Isaac Mizrahi, A Man Of Many Talents!

I have to admit, I had never heard of Isaac before his run with Target, but I do not feel as bad because most of his success became before I was even born or able to talk properly. In Isaac's lifetime, success can not simply be measured by mastering one craft but by doing everything you ever dreamed of doing. Isaac is one of the few people who I know that has been thoroughly involved in every aspect of pop culture from movies, to books, to fashion, and television. He has done it all! Let's take a stroll down the path of his tireless journey.



Isaac was born October 14, 1961 in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Ocean Parkway New Jersey. He must have been born with a fashion gene because at the age of 4 his mother began to notice his attraction to the details of her shoes. His mother often took him shopping with her at Saks and Bergdorf's and ,honestly, who can resist falling in love when introduced to these fashion paradises at such a young age. His father was a merchandiser of children's clothing, so design was nothing new to this semi-traditional Jewish family.

By the time Isaac was 10 years old he had moved back to Brooklyn and had been given his first sewing machine from his father. He made clothing for puppets to wear during birthday party appearances. By 13, he was making clothing for his mom, dad, and his mother's friend Sarah Haddad.


While in Brooklyn his parents wanted him to attend a Jewish school, however his rebellious personality got him kicked out on numerous occasions. His mother had to come to the school and bail him out of trouble constantly. Finally, Isaac had enough. He enrolled in New York High School for the Performing Arts to persue his passions in drama, music, and dance. Isaac lost 75 pounds his first semester and gained it all back in confidence.


While in high school Isaac took some evening classes at Parson's. Upon his high school graduation he studied full time at Parson's developing his skills that would one day land him the title of one of the Best American Fashion Designers of his time.

After his third year at Parson's, he got a part time internship working with Perry Ellis. Mr. Ellis became his mentor and after graduating from undergraduate, he went to work for him full time. Isaac worked very hard for Ellis and in return her received experience and training that would be priceless in this industry.


After he left Perry Ellis, he worked for Jeffrey Banks and Calvin Klein. Not long after , in 1987, Isaac started his own line with financial support from family friend Sarah Haddad. He began small designing in a small loft and selling from the back of a car. In the spring of 1988 he had his spring show. There were few guests , only there to see if anything interesting would come from this new designer. All the guests were floored with surprise at the fresh feeling he brought to fashion, Isaac became an over night success story. From that moment forward, his life began moving full speed ahead.


He began to win awards and designing costumes for ballets and theater in the early 1990's. In 1994 he was going to introduce his fall line and his preparations for his line would be filmed for his hit documentary called Unzipped. The documentary was directed by Isaac's ex lover Douglass Keeve and it was released in 1995. It contained footage from his childhood and footage of his life as a designer working with models and at shows. This documentary took him from beloved fashion designer to beloved celebrity fashion designer.


In 1997 he wrote a comic book series called Isaac Mizrahi Presents the Adventures of Sandee the Supermodel. The series featured the supermodel facing all the stereotypical problems that a supermodel would face in the industry. Critics and fans alike loved his rendition on the life of a model. This was a cherry on top of his sweet career.



Little did he know that in 1998, Chanel, his financial backer, would pull out and cause him to have to shut down his business. He had other options that would possible keep the company rolling, but he decided to move on. Which today has proved to be a good idea.


In 1999 he started in a one-man off Broadway cabaret act that critics called charming and engaging. From there he was given his own talk show on Oxygen where he had a plethora of celebrity guests and a wide array of activities.


Reverting back to designing, he signed a five year deal with Target to design a line of affordable fashions ranging from $10-$70. I have to say that he made some really cute things for target that were sold out in a heart beat. In 2007 he made wedding gowns for Target as well. He made target more than $300 million per year. He also had his own line which he referred to as Isaac Mizrahi to Order where he designs gowns starting at $4,000 a pop.


In 2008 he split with Target and went over to Liz Claiborne to resuscitate her dying line. He has made a fall 2009 line which has won rave reviews. He is now the host of a show called The Fashion Shows on Bravo, which is a different spin to the once hit Project Runway. Isaac has made many appearances on all the fashion forward shows and movies including Ugly Betty and Sex in the City. Today he is in the works of directing his first movies, The Extra Man.



Though we all know Isaac as an outspoken and almost flamboyant person, you can't help but love him . However, in the 2006 Golden Globes I couldn't help but shutter with horror at some of the things he was doing, such as squeezing Scarlett Johansson's breasts, looking down Terri Hatchers dress, and asking people if they had undies on. I am willing to look past that if you are :-(


Recently, Isaac Mizrahi has been named to a newly created role of Senior Vice President, Managing Director at Alma DDB effective July 13, 2009.

Isaac's Award Center

2002 won the Drama Desk Award for his costume designs for The Women.
1996 won the Eddie for Best Edited Documentary.
1995 won the audience award for best documentary.
1991 won CFDA Womenswear designer of the year award

If you wanna keep up with Issac, watch him at by clicking HERE.

I chose Isaac for my blog because he embodies what it means to follow your dreams and that anyone could do anything as long as they want it bad enough. He had a few hurdles, some avoidable and others not so much, but he came through them better than ever. It is not always about how someone does while they are already successful and loved, but how someone does when they are going through hard times. He has shown his dedication to the arts and his passion to do any and everything he set his mind to. We should all be so lucky to accomplish the things this man has. Here's to you Isaac, " Fat is the new black."