Natalia Fedner is an American

fashion design Fashion design is the art of applying design, aesthetics, clothing construction, and natural beauty to clothing and its accessories. It is influenced by diverse cultures and different trends and has varied over time and place. "A fashion design ...

er, inventor and

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

, best known for inventing a six-way stretch metal textile.

Early life and education

Fedner was born in

Chernivtsi Chernivtsi (, ; , ;, , see also #Names, other names) is a city in southwestern Ukraine on the upper course of the Prut River. Formerly the capital of the historic region of Bukovina, which is now divided between Romania and Ukraine, Chernivt ...

, in the

Ukrainian SSR The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, abbreviated as the Ukrainian SSR, UkrSSR, and also known as Soviet Ukraine or just Ukraine, was one of the Republics of the Soviet Union, constituent republics of the Soviet Union from 1922 until 1991. ...

(now

Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...

), and immigrated to

Columbus, Ohio Columbus (, ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities in Ohio, most populous city of the U.S. state of Ohio. With a 2020 United States census, 2020 census population of 905,748, it is the List of United States ...

as a refugee at the age of six with her parents. Her mother, Alla Fedner, is a computer programmer, and her father, Gregory Fedner, is a civil engineer. She has twin sisters who were born in the United States. Fedner attended art classes at

Columbus College of Art and Design Columbus College of Art & Design (CCAD) is a Private college, private art school in Columbus, Ohio. It was founded in 1879 as the Columbus Art School and is one of the oldest private art and design colleges in the United States. Located in dow ...

on a merit-based scholarship from the third through twelfth grade. After graduating from Bexley High School in

Bexley, Ohio Bexley is a city in Franklin County, Ohio, United States. The population was 13,928 at the 2020 census. The city is a suburban enclave of Columbus, situated on the banks of Alum Creek east of Columbus's Near East Side. It was founded in 1908 ...

, Fedner completed the Fashion Design BFA program at

Parsons School of Design The Parsons School of Design is a private art and design college under The New School located in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. Founded in 1896 after a group of progressive artists broke away from established Manhattan art ...

(

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

and

Parsons Paris Parsons Paris is a degree-granting school of art and design in the 1st arrondissement of Paris, France. It is the European branch campus of Parsons School of Design and part of The New School, a comprehensive university in New York City. Academ ...

).Natalia Fedner
MyLifetime.com, Retrieved August 20, 2015 During her freshman year she was selected to compete in " Fusion Fashion: FIT vs. Parsons" and received the Fusion Award. Fedner studied under

Tim Gunn Timothy MacKenzie Gunn (born July 29, 1953) is an American author, academic, and television personality. He served on the faculty of Parsons School of Design from 1982 to 2007 and was chair of fashion design at the school from August 2000 to March ...

at Parsons and won the Silver Thimble Award for best collection her junior year. During her senior year her designs were featured in the

Saks Fifth Avenue Saks Fifth Avenue (Colloquialism, colloquially Saks) is an American Luxury goods, luxury department store chain founded in 1867 by Andrew Saks. The first store opened in the F Street and 7th Street shopping districts, F Street shopping distric ...

Holiday Window Display.

Career

Following internships for

Donna Karan Donna Karan ( ; born Donna Ivy Faske), also known as DK, is an American fashion designer and the creator of the Donna Karan New York and DKNY clothing labels. Early life and education Karan was born to mother Helen "Queenie" Faske (née Rabinow ...

and

Marc Jacobs Marc Jacobs (born April 9, 1963) is an American fashion designer. He is the head designer for his own fashion label, Marc Jacobs, and formerly Marc by Marc Jacobs, a diffusion line, which was produced for approximately 15 years, before it was d ...

, Fedner worked as a design assistant at

Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...

Women's Collection under Francisco Costa. In 2014 Fedner was cast as a contestant on the first season of ''Lifetime'''s ''Project Runway: Under the Gunn'', where she finished sixth. Fedner was a costume designer on the second season of ''

Epic Rap Battles of History ''Epic Rap Battles of History'' (ERB) is a YouTube web series and music project created by Peter "Nice Peter" Shukoff and Lloyd "EpicLLOYD" Ahlquist. The series pits historical and pop culture figures against one another in a rap battle format ...

''. The popular

YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...

series won a Streamy Award for the best use of fashion and design for that season. In 2014 Fedner launched her eponymous couture label in

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Lopez (born July 24, 1969), also known by her nickname J.Lo, is an American singer, songwriter, actress, dancer and businesswoman. Lopez is regarded as one of the most influential entertainers of her time, credited with breaking ...

wore a Natalia Fedner couture knit gown in her First Love music video, becoming the first celebrity to publicly mention the new label during an interview with ''

Entertainment Tonight ''Entertainment Tonight'' (or simply ''ET'') is an American Broadcast syndication, first-run syndicated news broadcasting news magazine, newsmagazine program that is distributed by CBS Media Ventures throughout the United States and owned by Par ...

'' in May 2014.Inside J.Lo's Steamy Music Video with D&G Model David Gandy
ET.com, Retrieved August 20, 2015 "Natalia Fedner" designs have been worn by a number of notable celebrities including actress

Charlize Theron Charlize Theron ( ; ; born 7 August 1975) is a South African and American actress and producer. One of the world's highest-paid actresses, she is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award and a Golden Globe Award. In 201 ...

, actor/singer

Lenny Kravitz Leonard Albert Kravitz (born May 26, 1964) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, and actor. His debut album ''Let Love Rule (Lenny Kravitz album), Let Love Rule'' (1989) was characterized by a blend of Rock music, rock ...

, actress/singer

, television and social media personality

Kim Kardashian Kimberly Noel Kardashian (born October 21, 1980) is an American media personality, socialite, and businesswoman. She first gained media attention as a friend and stylist of Paris Hilton, but received wider notice after the celebrity sex tape ...

, media personality

Kylie Jenner Kylie Kristen Jenner (born August 10, 1997) is an American media personality, socialite and businesswoman. She starred in the E! reality television series ''Keeping Up with the Kardashians'' from 2007 to 2021 and then the Hulu reality televisi ...

, singer

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977) is a Colombian singer-songwriter. Referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Queen of Latin Music", she has had a Cultural impact of Shakira, significant impact on the ...

, singer/songwriter

Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer and songwriter. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs at the age of 12 and was signed by Columbia Records at 15. After d ...

,The Designer Creating the Hottest Celebrity Looks Made of Metal
Vogue.com, Retrieved January 8, 2023 actress

Sharon Stone Sharon Vonne Stone (born March 10, 1958) is an American actress and film producer. Known for primarily playing femmes fatales and women of mystery on film and television, she became one of the most popular sex symbols of the 1990s. She is the ...

,For the first time in Ukraine: Kardashian and Jennifer Lopez designer held a fashion show at Intergal City
Elle.com, Retrieved September 21, 2020 singer and actress

Cher Cher ( ; born Cheryl Sarkisian, May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Goddess of Pop", she is known for her Androgyny, androgynous contralto voice, Music an ...

, rapper

Cardi B Belcalis Marlenis Cephus (; born October 11, 1992), known professionally as Cardi B, is an American rapper. Noted for her unfiltered public image and lyrics, Cardi B is one of the most successful female rappers. From 2015 to early 2017, she ga ...

, singer

Doja Cat Amala Ratna Zandile Dlamini (born October 21, 1995), known professionally as Doja Cat (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter and record producer. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, she began making and releasing music on SoundCl ...

, singer

Rosalía Rosalia Vila Tobella (born 25 September 1992), known mononymously as Rosalía (, ), is a Spanish Pop music, pop and flamenco singer. She has been described as an "atypical pop star" due to her genre-bending musical styles. After being enthral ...

, actress

Pamela Anderson Pamela Denise Anderson (born July 1, 1967) is a Canadian-American actress, model and media personality. She rose to prominence after being selected as the February 1990 ''Playboy'' Playmate of the Month. She went on to make regular appearan ...

, rapper

Megan Thee Stallion Megan Jovon Ruth Pete (born February 15, 1995), known professionally as Megan Thee Stallion, is an American rapper and singer-songwriter. Megan initially gained recognition when videos of her freestyling began to circulate widely on social me ...

, singer

Camila Cabello Karla Camila Cabello Estrabao (; ; born March 3, 1997) is an American singer and songwriter. She rose to prominence as a member of the Pop music, pop girl group Fifth Harmony, one of the List of best-selling girl groups, best-selling girl gro ...

, singer

Kim Petras Kim Petras (, ; born 27 August 1992) is a German singer and songwriter based in Los Angeles. Between 2016 and 2020, she released music as an independent artist under her own imprint, BunHead Records, before signing with Amigo and Republic Reco ...

, actress

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, actress and singer

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, singer Anitta, actress and singer

Keke Palmer Lauren Keyana "Keke" Palmer ( ; born August 26, 1993) is an American actress, singer, and television personality. She has received numerous accolades, including two Primetime Emmy Awards and nominations for a Daytime Emmy Award and a Screen Act ...

,Was the Year of Red-Carpet Designers You've Never Heard Of
Hollywoodreporter.com, Retrieved September 15, 2021 singer

Karol G Carolina Giraldo Navarro (born February 14, 1991), known professionally as Karol G, is a Colombian singer. Considered as one of the most influential reggaeton and Urban contemporary music, urban pop artists, she has received awards including a ...

, singer

Becky G Rebbeca Marie Gomez (born March 2, 1997), known professionally as Becky G, is an American singer and actress. Born and raised in Inglewood, California, she first gained recognition in 2011 for her cover version, cover versions of popular song ...

, and singer

Bebe Rexha Bleta "Bebe" Rexha ( , ; born August 30, 1989) is an American singer and songwriter. She signed with Warner Records in 2013, and was credited with co-writing releases of other artists—such as Eminem's Grammy Award-winning single " The Monster" ...

. In 2016, ''

'' reported that

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and businesswoman. With a career spanning over three decades, she has established herself as one of the most Cultural impact of Beyoncé, ...

wore a Natalia Fedner metal dress in ''

Lemonade Lemonade is a sweetened lemon-flavored drink. There are many varieties of lemonade found throughout the world. In some parts of the world, lemonade refers to an un-carbonated, traditionally, homemade drink, using lemon juice, water, and a sw ...

'' and predicted Fedner would soon be a household name. Fedner custom made the piece for

under the direction of stylist B Akerlund for the underwater scene and was listed as one of the top looks in the

HBO Home Box Office (HBO) is an American pay television service, which is the flagship property of namesake parent-subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is based a ...

film by ''

Harper's Bazaar ''Harper's Bazaar'' (stylized as ''Harper's BAZAAR'') is an American monthly women's fashion magazine. Bazaar has been published in New York City since November 2, 1867, originally as a weekly publication entitled ''Harper's Bazar''."Corporat ...

'', ''

Elle Elle may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media * Elle (magazine), ''Elle'' (magazine), a fashion publication ** Elle Style Awards * Elle (India), ''Elle'' (India), the Indian edition * Elle (film), ''Elle'' (film), a 2016 French film * ''Elle: ...

'', and ''New York'' Magazine's The Cut. In 2018 Natalia Fedner's eponymous collection was accepted into

Bergdorf Goodman Bergdorf Goodman Inc. is an American luxury department store based in New York City, founded in 1899 by Herman Bergdorf. , it operates a women's store and a men's store across the street from each other on Fifth Avenue in Midtown Manhattan. ...

under the direction of senior vice president, Linda Fargo. Her designs were featured in the store's display windows in September 2018 and March 2019. In August 2020, ''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

'' reported that Fedner had collaborated once more with

. Partnering with her stylist, Zerina Akers, she designed a gold chain headpiece worn by

in the " Already" section of the visual album '' Black is King''. The look was featured in '' Vogue'', ''Harper's Bazaar'', ''

Dezeen ''Dezeen'' is an online architecture, interiors and design magazine based in London, with offices in Hoxton, as well as New York City and Shanghai. History ''Dezeen'' was launched in London by Marcus Fairs at the end of November 2006. Its New ...

'', and ''Billboard''. In July 2021, Fedner held her first solo fashion show presenting her Spring/Summer 2022 Ready-To-Wear collection at Miami Swim Week. And in August 2021, Fedner received the patent for her six-way stretch metal textile capturing ''Vogue''s'' attention and leading to a feature article calling Fedner "The Designer Creating the Hottest Celebrity Looks Made of Metal". In October 2021, Fedner received the Emerging Leader Alumni Award from Bexley High School.BHS Distinguished Alumni Named
BexleyEducationFoundation.org, Retrieved January 8, 2023 In August 2022, it was confirmed that Fedner was working on designs for Beyoncé's ''Renaissance'' album.

brought international attention to Fedner's designs when she posted a video to her socials on March 14, 2025 discussing the designer's work on

's Las Mujeres No LLoran World Tour. Fedner had previously worked with

on her 2024

Coachella Coachella (officially called the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and sometimes known as Coachella Festival) is an annual music festival, music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valle ...

look and her "Copa Vacia" and "Don't Wait Up" music videos. In April 2025, Fedner received the FGI Rising Star Eveningwear Award at the Annual FGI Rising Star Gala, presented to her by Ken Downing, creative director of

Halston Roy Halston Frowick (April 23, 1932 – March 26, 1990), known mononymously as Halston, was an American fashion designer, who rose to international fame in the 1970s. Halston's minimalist, clean designs, which were often made of cashmere or ...

. Of the achievement Fedner said “I am a refugee and the daughter of refugees. I was born in Ukraine. I came to this country with nothing like many other people in this room. My story is not unique. I have worked so hard for so long and this is truly the first time that I am being recognized at this level."

Awards

Silver Thimble Winner, 2004 *Bexley Distinguished Alumni Award, 2021 * FGI Rising Star Eveningwear, 2025

Causes and advocacy

In February 2020, Fedner was invited to visit

by the Ukrainian Fashion Club. This was her first visit since leaving as a refugee. After

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

attacked

on February 24, 2022, Fedner began fundraising and coordinating with

NGOs A non-governmental organization (NGO) is an independent, typically nonprofit organization that operates outside government control, though it may get a significant percentage of its funding from government or corporate sources. NGOs often focus ...

and established charities to help Ukrainian refugees, including people she met during her 2020 visit. In October 2022, Fedner held a fashion show to raise money for medical supplies for

Ukrainians Ukrainians (, ) are an East Slavs, East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine. Their native tongue is Ukrainian language, Ukrainian, and the majority adhere to Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodoxy, forming the List of contemporary eth ...

.Headliner of Columbus Fashion Week runway show gives back to her native Ukraine
ABC6onyourside.com, Retrieved January 8, 2023

References

External links

http://nataliafedner.com
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fedner, Natalia 1983 births Living people American fashion designers American women fashion designers Bexley High School alumni Parsons School of Design alumni Soviet emigrants to the United States Artists from Columbus, Ohio Project Runway (American series) participants 21st-century American businesswomen Actors from Chernivtsi People from Bexley, Ohio American businesspeople in fashion People from Chernivtsi Oblast