My Story

About Me

My name is Brandon Alston and I am a costume design and technologies major at the College of Charleston. I started Fresh Prince Fits designs as a sustainable alternative to fast fashion. I grew up watching The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air and always loved how Will Smith challenged fashion stereotypes by being completely and uniquely himself. I wanted my designs to embody that same originality while repairing and reworking people’s loved clothing. 

Contact Me

College of Charleston, Tommy Baker Day, Elevator Pitch Competition

Charleston City Paper

Fresh Prince Fits Designs is inspired by one of founder Brandon Alston’s favorite television shows: The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Alston’s love for the show, which was the breakout vehicle for Oscar-winning actor Will Smith, stemmed from the way it portrayed healthy Black masculinity. 

“I loved how the show challenged the natural stereotypes that went along with men in fashion and more specifically Black men in fashion,” Alston said. “I think they did a really excellent job in his style and his fashion, showing how even though he’s still this kid from the streets … he can still be bright and happy and lighthearted and eye-catching with his outfits. Those two things aren’t mutually exclusive.”

Now Alston, an actor himself, is pushing the boundaries of local fashion, exploring what it can be and mean through Fresh Prince Fits Designs.

Read the rest of the article here

CofC Podcast: Theatre Major Makes Upcycling Cool with Fresh Prince Fit Designs

When Brandon Alston walked through the front door of Kudu, a coffee shop just a few blocks from the College of Charleston campus, the barista behind the counter took a step back in wide-eyed recognition.  

 “You’re the Fresh Prince,” she exclaimed. “I love your stuff!”

Check out the podcast here

Annabella Benvenuti - Poetry inspired by Fresh Prince Fits Designs (Part of her collection of poetry inspired by local artists)

  • Stitching

    1. You are a surgeon.
    2. A clinical light hangs over your head. You have taken to your work,
    eyeing your patient with a hungry anticipation.
    3. Make an incision along the seam of the right thigh. Move toward the
    waist, making two clean cuts- inches on either side.
    4. Mark the line, telling yourself this is how much skin you want to keep.
    Stitch, weave- roll your wrist over itself. There is now a hanging flap,
    suspended between old and fresh scars. Pop the old stitch, letting this
    slab of waste fall to the ground.
    5. Take a step back and look at your work. The pants hang gracefully off
    the mannequin, two inches successfully taken from the waist.
    6. Pick the extra cloth up off the ground. In your mind, it has already taken
    the shape of a pocket stitched over a man’s heart.

  • Mannequin

    Brown cloth stretched over
    Impressions of a chest
    Never compelled to rise
    And fall, in limbo
    To be dressed. Sea of
    Wire armature contained,
    Condensed to a model,
    A human-esque mound
    Sinew and bone
    Draped in a gown of fabric.
    Cotton that falls from unpronounced

    Shoulders like wind-bent branches-
    Bandages to define this renaissance beauty

    That twists its frame in conjunction
    With the motion of a fluid wrist.

  • Scraps

    I am a scrap
    cut, rendered
    by a butcher, frayed
    edges like whisps of clouds
    migrated outward.
    I am tagged
    PV9900 9
    laid to rest
    among pieces
    M 1117
    white lace,
    IV 5000
    woven red.
Check out the full collection here

VoyageATL - Shoutout Atlanta

We had the good fortune of connecting with clothing designer Brandon Alston and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Read the article here