Meet the Mastermind behind the Styled by Linwood brand

by Lesley Logan

At some point in my life, that poor kid from Lockhart, South Carolina knew that he had a feel for clothes. All around me, each and every day, I collect snapshots of silhouettes and colors and textures, all of them into the folder of my brain that houses fashion. There are days where I sit and people-watch for inspiration, and into the folder it goes.

If you want to be sentimental, it truly started in high school where I bought my clothes from thrift stores, searching for those hidden gems that the rich gave away for free. I’d look for quality, cashmere, wool, 100% cotton, anything that made it seem as if I had the money to buy from the mall like everyone else. I’ll admit, even sometimes I’d take something here and there from my Uncle Bill’s smokeshack (full of clothes) to add an accessory or two if I needed it. Every once in a while I was given something nice from my favorite cousin, Candy Gore, and man was he something out of a classic magazine. He gave me my love for sharkskin suits. He’s one of those well dressed men that resonated with me and still inspires me to this day.

Once I got older I started to forget my love for clothes, my business with landscaping got steady, and I had a daughter to take care of. For a while I dressed simply, in fact, most wouldn’t recognize the Leslie back then knowing the Leslie they see today, and then one day it was as if a gate opened inside of me that hadn’t been opened in a long time. Here and there I began collecting clothes, hats, shoes, items that made me feel good- and truly that’s what it’s all about, feeling. Quite literally, my true colors came out, and boy were they bold. I began wearing our parrots feathers on my hats, or buying feather bundles from Michael’s to add a little something extra. I developed relationships with the owners of suit shops, most notably my buddy down at Why Not Fashion where I bought items and accessories. I even broke the lines of gender, wearing women’s brooches on my lapels, and other womens accessories. Whatever I felt good about, I got it, and I rocked it, and don’t think I forgot about my roots at thrift stores. It was like an itch for me. Not only did I love dressing myself, but I liked helping others feel good. Something about colors has always gotten to me. The way they work with skin tones, the way they compliment the seasons, the crazy combinations, I’ve never shied away from them. No one should. Something was telling me that I should get into fashion, and for a while I doubted myself, but that’s where my daughter came in. She told me that if I loved it, then there was nothing I would regret more than a life unlived, thus, passion unpursued, and that was the kick I needed. I started out styling men in downtown Charlotte on the weekends, and eventually got some business cards printed out. My daughter and I decided on the name “Styling With Linwood”. From there I even got involved in a little bit of modeling down in California and other places, making connections along the way. My first fashion show was with Charlotte Seen in November of 2021, and truly, I was in my element. Since then, my reach into the world of fashion has grown deeper and deeper, and I can confidently say that the old Leslie was destined to have his revelation. Nothing forwardly defines a person more than the clothes they lay on their bodies.