Dionne Fraser-Carter

Biography

Visual and performing artist, Dionne”Brownskin” Fraser-Carter, who wanted to add, “Some Flava,” to the Art and Fashion industries, founded DI-O in the fall of 1999. Her designs are a mixture of Funky-Fly and Sexy-Sheik as she incorporates unique fabrics with the ancient art of crocheting. She designs for men, women, and children of most sizes, but her creations are particularly extra flattering to the curves of the female body. She is completely self-taught, using sewing influences from her grandmother, while drawing most of her color inspiration from her native country of Guyana, in the West Indies. In the summer of 2000, she was commissioned to make her first wedding dress for a girlfriend’s island nuptials, which sparked the launch of an exclusive bridal collection. She was actually the first designer to grace the Chicago runways with crochet apparel in her debut at the Holiday Inn Merchandise Mart in 2001. From beaded crocheted handbags to woven leather tops and exotic eveningwear made of fine silks and chenilles, DI-O (pronounced dee-oh) is sure to have something for everyone. In the summer of 2007 Dionne was invited to become a partner and in-house designer for ACA Boutique in Chicago’s Gold Coast.