Terri Stevens is a fashion designer who owns and designs for her label
Funkinbeautiful. This Chicago native was featured on Season 5 of Project Runway – she was one of the top 6 contestants on the show. As one of the popular designers on the show, Terri’s funky and urban chic style amazed the judges and viewers each week.
Terri graduated from Columbia College Chicago with a Bachelor of Art in Fashion Design and Merchandise. While in school, she caught the eye of another designer, Barbara Bates of Bates Design, who gave Terri an offer she could not refuse as an assistant designer at her firm. It was at Bates Design where her talent for freehand cutting and eyeball sewing was appreciated. She started her career in visual merchandising for many top retailers including Louis Vuitton, Nordstrom, Levi, and Victoria’s Secret, where she would design store concepts and create big brand ideas. Terri went on to live and work in Paris, working for designer Xuly Bet, and the famous Colette where she learned the business of design and European techniques. She currently works as a visual director at Target.
Terri is always a show-stopper during New York Fashion Week where she showcases her newest collections each year. She has an eclectic and funky style that compliments her own unique personality. Music plays a major influence on her fashion.
“My mom said I am a visionary born into it. my friends say I drip in it. and everyone else thinks I live in a fantastically funkinbeautiful fashion universe where designers rule in gorgeous garbs and the streets are endless runways. I believe in the possible dream, discovering what’s on the other side, wearing white after labor day, taking big risks, and turning maybe’s, and no’s into yes, all with a joyful smile wrapped up in kindness and love.” –Terri Stevens, Funkinbeautiful