This Oregon FFA alumna launches her own clothing line using American-made wool.
Maddie Iverson grew up on a fifth-generation sheep farm surrounded by wool, but she always dreamed of having a career in art and fashion. After graduating from Canby High School in Oregon in 2013, the FFA alumna headed for Oregon State University, where she graduated in 2017 with a bachelor of science degree in apparel design. Then, in 2018, she launched her own clothing line, called O’FIELD Apparel, which specializes in stylish, sustainably made coats, vests, capes, skirts, blouses, trousers and more.
“I’ve been able to bring my heritage into the fashion world because fashion ties so closely with agriculture,” Iverson says. “I use American-made wool as well as cotton, silks, leather and nylon. I do embroidery and beading, too, but wool is central to my story.”
Iverson designs all her own styles and makes them to order in her Portland studio. Her unusual designs blend the rugged Wild West with urban sophistication and are made to last for generations.
“It’s been so challenging, fun and rewarding to create beautiful, heirloom-quality pieces of clothing for people for the special times in their lives,” Iverson says.
She has a great appreciation for her background in FFA and says her supervised agricultural experience, which focused on raising market lambs and breeding livestock, has helped her in business.
“FFA is an amazing organization,” she says. “I participated in many events and competitions, and I was president of my chapter my senior year. I’ve found so much value in what I learned through FFA.”
Iverson was honored to be named a 2018 UpNXT Emerging Designer by FashioNXT. Learn more about O’FIELD Apparel at OfieldApparel.com.
