Stylespiration: Jenna Lyons

Referred to as the "woman who dresses America" by the New York Times, Jenna Lyons is a power force in the fashion industry and is undeniably worthy a stylespiration highlight! Jenna currently acts as the creative director and President of J.Crew. She has even been named in Times' Top 100 Most influential people and is known worldwide for transforming a once struggling fashion brand to one of the greatest sought brands.

Jenna is said to be hard to miss towering now at 6 ft tall and always seen to be styling her geek chic eye wear and eccentrically cool way of dressing. The now fashion maven began her career at J.Crew in 1990 after graduating from Parsons in the position she calls an "assistant to an assistant to someone else's assistant" designing mens rugby shirts. Over the next two decades Jenna worked her way to the top of the company taking on various roles that led to her success. But in interviews, Jenna often refers to her beginnings that led her to fashion. As a child she was bullied and sought constant refuge in art and in the beauty of it because she could not see such beauty in herself. After falling in love with sketching and drawing which began her initial interest in fashion. In her 7th grade home economics class, Jenna gained skills in the art of sewing and it only went uphill from this point.

In 2003, Millard Drexler became the chairman and CEO of J.Crew and this was a pivitol point in Jenna's career. Upon Drexler's second day at the office, he summoned Jenna in and she had to review various clothing items for him. After sharing her honest opinion that she did not like most of the pieces offered, he sent her off with free reign to fill in the gaps that were now missing after removing each piece that she disliked. Not only did this begin Jenna's career of revamping the styles offered by J.Crew to make it a major name in the fashion industry, but it was also a time when she was able to use her creativity and business intuition to help drive the business forward. In 2010, the former President of J.Crew resigned and Drexler immediately chose Jenna to fill this spot. Jenna has not only changed the designs but also the aesthetics of the store interiors as well as the catalogs. Designer, business woman, interior designer, fashion maven and mogul are all words to describe the amazing Jenna Lyons! Here are some pictures of her cool style as well. Hope you enjoy!

Until Next Time,