Monica Smiley, a 2005 Thornlea Secondary School grad, anxiously picks up the phone, dials a few numbers and waits. She has made a half dozen calls so far, asking stores to meet with her and look at her product, Eighty Seventh St., a series of fashion-inspired greeting cards for any ocassion (she recently produced a beautiful 2013 holidays line) that she built from the ground up.
Smiley’s journey started as early as age nine, when she had dreams of being a fashion designer. She was transfixed and fascinated by the mere idea of fashion designers sketching. By the time she reached Thornlea, the margins of her notebooks were overflowing with thin little fashion figures. The sketches helped make the time at school bearable.
Noticing Smiley’s talent was Thornlea fashion teacher Ms. Culdery, who took Smiley under her wing. She gave Smiley the support she needed and provided substantial assistance when it came time to apply for university. “I was always certain of what I wanted to do,” Smiley says. “I was pretty confident in my skills. She just developed them further.” Additionally, art teacher Mr. Kauder showed Smiley appreciation for her drawings. He was the type of teacher that many students were intimidated by, so his approval gave her the confidence to believe that she could make a career out of her passion.
“When professional people notice what you’re doing and reward you, it encourages you to keep going," Smiley says.
But soon, facing the reality that fashion designers were part of a dying breed, she felt she had to alter her goals to make her dreams a reality. So she began a greeting card company, which allowed her to turn her passion for fashion illustrating into a job and gave her nearly complete control. “I love that it’s all me, it’s completely creative,” Smiley says. “I can do anything. There aren’t too many guidelines, except the categories like birthdays and holidays, but I like putting my own twist on that.”
Despite not having any experience with running a company, she had retailers clamouring for her fashion-inspired greeting cards for any ocassion. Now she’s looking at expanding her business beyond Canadian borders. But it was her time at Thornlea that prepared her for her career in art. The demanding courses combined with her strong work ethic helped her create something she now loves.
