Photos by Justin James

My Love for Fashion Illustrators 

As you likely know if you’ve followed Wear + Where + Well for any length of time, I love pretty much anything relating to fashion and art. So, you can imagine how excited I get when those two collide in any way.

A great example of that is fashion illustration. With the rise of Instagram has come the rise of fashion illustrating. That’s for good reason, as the social media platform provides such a great forum for artists to share their work.

On that note, a year ago, during fashion week in September 2015, I had an incredible personal experience with one of my favorite fashion illustrators Meagan Morrison of Travel Write Draw. From the early days of Instagram, we followed each other and eventually formed a friendship. So, when the opportunity arose to meet in person, I jumped at the chance.

We hatched a plan to do a live illustration street style session of me. You an see the resulting illustration created by Meagan below. It was such a cool experience to observe her work. Even a small peek into how she sees the world was quite illuminating. Didn’t she do a great job of capturing the essence of both my look and personality?

13 Must-Follow Fashion Illustrators

Through my experience with Meagan and through the power of Instagram, it’s easy to see why popularity of fashion illustrators is on the rise. Their work so beautifully and creatively captures the spirit of fashion.

So, without further adieu, please allow me to share with you (in no particular order) 13 must-follow fashion illustrators on Instagram…

1. Dallas Shaw : One of the most well known in the industry, Dallas Shaw has worked with the most powerful fashion houses. She used to be an aspiring Disney artist. Now, though, she’s not only an artist, but a Brand Ambassador, Creative Director, TV personality, as well, and so insanely talented. Her client roster is quite lengthy, and it includes the likes of Chanel, Essie, Target, St. Regis, and many others.
   • Follow Dallas on on Instagram @dallasshaw.
   • Her feed contains for a large dose of fashion and style inspiration, along with an inside look at her daily life.
2. Meagan Morrison : NY based fashion illustrator Meagan Morrison is the creator behind Travel Write Draw, where she showcases her fashion and travel-inspired illustrations, among other beautiful lifestyle posts. She’s worked with some of the biggest travel and fashion brands out there (American Express, Dior, The Ritz Carlton, to name just a few).
   • Follow Meagan on Instagram @travelwritedraw.
   • Her Instagram feed is full of the most colorful, swoon worthy images. You can also watch Meagan’s video about quitting her job to do this full time, here.
3. Rongrong Devoe : A fellow Houston gal, Ronrong Devoe is on the rise and growing fast. Originally from China, she started as a Concept Artist and then got her Masters in Illustration at FIT. She does commission work and live sketches at major events in and outside of Houston. Already, her client list is quite extensive. Her work has been featured in In Style, Vogue, and many more publications.
   • Follow Rongrong on Instagram @rongrong_devoe_illustration.
   • Her feed is cheerful, colorful, and shows lots of behind the scenes shots of Rongrong sketching.
4. Anya Dee : A performing artist fashion illustrator, Anya Dee brings a unique spin to this world of fashion illustration. Anya has a fashion photography and stylist background, and her sketches take from both those areas.
   • Follow Anya on Instagram @anadeestyle.
   • You’ll find lots of edgy features and bright colors, along with striking poses and beautiful fashions.
5. Jaesuk Kim : A Seoul/Singapore/Sydney-based fashion illustrator, influencer and art director, Jaesuk Kim of the site So Susu’ is best known for illustrating the Susu girls. This series first started when he designed a series of quirky shaped bags under the name Susu. Along with it, he developed a signature character to support the design. This is what caught the attention of Bloomingdale’s, among others. Those fun holiday campaigns you’ve seen from Bloomie’s? Many have been done by JaeSuk!
   • Follow him on Instagram @jaesukkim.
   • His feed is fun and playful, Plus, it gives you a closer look into what goes into his designs.
6. Gretchen Röehrs : If you love food (and who among us doesn’t it?), this fashion illustrator will be right up your alley. Gretchen is an artist who uses food as part of her illustrations. Yes, actual food! From cherry tomato chandelier earrings to a strawberry dress to a walnut hat, there’s no limit to what Gretchen will do to combine fashion, food, and illustration.
   • Follow her on Instagram @groehrs.
   • She is so incredibly inventive and talented.
7. Paper Fashion : Katie Rodgers, the artist behind Paper Fashion, started with a gifted set of watercolors. Now, she has been commissioned by Cartier, Christian Louboutin, La Mer, Google, Elle, among many others. Based in NYC, you can shop Katie’s work online in the form of prints, tech accessories, and wallpaper.
   • Follow Katie on Instagram @paperfashion.
   • Over a half a million followers later (662k, to be exact), the Paper Fashion Instagram feed is full of sketches, awe-inspiring photography, and lots of happy colors.
8. Anoma Natasha Paleebut : From a young age, Anoma Natasha Paleebut has loved art (rumor has it, she even skipped class to stay in the art room). Then, she began painting professionally several years back. Her focus is now on fashion illustrations, and her work really stands out. The illustrations look so vibrant and real.
   • Follow Anoma on Instagram @anomanatashapaleebut.
   • She will show you tons of sketches that are in the works; you can really see how much work goes into each sketch.
9. Donald Robertson : Nominated by the CFDA as ‘Instagrammer of the Year,’ Donald Robertson has had collaborations with a variety of designers, including Alice and Olivia. Most recently, he was in creative development at the Estee Lauder Companies. His work is unique and bold and stunning, to boot.
   • Follow Donald on Instagram @drawbertson.
   • His feed will make your heart happy. His feed is filled will both his incredible work and also peeks into his day to day life with his sweet family.
10. Holly Nichols : From Saks to Barney’s to Disney and beyond, Holly Nichols wanted to find a way to merge her love of fashion with art, and thus began her fashion illustrating career. Her work is sold internationally and she works with corporate clients on fashion illustrated campaigns, as well as live sketch events.
    • Follow her on Instagram @hnicholsillustration.
    • Be one of almost half a million followers drawn right into her fabulous sketches.
11. Inslee Fariss : Also based in NY, Inslee Fariss was actually the first illustrator I started to follow many years ago. I do believe I first learned of Inslee through the oh-so-talentd fashion blogger Blair Eadie of Atlantic-Pacific. One of my favorite things Inslee creates is a yearly calendar full of illustrations, which makes an incredible holiday gift. You can pick up copies of the calendar here. Furthermore, Inslee also has been commissioned by Neiman Marcus, The Huffington Post, and Elizabeth Arden, among others.
    • Follow Inslee on Instagram @inslee.
    • Her feed is filled with jaw dropping sketches that you’ll absolutely love.
12. Kerrie Hess : Australian Kerrie Hess has illustrated fashion windows, billboards, book covers, and more all around the globe. In addition, she is the author and illustrator of her own book Shoestring Chic. Furthermore, she has been featured in Vogue and Harper’s Bazaar. Carrie has illustrated for the likes of Cartier, Louis Vuitton, and Net-a-Porter.
    • Follow Kerrie on Instagram @kerriehessillustration.
    • Her feed is chock-full of the most gorgeous flowers, lots of color, and her stunning sketches.
13. Brittany Fuson : In 2009, Brittany Fuson decided to put her illustration skills to work and created a ‘chic ready-to-write collection.’ She’s influenced by all types of fashion, from couture designers to local bloggers. And her sketches are now sold as prints, on stationery, phone cases, luggage tags, calendars, and more.
    • Follow Brittany on Instagram @brittanyfuson.
    • Her feed will have you wanting everything in her shop!

In Closing

Are you already a fan of fashion illustrators? Or are these artists new to you? Either way, we’d love to hear your thoughts on these artists and their art. As you can tell, we are huge fans of the medium and these specific artists!

Graphics by Ashley Cardoza