Marianne Fadden painted every day during the extended covid shutdown — it was her coping mechanism.
“I would have gone crazy without painting,” said the retiree and avid painter. “It kept me sane.”
A former Westinghouse marketing and communications executive, Fadden left her corporate career to open Creative Dressing By Marianne, a new specialty clothing business featuring wearable art inspired by her paintings.
She’s the entrepreneur artist behind each piece of originally designed women’s “wearable art” clothing.
“I decided I wasn’t going back to office work. I wasn’t feeling fulfilled,” said Fadden, who opened the business last year and works from her home in Sewickley.
The nature-inspired clothing is manufactured by Le Galeriste in Montreal. Fadden submits the image and designs all the details for each clothing piece.
The business keeps her busy seven days a week, and Fadden said having a creative outlet provides her with a sense of purpose.
“It’s nice to be productive at this age,” she said.
Fadden grew up in Beaver County and loved art from a young age. She spent a semester in London while studying at Mary Baldwin College in Virginia and paints often in her studio on the third floor of her historic home.
“I knew for sure in high school and was a fine arts major in college,” Fadden said of her love of painting.
The line includes activewear, accessories, resort and travel, over pieces, dresses, holiday and plus-sizes.
The process takes several months because Fadden often spends a month painting and then submits a digital image of what she wants to create.
A recent winter design featuring a cardinal is one of her latest works.
Fadden modeled one of her dresses featuring a bird motif with rich, fall hues and a partridge and pear tree theme.
“Every woman should feel great when she goes out the door,” Fadden said. “People need to be reminded there is so much beauty in the world, as we are bombarded by negativity in the news. It makes me feel happy and gratified to see my work come to life in an everyday aspect of life.”
From a Colorado sunset to the lavender fields of Provence, France, Fadden draws inspiration from her travels and her imagination.
She sells her clothing in Spoiled Chics in Sewickley, at pop-up local events and online.
“You can wear these clothes over jeans or as an ensemble — dress it up or down — and it’s comfortable,” Fadden said.
Lifestyle-focused retail store Spoiled Chics manager and buyer Melissa Doyle said including a local artist in their Beaver Street store was an easy decision.
“They’re great travel pieces and she makes colors according to season. Her fabrics vary, but they’re all comfort pieces and they can be elevated — to take it from day to night,” Doyle said. “She has a lot of theme-related pieces like Columbian art, florals, colorblocking and holiday themes. She’s very talented and we like to support local artists.”
She’s designed accessories that include handbags, pillowcases, scarves and more.
A lot of these designs are body-friendly. I think women of all ages need to feel like they can dress well,” said Fadden, a Sewickley resident for 35 years.
Fadden is trying to expand her reach and sell the line in local shops.
“It’s great and I love the fact that I’m finally at the point in my life where making art is a full-time endeavor. It’s my time,” Fadden said. “I raised my two kids and my family was always first but now it’s my pursuit.”
