Blu Boy wanted a way to express his artistry, so he decided to design clothing. Born in Atlanta, Blu Boy feels he’s at his best when he’s able to design clothes from scratch, which led him to create his own clothing brand, WNTD. Almost a decade later, he wanted to make designing easier for others and created the “Blu Prints Sketchbook.”
Blu Boy was present at ComplexCon 2023 where he partnered with Toyota to have people take advantage of his sketchbook and create their own designs. He spoke with rolling out about ComplexCon, being a fashion designer, and the importance of Black designers.
How did you present your book at ComplexCon?
I came up with the “Blu Prints Sketchbook” three months ago. It’s a fashion template sketchbook designed to cut the time of fashion design in half. All the templates are already drawn out for you. You get different T-shirts, hats, hoodies, and all types of stuff. I’m doing a workshop, having people use the product, and helping them take advantage of it because it’s brand new, and I’m passionate about it. Getting it in schools and here at ComplexCon is the perfect place to get people to know about it.
When did you know you wanted to be a fashion designer?
When I first started my career as a fashion designer, I would always share my designs online, and people thought that was weird because they said that I was giving my designs and others could steal the ideas, but it helped me understand fashion better because I never went to fashion school. I was doing the design to not only learn more about the clothes but also to leave breadcrumbs. I have been doing that online since 2016 and now seven years later, I’m giving people the opportunity to create their own blueprints. It’s a way for me to pay it forward.
Why are Black designers so important?
There are so many kids out there who don’t know how to get into fashion. It’s definitely a very intimidating career to get into because most of the designers you know are usually European and from other places across the country. Being a black designer inspires more kids and helps them say “Oh man, he looks like me and he’s into clothes and fashion.” I feel like you don’t get that a lot. There are not a lot of Black designers in general but that’s changing.
Where can people find your brand?
You can go to my website www.wntedapparel.com and the Instagram is @wntdapparel. You can find me on Instagram, Twitter, and TikTok @bluboy__
