Discovery: Telfar

Age: 24. Hometown: I was born in New York City and then grew up in Liberia. There was a civil war brewing there at the time, so I moved back to the States and went to high school in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Currently resides: Red Hook, Brooklyn. Itâ??s kind of weird now â??cause I see The Real World taping constantly. They were down the street in a building I can see from my window. Occupation: Iâ??m basically a DJ-slash-fashion-designer. Role model: Hmm . . . Strangely enough, I try to model myself after myself. [laughs] I try to really think about things for myself these days. Menswear designs heâ??s currently working on: Iâ??m making a lot of suits that you step into and zip up. There are no buttons involved in this collection. Favorite fictional character: Rumpelstiltskin. Favorite nonfictional character: My favorite real-life character? I like Chuck Bass from Gossip Girl. Isnâ??t he fictional? Yeah, fictional and nonfictional. I like the actor [Ed Westwick]. Iâ??m really into his attitude. Life goal: To have a swimming pool inside of my show room. Dream date: Iâ??d go on a date with Puff Daddy. I definitely hope a jet would be involved. Theme song: â??Everyday Struggleâ? by Notorious B.I.G. Iâ??m listening to a lot of Biggie right now. Iâ??m really just revisiting it for the first time, and a lot of things make more sense to me now than they did when I was 10.

Above: Telfar in New York, January 2009. Telfar wears clothes of his own design. Fragrance: Lâ??Homme Yves Saint Laurent. Styling: Alastair McKimm/Streeters. Hair: Esther Langham/Art + Commerce. Makeup: Frank B./The Wall Group. Digital imaging: Karen Goss. Production: Gina Liberto/MAP. Special thanks: Fast Ashleys. Fashion details page tkt