She’s an anthropologist. We try to talk, she’s five hours ahead of us.”
“My dad is a really good drawer, and always has been. So is my sister. Not me, the person who is in the arts! I hate to draw. I like to do physical or digital things, but pen and paper — not me. I had to do a lot of sketching (in college). I would do really basic preliminary sketches, and then write what I’m trying to do.”
THE STUDIO
“I’m setting up a little studio space in a clubhouse in the backyard. It’s a little barn. It’s a place I would hang out in with my friends. It’s really cool to have something that I spent a lot of time in as a kid and played in, to now use as a studio space.”
The plan is to start re-working vintage pieces.
Credit: Contributed
Credit: Contributed
“My boyfriend is a vintage re-seller. He goes to the Goodwill bins a lot, so I’ll start tagging along to get things that are specific to my brand.”
What would be an exciting piece to find?
“Anything I see that’s pink, I’m like ‘score’. Anything that’s really unique, brands I’ve never heard of. I don’t really follow brands or designers heavily, because it doesn’t really matter to me.
“I really like weaving and embroidering. I’d like to start adding to already existing pieces and selling them on-line.”
COLUMBUS FASHION ACADEMY
Brock also has an interest in children’s wear, and is considering starting their own line one day, or joining a preexisting brand.
Twice weekly they drive to Columbus to teach children at the The Columbus Fashion Academy.
“I teach elementary students how to sew and how to up-cycle and make their own things. Right now, that’s really fulfilling and fun. I’m learning a lot about kids and what they like to wear.
“We go to their schools as an after school program. I’ll be doing it more once school is in session. It’s all of elementary school, which is ages 5-12. It’s one class of everybody, between 10-20 (students).
“I brought in fashion magazines and had them just look. I started out with, ‘Tell me what colors you see. Are a lot of the dresses short? Are they long?’. Simple questions. It got really deep and intellectual pretty quickly.
“In one of my classes there was a boy and he was like, ‘Where are the boys?’. I was like, ‘There are some boys, but how do they look different from the girls in these magazines?’ They talked about how a lot of the boy’s fashion is more simple — suits, dark colors — while the girls, everything is very different, everyone is wearing dresses.
“One of the magazines had Billie Eilish on the cover. They all knew who she was. I asked what she was wearing that was different than all the woman in the magazine, and they said, ‘She’s wearing a suit!’
“I think that’s my favorite part, really driving home that they can where whatever they want. I want them to be comfortable and happy in what they’re wearing. It’s really nice to hear from them that they’re on that same vibe.”
SWIM & SLEEP
After teaching it’s back to Springfield, sneaking in a nap, and hopefully spending some time with friends.
“I love to swim. I go to the reservoir that’s here in Springfield.
“I love to read, too. Most of my life I’ve been into fiction. In high school I got really into Shakespeare. I love Shakespeare! I read a lot of Shakespeare, but I’m trying to get out of that. I need something more fun.”
She laughed.
“I’m not a huge fan of cooking. I’m a picky eater, and I’m a vegetarian, so I’m rocking a grilled cheese all the time. My boyfriend likes to cook.”
“I get very sleepy at night. I’m not a night owl. I’m probably ready for bed at 9:30.”
“A huge shout out to my friends and family, because they’ve been very supportive. I’m honestly proud of myself that I did this. It was really challenging, because my mom passed away right before I graduated high school. It was really difficult for me to figure out what I was doing.
“CCAD is pretty expensive, and to have a parent die on top of that — I was really not going to do it. But my dad pushed me. He was like, ‘You have to do this, this is what’s going to make you happy. You’ll regret it if you don’t.’
“I’m really happy to have persevered and gotten through that crazy time.”
MORE DETAILS
Find Kendall Brock online @outtapocketkb or see their portfolio at https://outtapocket.myportfolio.com/work.
About the Author
