Kylie Wheaton

Chinook Writer

Creativity has no limits for a Casper College student named Mariah Geis. She expressed herself through creating upcycled clothes. 

Last summer, Geis began creating upcycled clothes for sale under her personal brand Riah. Geis said her passion for upcycling began while taking a print making class at CC. 

“Everyone was printing on paper and I just thought it would be really fun to print on shirts” said Geis. “So, I went out and thrifted a bunch of shirts and started printing on them and people were like ‘I really want to buy one of these’ and I was like oh, this is a really cool, people really like my designs.” 

From there, Geis said she slowly started experimenting with sewing on patches which eventually led to her creating her own articles of clothing. 

Geis’s clothes slowly gained popularity, and she produces monthly drops consisting of 15-20 pieces per drop. Geis said one of her favorite drops was her first one entitled “Cowboys Love Fashion”. As Geis has dropped more and more collections, she’s gained more customers and is now more selective about the orders she takes. 

“Now I’m kind of in a place where I can be picky about what I do and don’t want to make,” said Geis. “I found out really quickly that I do have a taste and I do have a passion about what I’m making […] if I don’t love the design, I will recommend them to someone else.”

Geis said she enjoys being able to be more selective on the pieces she makes because she uses upcycling as a form of expression. 

“I like to think I dress pretty masculine. Like I will wear button ups, and I will wear sneakers and do things like that, but in my designs, I really cater to female clothing,” said Geis. “I think it’s a way for me to express my feminine side a little bit more.”

CC student Marc Sanford helps make all this possible by being Geis’s photographer.  Sanford said he is a good friend of Geis and has known her since sixth grade. Sanford said he works to help make Geis’s vision come to life. 

“I’m there to execute the vision she has,” said Sanford. “I just have to match the energy of what she’s trying to convey.” 

Both Geis and Sanford said the vibe varies from shoot to shoot, but they enjoy the creative challenge. 

As she continues to design new clothes, Geis said she is trying to be more thoughtful and intentional with how she is portraying the human body. Geis said she’s taken inspiration from RuPaul’s Drag Race when choosing how to design her clothes.

“I’ve realized that I need to be paying more attention to the way I’m making the human figure look,” said Geis. “What shape is it giving? Like is it elevating your body or is it making it look worse? […] There [are] clothing choices that are going to make you look better and that’s something I’ve been focusing on lately.”

Geis’s intentional and unique designs caught the attention of the University of Wyoming’s fashion department. Geis will be featuring her new line “Business as Usual” as the headline designer in the Kaleidoscope Fashion Show in Laramie on May 3. The opportunity is Geis’s first time showing on a runway and said she is very excited for the challenge. 

“I’m really familiar with […] photo shoots, live is going to be so different than what I’m used to,” said Geis. “I’m going to have to think about like, okay how’s this going to look when someone’s walking in it, which is something I never really had to think about before.” 

Geis said she is very excited and looks forward to continuing to get her brand out there.