Form 2 Fashion empowers young designers in Central Florida

Form 2 Fashion, an educational program founded by Jaison Radcliff and Andrew Browne, provides fashion design education to children in Central Florida.

“Let’s take all the things that we’ve learned in fashion design, in life and turn it into something incredible that’s going to impact generations to come. And that’s really what Form 2 Fashion is,” Radcliff said.

Radcliff and Browne, after decades in the fashion industry, started the program in 2018 to give kids what they never had growing up.

“I’m taking five-year-old students and getting them right to the work, getting them into programs and teaching them what I felt I didn’t have access to,” Radcliff said.

“They end up with an entire skill set that they could use in the future,” Browne added.

Students in Lake, Osceola, Seminole and Orange counties, ages 5 and up, can take courses at their school or private lessons at the Form 2 Fashion studio in Lake Mary.

For 11-year-old Leah, it’s a place of creative freedom, where she’s learned everything from making pillows to designing dresses.

“I love them, they are the best teachers I’ve ever had and I love coming here,” Leah said.

Radcliff and Browne have helped thousands of students learn to sketch, draft patterns, work with different textiles, make portfolios to get into college, and even start businesses after college graduation.

But Form 2 Fashion goes beyond technical skills.

“Designer in Focus” lessons teach the stories of artists, many of whom are Black artists.

Radcliff and Browne also wrote and illustrated three coloring books featuring hundreds of Black creatives, their contributions, and why they matter in the tapestry of the fashion world.

“It’s important for everyone to have that feeling of, I can do this because I have seen someone else do it, and they look like me,” Browne said.

These teachers hope one day, their school will be a globally recognized institution in the industry.

“One of the hardest things about going to design college is the portfolio process. So for me, my goal, one of my goals is if you see an applicant come across your desk and you realize they were in the Form 2 Fashion program, it’s an automatic yes because you know the quality of education that this student got. They already know what they’re doing,” Browne said.

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For Radcliff and Browne, the true impact of Form 2 Fashion is in the lives they touch.

“You may not remember me for a garment. You may not remember me for a lesson, but you will see remnants of me. You will hear my voice in my mentees and my students. You will see my attention to detail and craftsmanship in their excellence in their life. You’ll see it in their love. You’ll see it in how they present themselves. And so you may not know it by name, but you will see excellence and love. And that, I believe, will be my legacy,” Radcliff said.