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From the first stitch, Lela Rose knew she would be a fashion designer. During her sophomore year in college, Rose-the daughter of Dallas arts patron Deedie Rose-persuaded her mother to teach her to sew. That first creation, a dress, had one sleeve set inside out, and the seams were exposed. Lela Rose was a Deconstructionist, and she didn’t even know it.

Now 28, she debuts her own Lela Rose Collection this month at that pinnacle of the fashion world known as the New York collections. “I love to work with my hands, and this is an expression of that, ” says Rose, whose collection is available locally at Tootsies and Neiman Marcus Prestonwood. “My mother has all that crazy art. I knew I was destined for something creative.”