S'cie Ward of Little Rock finds herself getting this question from people often: "What all do you do?"
That's probably because she wears four hats.
S'cie (pronounced like Essie) is creator of a literacy program, Act Out Loud-Read Out Loud, which pulls in the arts to improve reading comprehension and skills. She is working to try to get it into schools across the nation.
Ward is also a writer, having penned a screenplay called Game Face. She is now working on Stronger Than My Weakness, a legal thriller.
And there's her role as a modeling and acting coach. Ward owns Major Market Models & Talent, part of the StoneRose Group. She ushers young people who have the talent -- and the drive -- into national and international careers as models and actors, connecting them with top agencies throughout the world. One of her clients is Mercedes Griffeth, 14, a Malvern native now living in New York and starring in such TV shows as Person of Interest and The Good Wife, in commercials, and onstage in The Woodsman. She's also in the film Advantageous, playing this week at the Sundance Film Festival.
And Ward is a clothing designer. Recently in her studio in downtown Little Rock's Lafayette Building, Ward gave a preview of the items that models displayed in Saturday's fashion fundraiser for the Arkansas AIDS Foundation.
These were intricate, exquisite pieces ... ladylike, romantic, flirty, made from velvet, chiffon and, in the case of a soft, sheeny black cropped blouse, ''liquid leather.''
Ward also showed two companion pieces: a twirl-worthy skirt and a skinny pant with high, shaped waist, the same brocade fabric in different colors. She also revealed a black lacy shift with low V-back; a sheer, cropped blouse and matching skirt, the blouse with strategically placed, ribboned flowers across the bust; and a shimmery tweed cutaway tuxedo jacket. In addition to these more tailored pieces, Ward likes to execute "billowy, cloud-y, fluffy" things, she says.
Her credo? "Divine inspiration and earthly ambition."
She has been sewing since childhood. Her creative spirit was sparked when her mother, who had five daughters, took them all to J.C. Penney downtown one Christmas and perused some beautiful, matching red velvet dresses with white lace. "She added up [what it would cost] to get five of those dresses -- and then she grabbed our hands and we walked out of the store [without] those dresses," Ward says. "I was devastated."
Not for long. Her mother went to the Sterling store (also downtown) and bought some fabric. "At Christmas we had these beautiful red velvet dresses [with] white lace," Ward remembers. "I couldn't believe it. ... It seemed like magic" that one could lay a flat piece of fabric on a table and make a 3-D garment. Inspired further by an aunt and a cousin who were seamstresses, "I thought, 'I'm going to do that,'" Ward says.
By the age of 19 she was sewing her own clothes, gradually improving her skills to the point that people would ask her, "Where'd you buy that outfit?" She even garnered a radio-host stint, discussing fashion. She'd attended the University of Arkansas at Little Rock with the intention of being a teacher, but quit after her first day of student teaching. "There was a whole world out there and I wanted to see it," she says. "I wanted to design." Luckily, she got the chance to live, and travel, in Europe, which, she says, "opened my eyes to the real world of fashion."
She returned to the United States certified as a Miss America preliminary judge, a stint that inspired her to enter the modeling and talent agent business. She saw girls who were modeling who should have been in pageants, and vice versa.
"The designing was something that I so enjoyed because I would design collections and show the collections," Ward says. "So it wasn't like, 'Oh, I'm going to produce this to sell everywhere.' I produced to show."
In the meantime, people came to her wanting something exclusive and unique. She became a personal designer for some clients, including some wealthy Pakistanis whose teenage daughters she sewed for.
Ward eventually left off designing to pay attention to the modeling and talent business, but is now ready to get back into the swing of it. The AIDS Foundation fundraiser was her re-debut.
"I live to do that, to work with organizations, or people, who are making a difference," she says. "For the first time in years, I'm showing a line."
Ward hopes to continue to do custom work for clients and also work with nonprofit organizations that are doing fundraisers.
"I want to be the person who comes in and helps them put on an amazing show and also design garments that will be a part of this show," she says. Those who want more information can visit explosiontalent.com.
How dry I am
Dry winter skin getting the better of you? A few low-cost product suggestions (to be continued next column):
• Palmer's Cocoa Butter Formula Skin Therapy Oil ($9.99) for the body and hands. Offered in two refreshing scents -- Rosehip and a mild clean fragrance -- these body oils are lightweight, but do their job nicely, judging from samples I received. They're packed with such ingredients as cocoa butter, rosehip oil and sesame oil. (Palmer's Cocoa Butter is also said to help improve the overall appearance of unwanted scars, stretch marks and wrinkles.) Get the Skin Therapy Oil at food, drug and mass-merchandise stores as well as palmers.com.
• All-natural skin care from John Masters Organics. The Normal to Dry Skin Collection includes the Rose Foaming Face Wash ($22), a mild foaming cleanser gentle enough to remove eye makeup; the Lavender Hydrating Mist for Skin & Hair ($16), a double-duty toner billed as "great for a revitalizing mid-day skin and hair fix"; the Green Tea & Rose Hydrating Face Serum ($26), a penetrating, deeply hydrating serum good for stressed and environmentally damaged skin; and the Rose & Apricot Antioxidant Day Creme ($28), a lightweight moisturizer that helps reduce the appearance of wrinkles, promotes cellular turnover, hydrates and protects the skin against bacteria. Each product is available individually, or the entire Normal to Dry Skin Collection can be had for $82. The line is available at Whole Foods and johnmasters.com.
• The Camille Rose Naturals line of handmade hair and body-care products, for the user who's "inspired by a holistic and healthy lifestyle." With dry winter skin in mind, Camille Rose offers a collection of whipped body butters ($12 each) whose natural ingredients include unrefined shea butter nibs, coconut kernels, aloe vera, distilled water, rosemary and lavender extracts. Ginger Spice, Sun Kissed and Patchouli are among the most popular "flavors." The line also includes hair-care items such as coconut water shampoo and conditioner and natural curl makers. Visit Target, Whole Foods or camillerosenaturals.com.
Got fashion and beauty news? Contact Helaine R. Williams, Dressing Room, Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, P.O. Box 2221, Little Rock, Ark. 72203, or email:
hwilliams@arkansasonline.com
High Profile on 01/25/2015