How exactly do up-and-coming designers create their looks based on their own concepts and not the ones of already successful and established designers? Stella Jean, born in Rome with Haitian roots, says she gets her inspiration from her life’s journey. Having started in the business as a model, Jean grew up around inspired artists and designers who she said “live fashion.”

Jean picks from her Creole and European backgrounds to produce concepts like her “wax and stripes” philosophy, where the rich cultures of both nationalities are translated through her work, a way of intertwining them into one. To Jean, fashion can be used as a bridge between cultures, translating any language barriers into conversations of colors and textures. For her spring/summer 2014 collection, Jean worked with the International Trade Centre to find prints made by women living in villages in Burkina Faso.

So why is Stella Jean such a big deal in the fashion world now? Only because the one and only Giorgio Armani has personally taken her under his wing to help her rise to the top. This season, Giorgio Armani selected Jean to show in his Teatro space, making this the first time that the designer has offered his catwalk venue to a womenswear designer. Jean’s line not only shows her creative ability to showcase her cultured and spirited nature, but it also lends to her individuality; following Armani’s only advice to her, Jean plans to follow her own path in fashion and, like her mentor, never follow the trends but make them.