DESIGNERS GET IDEAS FROM LOTS OF SOURCES

New styles of self-expression can be inspired by students, seashells and songs.

Some kids don't give a lot of thought to what they wear. They pick out clothes that are comfortable.

To other kids, clothing means much more.

"It's the power to express yourself through the way that you look and dress," said Rebeccah Pailes-Friedman, a designer for Fila in New York City.

The 34-year-old designer believes kids have limited power, and how they dress is one choice they can make.

"Your parents are going to let you buy your clothes before they let you make huge life decisions," she said.

"It's such a big deal for kids because it's their way of becoming themselves, of becoming individuals," she added.

Children's Express recently conducted telephone interviews with Pailes-Friedman and Angela Ahrendts, president of DKNY, a high-priced clothing line from designer Donna Karan that appeals to high-school girls and working women.

Both women were interested in fashion at an early age. "When I was young, the only thing that interested me were clothes. I used to make doll clothes all the time and go shopping," recalled Ahrendts, who grew up in New Palestine and went to Ball State University, where she studied fashion merchandising instead of design.

Pailes-Friedman, who grew up in Exeter, N.H., also started her career early. She sewed her own clothes without a pattern starting at age 7 and says being active in sports helped her to understand the best type of clothing for sports activities.

Her career came naturally

"When I was in high school, I was very athletic. By the time I graduated, I had nine varsity letters. I was very academic. I studied and did my homework and always had A's and B's.

"I was very outgoing and I always was involved in a million different things. . . . I guess when you put all of those things together, it would only make sense that I would end up being a designer of active sportswear," she said.

Pailes-Friedman gets some of her design ideas from kids in her neighborhood.

"I live in a section of Brooklyn that's got a lot of different types of people that live together. Five blocks away from my home is a huge high school with white, black, Hispanic, Asian - every type of kid.

"The way that they put their clothes on is so cool," she said.

She also explained that she might be inspired by the color combination in a sunset or the style lines in an old-fashioned car. Sometimes it's hard to come up with ideas.

"Coming up with new designs season after season after season under pressure - that's really challenging."

Ahrendts pointed out that she oversees the business end of DKNY and does no designing. But she explained where Donna Karan gets her ideas:

"She goes on what she calls inspirational trips. . . . She takes time off and relaxes and frees her mind and goes sightseeing and (sees if) something could inspire her."

Ahrendts gave this example:

"She found all these beautiful seashells and they were all these gorgeous ice pastel colors. So she brought them back and she told the fabric people, `These are the colors I want,' " said Ahrendts.

Selecting something to wear may be as simple as finding a color you like. Pailes-Friedman believes clothes tell you something about the wearer.

Clothes say who you are

"The clothes that I draw are my self-expression," she said. "By selecting that particular article and putting it on your body, it becomes your self-expression. Between my self-expression and your self-expression, that's what brings the design to life."

Some people choose clothes to portray a certain image. "It's not just what they have on, but it's the way they wear it. I mean, they (might) wear it super-oversized, with dark glasses, and walk in a certain way," she continued.

Then there's the influence of music. The way Pailes-Friedman sees it, if you listen to a certain style of music, you might dress like the people who play that music. She keeps that in mind when she designs.

The designer also thinks kids can be influenced by adults, especially entertainers and professional athletes.

Pailes-Friedman designs all of Fila's coats and the company's collection for Detroit Pistons star Grant Hill.

When she sees kids wearing Hill's line of sweat shirts, she gets really excited.

"I just want to run up to them and say, `That's me. That's me,' " she admitted.

Sometimes you see girls dressing in '70s fashions with knee socks and bell bottoms. Ahrendts explains that while some styles seem old, they have a new twist.

"The whole mod scene coming out of Europe is coming out of the '60s, but it's always the new version. They never do it exactly like it used to be."

Pailes-Friedman describes how trends get started.

"I think that one person who has really great personal style will wear something totally unexpected. Then two people will see that and think it's great and do something like that, then five people will see each one of them. Before you know it, it's a trend," she said.

EDITED BY: Jacob Pactor, 13. ASSISTANT EDITOR: Robert Hornberger, 16.