One year after Detention: Launching a Daring Men’s Fashion Line
You never know where a friendship with an asylee will take you. My friendship with Asylee TJ Hyde, landed this Modern-Day Church Lady front and center at a menswear show during New York Fashion Week.
Just eighteen months ago, TJ was sitting in a county jail, awaiting his asylum hearing. Sadly, many people seeking asylum are held in county jails while they wait months for their hearings, even though they have committed no crime.
Even in jail, TJ’s creative juices were flowing. Here are a few sketches from TJ’s time in the county jail.
TJ was granted asylum in August 2016. Fast forward to February 2018, TJ is launching an edgy new menswear line as part of his eponymous Sylvian HydeTM brand. TJ and his co-founder, Jabari Chambers, have positioned the line for “men who live an active, fashionable and exemplary life of contribution!”
TJ and Jabari orchestrated a full-fledged fashion show at the Fulton Center WeWork that was part of the official New York Fashion Week schedule. The show received a positive review from The Garnette Report. Here’s a behind the scenes look at the event.
The Models Get Ready
The models in make-up and in the dressing room
The Crowds Builds
The Sylvian Hyde collection drew a large crowd of fashionably dressed fans.
The DJ Pumps Up the Audience
The models on parade
Church Ladies Glam it Up
Here is the Modern-Day Church Lady (MCL) with her fellow MCL, Emelie.
The Men Behind the Clothes Take a Bow…
And the Modern-Day Church Lady Gets in on the Act
Paying it Forward
One of the most gratifying moments for me was seeing TJ paying it forward by encouraging the three fashion interns who helped at his show to pursue their dreams. He had been working day and night for months and surely deserved to kick back and enjoy his moment.
But like the men Sylvian Hyde brand clothes are designed for, TJ is living an “exemplary life of contribution.”
