Baltimore, Maryland 

Bishme Cromartie is a self-taught designer from Baltimore, Maryland. At the ripe age of eight, he realized that he was interested in fashion and by nine was already learning how to sew. He loved the feeling that fashion gave him, from sketching to sewing. Bishme received no formal fashion training, only that of his Great-Aunt Faye Dean Lacy, who taught him his initial sewing basics. He credits growing up in a rough neighborhood for finding his love for fashion. He used it as an escape; sketching would bring him to a place that he couldn’t explain but felt right to him. Bishme’s first solo fashion show was in 2007 at 16 years old, and the clothes showcased his chic, edgy, and unexpected fashions. He has grown beyond his local fame in Maryland and has dressed such celebrities as Andra Day, Mel B, and Niecy Nash.