Christopher Felt: The Rising Stylist Bringing Empowerment to Fashion

Felt won the Seed Stylist Award at the Crocs EXP launch event.

Image Courtesy of Seed Brklyn

When people think of stylists, many think of a constant life in the fast lane: running around different cities, accompanying artists around the world, pulling archival pieces, and going to world-renowned showrooms. While many stylists’ careers include those extravagant moments, there’s often much more to the process than meets the eye.

For Christopher Felt, being a stylist, creative director, and multidisciplinary artist is a continuous, fulfilling quest to uplift and empower not only himself but Black and Brown artists alike. In March, Seed Brklyn hosted the Crocs EXP launch event, debuting a new style of Crocs through a styling competition. Here, stylists raced against the clock to style the Crocs EXP. Felt was crowned the first-place winner, receiving the Seed Stylist Award.

With multiple vices under his sleeve, Felt also curates a creative studio called Hyphenate House, where he tackles various artistic mediums that intertwine with fashion. Felt spoke with 1202 MAGAZINE about winning his first styling competition, how his career is just getting started, and his efforts to leave an impact in styling through research, referencing, empowerment, and storytelling.

How did you get into styling?

I started styling at a very young age. I started subconsciously at three years old. I’ve always been into fashion, so it wasn’t anything new to me—I just didn’t put a name to it. I was one of those kids playing with Barbies and revamping their clothes. I would find materials around the house to deconstruct and reconstruct their clothes. I also looked through magazines and scrapbooks with my grandmother all the time. I would play around with fashion a lot, so styling has been part of my peripheral vision all along. Professionally, I started in 2023.

That’s when I launched my business called Hypenate House. However, Hypenate House wasn’t curated only for styling. It was styling, creative direction, and makeup. Throughout the years, I was able to acquire so many skills because I played around and experimented. There was an era when I loved doing nails and watching Jackie Aina makeup videos. I was able to use these passions, hobbies, and skills towards my business throughout the years to create an overall vision rather than one element.

Do you still identify with those various creative titles, or are you mostly just a stylist today?

Today, I call myself a visionary. I am technically a stylist, but I feel like within all of my approaches, there’s so much more to it than just the style. That’s what separates me from a lot of people. With all the skills I’ve acquired, I’ve been able to use all of them. Even for this competition, the makeup artist and I were having one-on-ones. I am a person who is very involved in every step.

Image Courtesy of Seed Brklyn

Do you want to bring more people into your creative house, or do you want to keep taking on various roles?

That was my ‘switch’ when I first started my business. It was impossible for me to do it [alone], but because I had these different roles, I knew what it took, and I had an eye for all of these talented people. I was able to acquire people for hair, makeup, and lighting. I see within people’s work and know how things should be done because I’ve experienced the role before. You should know more if you’re a creative. It definitely elevates your work because now you can create the vision that you want. It elevates every project.

What does that creative process look like? Walk me through a day of life working at Hyphenate House?

Whether it’s myself or someone working with Hyphenate House, my first concept comes from research. It’s what we’re saying and the story we want to be told, especially when it comes down to other people’s projects. A lot of people think it’s just pretty clothes and dope projects. I’m glad you guys love my work, but it’s not one-dimensional. We have to be saying something. Many of the projects I’m working on have that background. After the research, I get into the vibe of creating and why I’m creating. From there, it’s sourcing and finding the best pieces, what best fits this concept, and how I can make a difference stylistically.

Then, it’ll be about finding the talent who best matches it. Sometimes, that can come quickly, and sometimes, it can take a long time. When I put my conviction in it, I usually find that if it’s not already pre-made for me, there’s a lot of tweaking. There’s a lot that happens behind the scenes that makes a result. You can definitely tell when something is detailed and really thought out, in reference to something that was rushed. When I’m styling or creative directing, that creative process involves experimenting. I allow myself to be in my room, try on the clothes, see how it feels, how it’s going to look on camera, and immerse myself in what I’m creating.

With that process, who are some people you’ve styled and worked with, and what were those experiences like?

There was one job I did in Colorado for Y2K. It was the first time I worked with Halimotu (Shokunbi). She’s an amazing model. I’ve seen her work, but I didn’t know the amount of work she’s done. She was just somebody I knew, but she definitely delivered. I had a concept in mind for a styling lookbook. We had about an hour to shoot. She had her digital camera, and I brought some pieces on the trip. I was there as an assistant, not even really styling.

I woke up early in the morning and said, ‘Halima, let’s go.’ She was so ready for it, and from there, I was able to see a vision quickly, and she was able to execute it so well. She is so talented and skilled. She’s a model who’s not only gorgeous but also knows what she’s doing and is a very hard worker. Halima is one of the creatives in New York who has so much support and has supported me.

Who are some other creatives you want to work with?

I don’t think too much about who I want to style or work with, but I would say anybody who is leaving an impact. I haven’t been in the scene much (yet), but I know I want somebody Black or Black-owned. When I’m styling people, I think about their stories. It doesn’t need to be a celebrity.

You recently won the styling competition for Crocs at Seed Brklyn. Have you ever competed in something like that?

I have not. When I used to work my nine-to-five, I played styling games, but I’ve never done a styling competition.

What did the preparation for the competition look like?

When it came down to styling the shoe, everyone already knew what shoe they wanted. I didn’t know who my model was before I met her. I really didn’t have an idea for the process, but I vibed with her. It was an instant connection. We laughed and had a great time, so she became my model after choosing the same shoe. I scoped out the scene of the store and made a Pinterest board super quickly to conjure up my ideas and see what I wanted to say.

The night prior, I looked at Seed Brklyn’s Instagram page to see what had already been done, what they should add, and what an ideal collaboration would be between Crocs and Seed. Seed Brklyn is high-fashion streetwear. With my background in digital marketing, I thought about the ideal collaboration and its grand audience. I thought about the pieces that were really pulling me in. I didn’t want to lose myself or my styling work within the competition. I still wanted to embody myself, but I also wanted to embody Seed’s high fashion and shine a light on Crocs.

Was this preparation over the span of days or hours?

We had three hours to create one look and shoot photos.

Image Courtesy of Seed Brklyn

What did it feel like to win the competition?

Honestly, it felt very full circle because so many people from different areas of my life, my styling journey, and my journey as a creative person were there for me. That immense amount of support showed that I’ve grown so much. People came from Boston to support me, which is where I’m from. They had been there from the beginning, when I had just moved here. Seeing those people, as well as new people, support me felt amazing and so fulfilling.

Seed always knows how to bring in a supportive crowd. What are some of your favorite brands to pull from?

Brands that need visibility, especially Black-owned brands. Everything is about access right now. Everyone wants the hottest brand, but so many brands are so talented and undiscovered. I want to be a part of that, the same way that I feel like I am a hidden gem. I feel like people are just getting to know about me, even though I’ve been around for a long time. I want to collaborate with up-and-coming brands. Aside from them, some newer brands I like, as well as brands I’ve always been a fan of, are Martine Rose, LaQuan Smith, and Brandon Blackwood. I love their stories. I’m from Boston, but not the pretty parts of Boston, so I always try to implement urban streetwear in my fashion.

Are there any other fashion or non-fashion ventures you want to explore?

I went to (high) school to study music. I was classically trained for four years and played jazz for two years. I have a whole album out. Will I say that album is the best representation of me? No. But I have a lot of music and have always been into it. I’m trying to explore that and put it into my creative direction to continue to storytell. I dropped a remix to ‘Nissan Altima’ by Doechii. I write a lot of raps—that’s how I keep my mind focused and creative. I can impact another audience because art is integrated in every way. Streetwear started from hip-hop. I don’t think people know the history behind a lot of fashion, plus its influence and culture. There are so many elements, and that’s what I love about it. I want to create cultural impacts.

Researching and archiving have diminished, and it isn’t easy to achieve something when you don’t know its origins, regardless of what kind of art it is.

That reminds me of referencing. Nothing is new under the sun, but you can shake the room when you can tie it to your own story and make something political or impactful. I did something called the Chameleon Project. There was so much research done on androgyny and Black women feeling like they could not be more than one thing. I did a lot of research on many different Black women within the community, which was five months in the making.

What can we expect from you and your work in the near future?

More storytelling and having Black voices heard much more. There needs to be an outlet for people like me to be heard. A lot of the time, people look at my job and think it’s super cool and fabulous, but I’m not just a person with good work who puts nice clothing on people. I really want to be able to talk to people about the actual work that goes into it by being more transparent. I’m not the most open person; I release work, and people don’t know much about me. I want to allow Black voices and creatives to be heard by creating different projects on a higher, grander scale.