INFLUX Magazine Spring 2024

The Luxury Shrink<br />

Meet Leslie Randall, designer, artist, stylist, educator and fashion expert.<br />

By Lily Ziaja<br />

By Lily Ziaja<br />

Originally from Wisconsin,<br />

Randall attended the University<br />

of Minnesota. Immediately<br />

upon graduating with a degree<br />

in apparel design, Randall moved to New<br />

York City. After almost a decade in New<br />

York designing embellishments, patterns and<br />

graphics for Kate Spade, Randall decided<br />

to relocate to St. Paul, Minnesota. In 2019,<br />

Randall established The Luxury Shrink, a<br />

one-stop shop for her curated services in<br />

artwork, branding and styling.<br />

As she began to establish herself in St.<br />

Paul, Randall turned to her alma mater<br />

in hopes of sharing her experience in the<br />

fashion industry. This led to the 35-year-old<br />

fashion expert becoming a crucial member<br />

of the Design Board at the University of<br />

Minnesota.<br />

This interview touches on creative<br />

inspiration, how fashion shapes us as<br />

individuals and the meaning behind staying<br />

true to ourselves.<br />

Who is your biggest fashion inspiration?<br />

I have always loved Jackie Kennedy.<br />

She was the first person I really recognized<br />

as a fashion icon. There was something<br />

so effortless about her and what she wore.<br />

Everything was tailored to perfection.<br />

The perfect balance of ease, class and<br />

modernity but also timelessness.<br />

What is your strategy in dressing?<br />

I love to wear printed pants. A lot of<br />

my tops are basic. It is a similar formula,<br />

it's almost always a t-shirt, but then I'll do<br />

either crazy pants or a crazy jacket. I go<br />

crazy for vintage jeans as well. I am also<br />

really into fabric, so I do not buy a lot of<br />

synthetic fabrics and that is something I<br />

have learned over the years.<br />

Photo courtesy of Leslie Randall<br />

If you could live in any era of fashion<br />

what would it be/what is your favorite?<br />

I would say early 60s. It was the perfect<br />

blend of funkiness but also this really cool<br />

exploration of silhouettes. The prints. The<br />

polka dots, florals, and what they printed on<br />

silk. The 70s was when polyester became a<br />

thing. When you look at a silk print, it's so<br />

vibrant in a way that polyester isn’t.<br />

What is your favorite piece in your<br />

collection?<br />

I have my everyday piece that I cannot<br />

live without, which is my Jean-Charles<br />

de Castelbajac jacket. It is funny because<br />

I never would have thought it would be a<br />

staple piece for me. Sometimes you buy<br />

something that is not you and you just love<br />

it. I got it in New York and it is the most I<br />

have ever spent on a coat. I have worn it to<br />

death. It is my favorite. It is so versatile.<br />

Has fashion allowed you to form your<br />

identity as an individual?<br />

When I started fashion I was taught it<br />

wasn't about your identity, it was about<br />

your target market. When I moved to NYC<br />

I started to explore my own identity and<br />

style. I got into vintage which is incredible<br />

because its better quality, more affordable<br />

and it's one of a kind. I realized every<br />

fashion house uses vintage as inspiration<br />

because it is not replicable and it's the best<br />

of the best. Often we’re told it's not about<br />

you, but when it's your personal style, it's<br />

always about you. If you do not have a<br />

strong sense of self, how can you really<br />

ever have an opinion on anything? I grew<br />

to know what I liked and then I would<br />

attract people who liked the same thing. I<br />

built a little community. To me that was the<br />

most successful part in figuring out who I<br />

was and my own identity in fashion.<br />

What advice would you give someone<br />

wanting to enter the fashion industry?<br />

The biggest thing is to stay true to<br />

yourself and your own identity. That is<br />

the most important, it is why you love it<br />

in the first place. You should love what<br />

you do and you should love who you do<br />

it with. You should want to wear the stuff<br />

you make or even love it enough that you<br />

can see someone else wearing it. If you<br />

aren't happy, you can change direction. If<br />

you aren't paid enough, you can ask for a<br />

raise. Never lose sight of the fact that your<br />

standards are your standards and you don’t<br />

have to listen to them.<br />

What would you tell your 20- year- old<br />

self in regards to dressing and creative<br />

expression?<br />

I think one, you’re way too hard on<br />

yourself. I worked so hard and still didn’t<br />

think I was good enough. I felt like I didn’t<br />

deserve to be there because I was from the<br />

Midwest. Looking back, I know I killed<br />

it. Your job is to worry about yourself<br />

first. Also, that my mistakes would be as<br />

important, if not more important as my<br />

successes. Ultimately I wouldn’t change<br />

any of it.<br />

Illustrations by Leslie Randall<br />

38 <strong>INFLUX</strong> MAGAZINE SPRING <strong>2024</strong>