Courtesy: Grid Philly
Ashani (Shani) Scales feels grateful for her moment in the spotlight. Grid Philly recently featured The Village Teaching Artist in a profile titled “Fashion designer channels inner child for bold upcycled looks.”
“It honestly feels amazing. I don’t think I’ve fully taken it in or relished in the moment yet. But I have the magazine plastered on my wall, so every time I wake up, I have to look at it, and I’m like, wow, that’s really me.”
Shani first became interested in fashion around the age of nine, but it wasn’t until she was 11 when a neighbor gave her a sewing machine, that she began designing and upcycling clothes.
“I knew that I was into fashion. But when I was younger, my mom used to buy my clothes all the time… But I’m like, I don’t really like what she buys me anymore, so what can I do to make it different?”
Courtesy: Grid Philly
Shani taught herself how to use the sewing machine, experimenting with items like old jeans that no longer fit and turning them into tote bags.
“I think I learned how to make certain things by just taking old garments apart and then tracing them onto paper if I liked the way that they fit. I can make the sleeves bigger if I want the sleeves bigger… I can do that without going to buy a new jacket; I can just go and make my own, and I’m teaching myself something so that in the future, I might be able to hand it off to somebody else.”
As Shani got older, she stopped focusing on fashion design and majored in business in college. It wasn’t until the Covid pandemic hit that Shani got inspired to get back into design. She decided to buy a sewing machine, then got a second one and began comparing them. It resulted in her revamping half of her closet and committing to fashion design as a passion and career.
“I said to myself, if this is what you really want to do, you have to show up for yourself. Every time. You have to want it more than anybody else does.”
Courtesy: Vanity Elite Models
Since making that commitment, Shani’s profile has grown steadily. She’s participated in Philly Fashion Week and other fashion shows, created a jacket for rapper Tierra Whack, and began making custom orders. Last year, Shani joined The Village as a teaching artist, and she’s currently teaching middle schoolers in our Impact Studios program, where she appreciates how curious they are to learn about fashion design.
In Impact Studios, Shani is showing our youth uniforms from around the world. She asks them to identify what they like and dislike about them and then teaches them how to design a uniform they would like. Another design project for students during this session will be to create zero-waste tote bags. Shani believes it’s critical to learn how to upcycle clothes.
“I think now our job is to take those things and make it a little bit healthier… for our bodies, for our environment, and for not just people in the United States but everybody around the world. Because pollution doesn’t affect just us.”
Shani hopes the youth she works with at The Village will not only learn the technical skills of fashion design but also how to show up authentically as themselves.
“Fashion can be a form of therapy because sometimes people dress how they feel, and it is true that when you look good, you feel good. The most important thing is I try to express therapy through threads. [Because] I like to wear my heart on my sleeves, literally. I dress how I feel.”
To see more of Shani’s work or to work with her, check out her Instagram. She was also recently featured in an FYI Philly story, which you can watch here.