by Bianca Chaves
Freshman Colin Sliwinski owns an online clothing line called “Childish Brand.” Sliwinski had the idea to start his own clothing line in sixth grade, but he didn’t execute the idea until eighth grade.
Sliwinski has taken Art I, and next semester he is taking Introduction to Fashion Design. Sliwinski has been interested in art since he was young. “I used to draw a lot when I was younger,” he said.
Rapper Lil Peep and clothing designer Tyler Grosso inspired Sliwinski to create his own clothing line. Tyler Grosso owns his own brand named Super Radical. “I kinda looked up to him for a long time,” Sliwinski said.
Sliwinski promotes his brand in many different ways. Through Instagram, he contacts musicians, like Lil Skies and Smrt Death, and he asks them to wear his clothes in public and to post pictures of themselves on social media wearing it for more recognition. “Lil Skies wore the shirt often, [and] that was insane.”
Sliwinski is the only one working on the brand because he likes having total control. “I’m really picky,” Sliwinski says, “and I just want to make stuff that I like myself.”
It takes Sliwinski two weeks to a month to come up with a design. He makes a few variations of the design before he decides on what to sell. Sliwnski explains, “I get really intimidated when I make something, and it doesn’t look the way I want it to look.”
Freshman Pedro Nunes wears Childish Brand often. He started wearing these clothes in April of last year.
Nunes owns five of the seven pieces Sliwinski has made. He wears the brand one to two times a week. “It’s very affordable, so like I think it appeals to the students at Hudson.”
Nunes thinks Childish Brand is very refreshing. He wears it because he likes the style of clothing and wants Sliwinski to get more recognition for his work. “I just really love the designs,” Nunes explains, “and the quality isn’t too bad either for the prices.”
Sliwinski charges $18 for a crew neck and $15 for a tee shirt. His clothing gets sold out fairly quickly.
Sliwinski wants Childish Brand to continue to grow. “A lot of the stuff I do now is kind of similar, I guess,” Sliwinski explains, “but I want to start branching off and doing other things.”
Sliwinski hopes to design for Childish Brand for as long as he can. He enjoys doing his own thing and something different. “Lil Peep was really different. He started his own wave, and I think that inspires me to do my own stuff that I don’t see a lot of other people doing.”
To see Colin Sliwinski’s designs go to, depop.com/childishclothingbrand
