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Aspiring designers are alive and well in Hollywood.
From Avril Lavigne to Chris Kirkpatrick (yes, the one from ‘NSYNC), the early 2000s were especially keen on celebs flexing their design skills. It was rare for these wannabe fashion moguls to pique the interest of consumers for more than a few years at a time, though it’s important to note everyone can successfully parlay their stardom into a multi-million dollar fashion empire.
We’re looking at you, Mary-Kate Olsen and Ashley Olsen.
And speaking of the sororal wonders behind The Row and Elizabeth and James, they too got their start in the industry working with—wait for it—Walmart!
So in honor of the ongoing fanfare surrounding Fashion Week, we invite you to take a trip down memory lane for even more celebrity fashion lines that didn’t quite make it past their debut season.
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Avril Lavigne
The pop-punk rocker invited fans to channel their inner “Sk8r Boi” songstress with the launch of Abbey Dawn in 2008. Three years later, none other than Kylie Jenner would make her New York Fashion Week runway debut for Abbey Dawn, modeling some very on-brand fishnet tights, studded plaid heels and a distressed graphic tee. “I was a little nervous,” Kylie told E! News at the time. “I’d never done anything like this before. It really took me out of my comfort zone in a good way.”
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Chris Kirkpatrick
FuMan Skeeto was the outrageous brainchild of this ‘NSYNC member, who even showed the line during New York Fashion Week in 2001. The collection was described as “urban-inspired women’s streetwear with an Asian influence,” and despite it getting picked up by high-end retailers like Nordstrom and Bloomingdale’s, fizzled out shortly after its launch.
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Jennifer Lopez
Sweetface, which the A-lister brought to life in 2003, encompassed quite a few of Lopez’s ventures in the fashion world. Positioned as the high-end contemporary complement to her streetwear-inspired JLO by Jennifer Lopez line, Sweetface was ultimately shuttered in 2009. “I just felt like I never got a fair chance to do it right,” she recalled to The New York Times of the failed experience. “And on top of it, I felt like I was trapped in a situation I couldn’t get out of, and my name was stamped on things that I didn’t believe in
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Common & Jeremy Piven
In 2007, the rapper enlisted the help of the Entourage star to model his collab with Italian headwear brand La Coppola Storta. Called Soji (reportedly named after Common’s neighbor) and priced at upwards of $150 piece, the newsboy caps failed to resonate with even the most hat savvy consumers.
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Mandy Moore
Long before her This Is Us days, Mandy tried to make it in the fashion world with a line aptly titled Mblem. The singer-actress said she was inspired to design a line of T-shirts that would better equip her tall frame, but ultimately directed her talents elsewhere when the company folded in 2009.
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Beyoncé & Tina Knowles
The music superstar and her mama paid tribute to Bey’s maternal grandmother with House of Deréon, a ready-to-wear fashion line that aimed to capture the “couture, kick and soul” of all three generations of women. Beyoncé modeled several House of Deréon looks onstage and in ad campaigns, even wearing a black and gold number to the 2009 Oscars. Unfortunately in 2012, the duo bid an unofficial farewell to the project all together.
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Kanye West
His YEEZY line and Adidas collabs have undoubtedly cemented Ye’s place in the fashion world, but in 2008 the rapper teased another little-known project by the name of Pastelle. The royal blue varsity jacket West wore to the 2009 American Music Awards would be one of the only designs to ever see the light of day, because Kanye took a step back from the public eye (and thus his professional endeavors) following that infamous fiasco with Taylor Swift at the VMAs.
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Mary-Kate & Ashley Olsen
Yes, the world-famous twins behind CFDA award-winning label The Row once had their very own collection of apparel for girls ages 4-14 exclusively at Walmart. The eponymous brand tapped into everyone’s favorite early 2000s trends (think layered camisoles, cargo pants, headbands galore) and even debuted during Paris Fashion Week in 2004. Très chic!
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Lindsay Lohan
Marilyn Monroe‘s June 1, 1926 birthday served as the inspiration for LiLo’s very own clothing line 6126, which began only with leggings and later expanded to a full apparel collection. In 2011, 6126 tanked and two years later Lohan was sued for $5 million by the clothing manufacturer who alleged her ongoing legal troubles were the reason for the company’s demise.
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Heidi Montag
The Hills star put her FIDM education to use when she partnered with clothing retailer Anchor Blue for a collection called Heidiwood. Hubby Spencer Pratt was by Heidi’s side when she debuted the line in 2008, but it wasn’t brought back for a second iteration.
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