COSENTINO: C·TOP DESIGN

Cosentino had the pleasure of sitting down with Donna Elle for an inspirational and honest chat, where she gave us a glimpse into her world, her passion, and what moves her.

Sewing As a Safe Space of Expression

My best friend’s mother was a seamstress, and when we were in the fifth grade she set us up on sewing machines and took us to visit textile mills on the weekends in Holyoke, West Springfield, Lennox, and Pittsfield. From a young age, I’d shop for fabrics, dream about what they’d become, and go home and make it. I was mesmerized and went into a safe space of expression where I could enter another reality growing up (and get away from life) in the 60s. For me, it all began with the freedom of playing with textiles. I would attune myself to the varied elements a fabric could give off and develop a spiritual relationship with textiles: from print to patterns, compositions, blends, and their appropriateness of use. I took this medium of artistry to heart and it became part of my vernacular from an early age. I made most of my and my daughters’ clothing which led me into bridal design on Nantucket in the 80s. In 1986 I opened a textiles store called Threads in downtown Nantucket which operated for seven years and had a 13-person workroom.

Translating Fashion To Interiors

The late 80s saw a building boom in Nantucket, which led me to organically transition into this field. Fashion is so translatable to interiors and shares similar elements and principles of design. I enrolled in the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 1991 and commuted from Nantucket on the slow boat while raising two girls as a single mother. I graduated equipped and armed for my first job, which was a three-year project for an amazing Washington DC couple, the rest was history.