Hi, I’m Kris - founder, designer, patternmaker, and sewist behind Body High.

I’m a scavenger - old world - queer - nonbinary - neurodivergent - poet - earth lover. My relationship with fashion is deeply informed by these identities. Body High was born out of a desire for clothes that supported my fluctuating size, didn’t irritate my sensory issues, and allowed me to explore an aesthetic beyond what is perceived as feminine or masculine.

I've been sewing & swooning over textiles since I was a kid. I learned to sew from my Grandmutti (that's us in the photo), and have strong tactile memories of disappearing between the racks of velvet while my Mom shopped at fabric stores. I remember feeling an unquenchable curiosity about the people whose hands created all the objects in my world. So now that I'm making stuff to release into the world, I wanted you to know who I am.

I first dreamt of becoming a fashion designer in 2010. But I couldn’t figure out how to create patterns, and couldn’t afford to go to fashion school. I ended up continuing to work in the service industry, which has been my line of work for the better part of 22 years now. In that time I completely forgot about my fashion dreams, but also in that time I found queer family, had adventures all over the country, healed some trauma, felt love & heartbreak many times, did performance art in streets & diy venues, learned glassblowing, was in a band, and started to find my sense of purpose & self-worth separate from the imperialist, capitalist illusion of reality. 

The possibility of being a fashion designer resurfaced while I was making masks during the lockdown of 2020. The shaping of the masks reminded me of a bra cup, which inspired me to try making a bra that I'd actually feel good in - a wireless, supportive, aesthetically exciting & comfortable bra, made from all natural materials. At this point there were more accessible online resources for learning patternmaking, and the time had finally arrived for me to dive back into my dreams and never look back. 

While attending Made Institute's Designer Development Program, I created the core bodywear designs & business model for Body High. I’ve also been teaching myself computational design, working with a program that allows me to automatically adapt my patterns to a client’s unique measurements, which means I can offer custom-fit clothes at a lower cost. This opens up a new paradigm for the working-class to access well-fitting clothes and escape the cycle of buying fast fashion that isn’t designed to meet our needs. Instead of following brands or trends, I envision us building community fashion spaces where patternmakers, designers & sewists can get to know the needs of their clients, keeping their measurements on file to create new garments whenever desired, and offer repairs & upcycling services. 

Everything offered through Body High is designed, patterned, tested, sewn, and packed by me in my home studio in Germantown, Philadelphia. I'm honored to be a part of an ongoing legacy of textile work in this area, which includes some of my own ancestors who worked in the yarn-dyeing industry.

It's been almost five years now of working on this project (and not doing much else) because I've decided to do all apect of the business myself, and I'm learning to do every part of it as slowly as I need to stay in love with this work.

I love the thrill of tracking down the little-known producers dedicated to supporting regional fibersheds, and sourcing saved-from-landfill designer textiles. I love nerding out about creating patterns with precision, and developing an accurate, trans-inclusive sizing system. I love treating a business like a creative discipline, something intimate & informed by my values around Solidarity Economics & Transformative Justice. I love working with my hands - the way it frees my mind, and keeps me feeling connected to the materials & the land they come from, as well as the people that will one day wear the garments. 

I love learning about & scheming to support people's desires for more affirming undergarments - whether it's due to gender, size, body type, ability, or age - pretty much everyone I speak to has gripes, and I’ve found that many of us have internalized our fit issues as issues with our own body, rather than issues inherent in the fashion industry. That part I don't love - that part upsets me deeply, because it so insidiously keeps us from knowing our innate beauty & power. But it's what keeps me going, in the hopes of offering something that not only makes people feel good about how they look, but feel more comfortable in their bodies.