Jackson Free Press

Nina Ghaffari, 34, is transcendent in the world of Iranian fashion. She blends what she has learned in the United States and the Middle East, creating clothes that combine elements from the styles of both cultures.

"I want my clothes to be transferable, from country to country, region to region," she says. "The goal is for each piece to no longer be considered traditional Islamic attire."

She was raised in Mississippi in a multicultural household, born to an American mother and Iranian father.

"I stuck out like a sore thumb," she says. "I learned quickly that my father raised me a little differently than others. I was very conscious of this."

After accepting a job in cancer research in Tehran, Iran, her father decided to move Ghaffari, along with her sister and mother, to Iran in 1999.

Though she had dreams of going to New York City or London to pursue fashion, she eventually saw that Iran was the perfect choice for her fashion exploration and creative exercise. She began working in fashion design in 2001.

"I experimented with (shapes and styles that were) unconventional in Iran at the time, challenging the status quo," she says. "We had to go underground. For security purposes, I covered the eyes of female models to hide their identities."

She says she also wanted them to be as unrevealing as possible while also making a statement. She was the first to have a co-ed fashion show with co-ed models and a co-ed audience since the country's regime change in 1970.

However, Ghaffari says she felt like an outcast in Iran. She knew that her upbringing in the U.S. was unorthodox compared to the way children are raised in Iran. She says she yearned to belong, but eventually, she began to understand the power of individuality, the liberty associated with not belonging to any label.

"I see similarities with Iran and Mississippi," she says. "Both have this creative fuse, waiting to be lit when the right people come along with the desire and fuel to light it."

She lived in Iran for 11 years, but in 2010, she decided it was time to leave. She is currently enrolled at Hinds Community College, where she is working toward an associate's degree. She plans to pursue a bachelor's degree in disaster displacement with a focus on human rights, along with her passion to pursue economic and social justice for women and children across the world.

Ghaffari says she hopes to work hands-on with refugees, teach fashion to women in war-torn countries to help them become self-sufficient and help refugee children get an education.