Alumni Spotlight: Sarah Mallory
Sarah Mallory (BFA Fashion Design, 2008)
Dolly Parton Enterprises, Nashville, Tenn.
On any given day, Sarah Mallory is wearing a number of hats. One morning, she’s a manager at Paper Source in Green Hills in Nashville. That same afternoon, she’s writing an article for The Bee’s Knees, an eclectic online magazine she recently started with fellow O’More alumna Amanda Womack Klein. And later that night, Sarah is pinning a client’s custom wedding dress for her final fitting. Oh, and did we mention she sews for Dolly Parton Enterprises, too?
With all the plates Sarah’s spinning, it seems like she wouldn’t have a minute to spare in her schedule. But then she mentions the Agape Animal Rescue “Glitter and Glam” Fashion Show she designed this past year, and the freelance wardrobe styling she’s done for the likes of The Steve Miller Band.
“My grandmother taught me how to sew when I was 4, and when I was 15 I started my own handbag business,” she says. “Since I was small, it’s never changed that I wanted to do this.”
Sarah’s upbeat persona and entrepreneurial spirit both contribute to the go-getter attitude that has lead her down different professional avenues – all paths with potential. She’s grabbed those opportunities by talent and a little bit of luck.
“I was working on some menswear at Textiles when I ran into a fabulous man talking sequins,” she says. “The next thing you know, I’m working for Dolly Parton!”
Dolly was in New York at the time; the play 9 to 5: The Musical was beginning, and the legendary performer had written music and lyrics for the production. Sarah became fast friends with Iisha Lemming, Dolly’s head seamstress and former O’More instructor. Out of the 10 stitchers working, Sarah was the only seamstress left standing when Dolly when was done in New York. Now, she’s been working on a three-person team as a consistent freelancer for more than two and a half years.
Because sewing for Dolly Parton Enterprises is part-time, Sarah is a manager at Paper Source – a job that helped inspire the conception of The Bee’s Knees, the online fashion magazine Sarah and Amanda began in January 2011. Amanda works from Memphis, and Sarah gathers material from Nashville. Together, they manage a website and a blog that generate ideas and tips, focusing on locally run boutiques, restaurants, artists and designers in their areas.
“We thought, ‘We’re really crafty and have fun ideas,’” Sarah says. “Why not share it?”
The founders say that the magazine is a Southern girl’s guide to shopping, cooking, family advice, home design and events. Ultimately, they’d like the magazine to complement, and lead to, a bridal studio that houses invitations, bridal and bridesmaids gowns, and alterations – all under one roof.
“Amanda’s my sister,” she says. ”We always joked in college that we’d make it work together, and now we get to.”
Sarah’s background in graphic design and print media contributes to The Bee’s Knees blog and its needed print material. Though she has talent in graphic design (add it to the list), don’t expect her to abandon her dream of fashion design.
“I got a lot of graphic design in fashion courses, but fashion is everything to me,” she says. “Graphic design is kind of like a bonus to what I do.”
Sarah – who worked in the O’More admissions office and was a member of the Student Government Association – was as successful at the school as she has been since graduating. She nabbed the top award at the 2008 Eloise Fashion Show for her collection of tropical-inspired pieces.
“The business plan for a lingerie boutique is what won me the award,” she says. “I had everything picked out for the store. Down to the ribbon for the boxes and the tissue paper. Opening it is still a goal of mine.”
Sarah says that she knew long before her senior year in Louisville, Ky., where she would attend college.
“I first applied to O’More when I was like an 8th grader,” she laughs. “But seriously, I wasn’t any older than a sophomore. There was no other option for me.”
While at O’More, Sarah helped design print and online materials for the Eloise Fashion Show, helped with different design projects while interning in the development office, and became a staple in the student governing body.
“The best part for me was the people,” Sarah says. “They got us through in a fun way. It’s those people in the office that get you through the stress.”
Sarah enjoyed her co-workers so much that she’s kept in touch with many since her ‘08 graduation. Each year, she holds a Christmas party – one that she says 10 O’More employees continue to attend.
“I made the most amazing friends while I was there.”
Pretty soon, Ondrea Kurttila will be hopping on planes destined for Asia and Europe for her job as a Dockers footwear design assistant. She’ll be landing in California, New York and Florida, on buying and sourcing trips. But before she does all that, she’s teaching a spring semester course at O’More College of Design.





