ABOUT
b by donna.m
I create “something FROM nothing”, starting with a piece of blank fabric.
I source the finest natural fibers to create clothing that feels like a second skin, and looks like it was made just for you...in style, color & originality,
...to live in, breathe in, work in…anyWEAR you want to b…
Designed, cut, sewn & dyed in downtown LA since 2003.
My line is contemporary in design style, though as a rule, I don't follow style trends, instead using colors and styles that work in harmony with a woman's natural skintone, eye color, haircolor and bodytypes.
My collaboration with master colorist Jennifer Butler, since 2011, has revolutionized my color stories into the 4 seasonal Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter palettes from Mother Nature, and style silhouettes that complement the human figure.
Since we all strive to be ‘seen’ as individuals, knowing your best colors and styling is the start of creating one's authentic self.
It’s not a question of whether it’s ‘in fashion or outta fashion’, but which colors & styles bring out your best individual authentic beauty.
We all get dressed everyday…and, whether you like it or not, you are "what you wear" - it’s the first thing people see.
Visual communication speaks louder than words, so it's important to make that communication intentional to avoid miscommunication.
I am committed to being a woman’s best mirror when she looks into herself with the power of self-knowledge, using clothing as a personal statement & tool that expresses an intimate part of who she is as an individual for better communication-visually and non-verbally...all while looking & feeling FANTASTIC!
- donna marberger
Who is Donna Marberger?
Donna Marberger is the creative artist behind b by donna.m, the natural fiber layering lifestyle line manufactured by local artisans in Los Angeles. Her expansive background in the fine arts, set design, and art direction laid the path for her fashion apparel company established in 1989.
Born and raised in Philadelphia to eastern European parents, the youngest of four children, she grew up in a world of art, culture, and freedom of expression. Her mother was an accomplished painter, sculpture, and art teacher - her home the ultimate “live” art studio, setting the stage for a life in the Arts. Her eldest brother, Aladar, an Art Dealer in New York City, helped expose her, at a young age, to the New York art world, growing up and living with artists, poets, dancers, and painters during the 70’s.
After graduating from Boston University in 1980 with a BS in Public Communications in Advertising and Design, her ambitions were to be an Art Director on Madison Avenue. But before pursuing her career in NYC, she wanted to return to her first love and passion - painting and sculpture, and spent a year abroad studying and painting at Sarah Lawrence School of Art in Southern France. That’s when she was convinced that the Fine Arts, and not Commercial Arts, was her true calling, and decided to move west to new landscapes in the early 80’s.
She freelanced as an illustrator and graphic designer; was an Art Director for film, T.V., and music videos; and then, utilizing her 2D graphic and 3D engineering skills, she became a computer graphic artist in Hollywood. After a decade of mixed media mania, she was determined to get back to the actual craft of creating “Something from Nothing.”
Working with her hands again, instead of keyboards and drafting tables, she established her own fashion accessory label in 1989, the donna.m collection. Starting with handcrafted silk hair accessories and selling nationally, she then transitioned into large scale printed scarves selling to Barneys, Henri Bendel, Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and European distribution.
In 2000, she expanded from scarves to sarongs, creating the Aladar collection of exclusive silk prints and apparel, which started her venture into lifestyle dressing. Being a yogi since 1983, she wanted to take yoga clothing out of the studio and into the streets, launching b by donna.m in 2003 as a yoga wear and lifestyle women’s clothing line with a commitment to producing a sustainable natural fibers product made locally in Los Angeles. Moving further away from fashion trends, she created her own niche in yoga wear and lifestyle clothing, sculpting fabrics to the body and developing colors from pigments, not pantone swatches.