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The dish with … Mona Lucero, fashion designer

Mona Lucero, right, with Denver model Taryn Achiele in one of Lucero's designs. Photo courtesy Randall Bellows III/RB3 Photography

By Lesley Kennedy

Born in San Francisco, and raised in Grand Junction, Mona Lucero says the first thing she ever wanted to be was an artist. She pursued that dream, earning a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts Degree from the University of Colorado Denver, but a passion for fashion started to pull her in a new direction.

“As a child, I was influenced by a few members of my family who loved to dress well,” Lucero says. ”As I was finishing art school, I began to realize that I wanted to be a fashion designer, so I went to New York and received an Associates Degree in fashion design from the Fashion Institute of Technology.” 
 
She returned to Denver, working in various jobs in the garment industry, and eventually started her own design line selling wholesale items. She opened Mona Lucero boutique, 2544 15th St., in November 2002. We asked her about getting her start, where she finds inspiration and the importance of supporting local designers.
 
Getting started in fashion design: It’s hard to just point at one thing.  My grandmother was into clothes. I remember my grandmother’s black dresses with eyelets and beading in her closet and her big steamer trunk in which she kept her varied handbags. The first pair of shoes I coveted, at 5 years old, were red patent leather Mary Janes. My grandmother, mother and sister sewed, so I was always watching them. 

As a teenager and living in a small town, I had a thirst for information and glamour, so I read a lot of fashion magazines. I think the thing that pushed me into design was seeing clothing by Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren and wondering how they created their colorful and beautiful fabrics. They were a cut above anything I had been able to create or sew myself at that time. I realized they were taste arbiters and I found that fascinating and I wanted to learn more.
 
On opening her own boutique: I have always appreciated good boutiques and creative shopkeepers. I wanted to come up with my own ideas and environment. After selling my line wholesale, I found that I wanted to work with the people who would actually wear the clothes and not solely store buyers.
 
The boutique affords me so many different ways to be creative, not just in terms of my own designs but in terms of coming up with new displays and finding artists and unexpected products from surprising sources.
 
What you’ll find at her store: The product mix is ever changing. We carry my own clothing and bag line which is produced in the Denver area. We also carry Pearl Clothing, Elza Wear, Studio Yoshida, Sabine Aiell Jewelry, The Yellow Rabbit and other Denver lines. Also, Becca Bikes Clothing, Nice Lena and Mystery Dresses, which are other smaller independent lines from other cities. We carry some great local artists and uncommon gifts and cards. We try to keep it interesting for customers and they often comment on the uniqueness of the store.
 
On her design style: My style is an intoxicating cocktail of romance and humor with splashes of funk, class and sexiness! The exact recipe changes with each line. Just kidding … it’s definitely eclectic and when I design, I keep in mind what’s happening in fashion along with what Denver’s discriminating customers are looking for. And then I also just design something because I feel the need to.
 
On finding inspiration: I find inspiration in other fashion designers, people on the street, art and fashion history, architecture and anything that’s visually interesting. Music gives me the energy to do the work.
 
On her fashion influences: To keep a very long list short: Elsa Schiaparelli, Diana Vreeland, Issey Miyake and Franco Moschino 
 
On supporting local artists: Designers are sensitive people. They want to create fashions for people to wear, but if they aren’t supported, they will either lose their incentive to design or move away — as I’ve seen many times before. Denver needs designers and artists to keep this city a great place to live. So be good to designers by going to their fashion shows and events, but most importantly, buy and wear their designs.

Mona Lucero

On connecting art with fashion design: Currently, I am returning to my roots by drawing and painting on clothing and I plan on doing a show much like a gallery show in which the clothes will be hung on walls. I’m also incorporating my writings into the designs.
 
I think the two disciplines are so close – the only big difference between the two is that one is made for practical reasons and the other isn’t … necessarily. I’m all for crossing the “boundaries” of art and design.

On what’s next: We are putting the fine tuning on a new e-commerce Web site which will show my most unique pieces. I’m also working with several other Denver fashion designers on having more of an online presence nationally, and to start showing together in a professional environment on a seasonal basis. We hope and foresee that one day people will be looking to Denver for its own input into the international fashion scene.
 
20 QUESTIONS WITH MONA LUCERO
1. My go-to outfit: black soft cotton cowboy shirt with snaps, pinstripe men’s vest, cropped Lucky jeans, platform sandals with layered necklaces, hoop earrings and flowered fedora (for summer)
2. Guilty pleasure:too much Facebook
3. My theme song would be: My Sweet Lord by George Harrison
4. Beauty products I can’t live without: red lipstick
5. I get my hair cut by: my friend and “life coach,” Don Grant, an independent hairstylist
6. Hidden talent: writing and psychic abilities (sometimes)
7. Must-see TV: Mad Men and Breaking Bad
8. Best advice my mother ever gave me: Reading is important and do what you want
9. I’m now reading: The Mastery of Love by Miguel Ruiz, The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test by Tom Wolfe, and 100 Fashion Designers, 010 Curatorsby Phaidon Press
10. My perfect meal: homemade green chili and tortillas with butter
11. My best vacation: anytime I’m in New York
12. I wish I had more time to: design
13. I can’t start my day without: thinking about life and petting my cat, Vincent
14. Favorite jeans: oversized, worn-out navy blue OshKosh overalls
15. Must-have accessory: My cupcake necklace by Yellow Rabbit. I wear it every day.
16. Favorite designer: John Galliano and Prada
17. Best bargain I’ve ever scored: my former studio behind Coors Field for $200 a month
18. Favorite movie: Annie Hall
19. Favorite color: Red
20. Signature scent: Jean Paul Gaultier

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