Hello my faithful flock! CCW is embarking on a mission. A mission to celebrate all the hard-working, independent, successful young fly ladies in entertainment, fashion and media. I created this series as I was inspired by Lil’ Kim’s video, “Ladies Night”– where women of distinction and all-around fierceness were celebrated. The beginning of this series focusses on female urban-wear leaders. Dime Piece, Hellz Bellz, Violette, Most Official Bitches and MadeMe will all be participating in this interview-style series. At the end of the series, I am holding a big party for the ladies, which I will bring right to you all (via video)– right here on CCW! Stay tuned. The first up is “Dime Piece”….

I flew out to LA to interview one half of Dime Piece– Ms. Ashley… Her partner-in-crime Laura had travelled to the Phillipines at the time, but she was there in spirit! I knew I would like Ash a lot, because the moment I got there she asks, “Do you want a cold drink”? I say, “Sure”… She says, “Water or Beer”?  Now, you gotta love a girl who gives you those kinds of choices! And so the fun began. Their office was ideal for any contemporary H-B-I-C. Pink walls, uber-cool fashion magazines, hot music playing from the speakers, merchandise as far as the eye could see, and pictures/props of strong females in beautiful artistic forms:

I loved it! Ash and I had a good, long chit-chat about their muses, their inspirations, aspirations and favorite hip-hop stars… Check it out after the jump!

Cocoa B. So… tell your fans and my readers a little bit about the history of DIME PIECE…

Ashley: It started off as a vision that Laura and I had. We always wanted to be in fashion, and after we got our degrees we realized that we didn’t want to be in a normal 9-5 job, we just really wanted to be creative, and feel free to create and manifest our vision into physical form… That’s how DIME PIECE started.

Cocoa B. How did you and your partner Laura meet and join forces?

Ashley: We lived about 20 mins from each other, and we both used to drive out to LA– we’d go out and perpetrate (because we were under 21) and we’d try to get into clubs and stuff… After a while that got old, and we realized we were wasting our time. We wanted to do something fun, but also something that was powerful, meaningful and serious. So we joined forces and decided to pursue our dream together.

Cocoa B. Do you have a muse, an influence or someone that inspires you? Whether it be an actress, musician, politician, or artist?

Ashley: We’re not inspired by people as much as we’re inspired by things. For example, the streets is an inspiration of course. A lot of vintage stuff– flea markets, fashion magazines, Paris…. If we are influenced by people it’s average women from the 50′s,  and the 70′s. I just love the way the women used to dress and put themselves together… They wanted to make a statement through their style of dress and so do we. I think women carried themselves better then, than they tend to do now… If I had to choose a person, it would have to be Tina Chow. Her style is so amazing…

Cocoa B.: Oh yes, Tina Chow is definitely a fierce and fabulous fashion icon for the ages. Good stuff! Who in your opinion is your fashion hero? You might have just answered it before (LOL), but just in case it differs– who do you look forward to seeing ont eh red carpet because you know their fierce, fabulous and always consistent?

Ashley: Hmmmm, that’s a tough one. It just seems like nowadays it’s hit or miss. Sometimes people are just “on” and other times they leave you scratching your head. But someone who is really consistent, and I love the way they DRESS would have to be Mary Kate Olsen. Even though I wouldn’t wear a lot of the stuff she wears, (I don’t really do the hippy-dirty-bohemian-stuff) but I think she has her own distinct style and puts it together really well. She also brings back a lot of vintage-inspired fashion from like the 20′s and 30′s… And it’s interesting to see that. You just don’t see people bringing back those styles so heavily. It’s awesome.

Cocoa B. Good choice chica! I totally agree! Who would you like to see rocking your clothes?

Ashley: Ummmmm. Hmmmmmmm. I dunno. I would just like to see any girl with great style who puts herself together well rocking our clothes. That’s my only prerequisite. As far as press, I’d love to see ANYONE rocking our clothes!

Cocoa B. Ohhh, then you must LOOOOVE me girl. I’m D-P all day! (LAUGHS)

Ashley: (LAUGHS)

[by the way-- dime piece is sold world-wide from NY to LA, Canada, Europe and Asia. And their clothes are rocked by everyday girls to A-listers alike! D-P boasts clientele such as: Lindsay Lohan, Rihanna, Rachel Bilson, Janelle Monae, Kid Sister, Katy Perry, Nina Sky, Lady Gaga, Nicole Richie and many, many others!]

Cocoa B. Where do you see Dime Piece in the next 10 years?

Ashley: We want to get into accessories and bags and shoes. I’ve been wanting to do shoes since HS… Whether it’s DP or another high-end line… We considered doing a high-end line for dime piece that would include cut and sew pieces. We would love to branch out to more stores, and even if street-wear dies out, we want Dime Piece to remain relevant and evolve with all the changes– we always want to remain a contemporary urban-wear source for women.

Cocoa B.: What is the biggest challenge of being a female entrepreneur?

Ashley: Ahhhh wow. There’s so many! Haha.

Cocoa B. LOL! True indeed… Just give me your top 3 challenges…I know it’s rough, lol.

Ashley: People underestimate you and treat you like you don’t know what your talking about. Especially when you do your own production. Laura and I basically do everything ourselves, we’re very hands-on with our approach: shipping, selling, creating. So when we go to a manufacturer they treat us like we don’t know what we’re doing because of the way we look… On the other side of fashion it seems like there’s a lot of people who are old, and gritty and just don’t care. But when we go to manufacturers and they see Laura and I all dressed up they think we are just in it to party and have fun. They don’t take  us seriously. That’s like one of the major hurdles in this business.

Cocoa B.: Are there any challenges working with a partner? Is there ever a struggle to get all your ideas out, or see the same vision?

Ashley: Ummmm Laura calls it yin and yang. Because we are soooo different in so many ways, but the wonderful thing is at the end of the day we both have the same vision, and we know how to make it work an play up our differences to work it out. A lot of times we have to compromise but we get that, and it works. We just get along. We’ve learned to play off our strengths and work together.  It takes getting used to, but we do it.

Cocoa B. What would you say Dime Piece represents.

Ashley: DP represents a woman who is ultimately just herself, states her opinion through her dress. The reason we came up with dime piece, is because its a simple and friendly term, but the term mostly derived from men. It was about physicality and the way a woman looks. We took the word and gave it a new power, made it ours and made it mean much more than just how one looks. A dime piece is a strong and powerful woman who’s not afraid to “go there”. A woman who carries herself well with pride and grace.

Cocoa B. : Love that ! Now… It’s time for my infamous fire-shot question series. Hope you’re ready!

Ashley: Oh boy! (LOL)

Cocoa B. don’t be scurred guuurl. LOL… McDonald’s or Burger King?

Ashley: Burger King!

Cocoa B.: Vivienne Westwood or Diane Von Furstenberg?

Ashley: Vivienne Westwood 100 percent!

Cocoa B. : Louis Vuitton or Gucci?

Ashley: Hmmmmmmm, Gucci because they take more risk with their advertising!

Cocoa B. : Platinum or Gold?

Ashley: Gold.

Cocoa B. Cool, I’m a gold-girl too… Tupac or Biggie.

Ashley: I’mma HAVE to go with Biggie on that one. Even though pac and I are both from the west coast, lol, I just personally thought of BIGGIE as a better storyteller.

Cocoa B. : Lil’ Kim or Foxy?

Ashley: Foxy because I feel so bad that she lost some of her hearing...

Cocoa B. OMG! LOL are you not the cutest??? I love that answer! LOL

Ashley: (laughs)

Cocoa B. : Britney Spears or Ms. Christina Aguillera.

Ashley: I’d have to say Christina Ag!

Cocoa B. Yeah, she got them PIPES! Ha. Ok love, that wraps up our interview portion… You’re such a doll. Big shouts to Laura who couldn’t make it this go-round, but I will definitely catch on the flip-side!  Ashley (and her super-cute interns) were a pleasure to hang out with. Stylish, smart and beautiful– these girls are definitely on the road to success! And Ash is smart– see how she reps CCW?

Dime Piece is one of the top brands in this genre. Not only are their designs innovative, creative, provacative and sexy– but they make a statement. And this is why I rock DP! For more info on how to get your hands on some exclusive D-P wear, go to their website: www.dimepiecedesigns.com. IN the meantime, check out some more flyness from their new look-book:

I don’t have to tell you to go out and cop dat! The pictures speak for themselves. I had a blast going out to Los Angeles and kicking it with the DP girls, they’re great! I will miss “Plastic City”, but I know I made some good new friends, and I’ll be back real soon. As always, stay fierce, fly, and FABULOUS!