Student designer shows her ‘Flare’ (Photo by John Schreiber)
SMU junior and Dallas native Lindsay Marie Wendler recently returned from the Éclat de’ Mode jewelry trade show in Paris. She brought back with her creative inspiration to add to her self-made business and jewelry line called Flare.
Wendler, 21, designs and markets her jewelry in addition to pursuing a biology major. Wendler takes 18 hours of class at SMU and an additional seven hours at the Art Institute of Dallas. The fast pace lifestyle doesn’t bother Wendler. She hardly rests even during holidays, as she jets off to London to take courses at Central St. Martin’s College of Design.
Wendler began her business in November 2005, and the new designer’s SMU schoolmates are quickly becoming familiar with her work, as well as the Dallas fashion crowd, explained Kathleen Crombie, a longtime friend of Wendler and a Flare promoter.
“There have been several occasions where a store manager will approach me and ask me about my necklace, rings, [or] earrings. The manager will almost always want Lindsey’s contact info on the spot,” Crombie said.
The last five months have been a whirlwind for Wendler. She unveiled Flare at the Fair Trade Fashion Show held at SMU in November and she has been featured in a wide range of shows since then including, The Fashion Rock Show at What Bar in Dallas and the recent Business|Savvy|Couture Fashion Show on campus.
Wendler has a keen sense of style. When I met her she was wearing a necklace she designed for her new collection. It consisted of a string of rare-shaped Biwa pearls and classic south-sea pearls. This necklace, like any other piece in her collections, was designed to be a classic element in female style, while remaining sexy and fun, she said.
“There is nothing in my personality that would wear a single strand of pearls. A woman wearing a Lindsey Marie piece is not wearing a cardigan, [rather] is grabbing her Blackberry and stilettos,” Wendler said.
Wendler’s unique style was also put into the creation of her website, flare-lindseymarie.com. It showcases her three collections: Classic Redefined, Reckless Abandon, and Pearl Provocateur. The website displays photographs of models wearing her pieces.
Diana Huggins, an SMU junior and Flare model said, “Her passion for her jewelry becomes apparent in every piece she designs [and] I love wearing her pieces because they are young and fresh.”
Wendler also includes information on her website about a philanthropic investment in Operation Smile, an organization which works to repair childhood facial deformities. Wendler started the first Operation Smile chapter in Texas and donates a portion of all Flare’s profits to the volunteer organization.
Wendler soon hopes to globalize Flare with possible offers to expand her business in London. Alexandra Seuhner, a freelance designer who has worked with Burberry and Sonia Rykiel, was one of Wendler’s teachers in London, and has been a major source of inspiration according to Wendler.
“I like the way the Flare collection is commercial, beautiful and innovative,
without being too over the top. If she has come this far in such a short time, I can only imagine that she will be an enormous success in the near future,” said Seuhner.
“My collections are selling really well, but I want Lindsey Marie to be known for pearls. I want to be featured at Neiman Marcus, in my own box. I don’t think it’s that far away,” she said.
