Life & Work with Chelsea Martens of Los Angeles / OC

Today we’d like to introduce you to Chelsea Martens.

Hi Chelsea, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I grew up around people who made things for a living. My dad was a Disney Imagineer, and my mom was a scenic artist, so creativity was a very familiar part of my world. I always loved fashion and design, but I didn’t actually start sewing until after high school. I knew I wanted a hands-on, creative career; I just hadn’t figured out what that would look like yet.

Taking costume design classes at a local college helped everything click. I became fascinated with how clothing is constructed—how you take an idea and turn it into something someone can actually wear. That curiosity led me to Los Angeles Trade Technical College, where I earned my degree in Technical Design and built the foundation for the work I do today.

After graduating, I joined designer Ashton Michael as his First Assistant Costume Technician. I spent the next ten years working largely in music and entertainment, contributing to pieces for artists including Beyoncé, Jennifer Lopez, Demi Lovato, and Britney Spears. It was an incredible education in craftsmanship, collaboration, and finding solutions under pressure. You learn quickly when something needs to look amazing, fit properly, and be ready for a performance on a tight deadline.

In 2020, my business partner, Leo Abuzaid, and I started Style Adix out of our home. Leo came from a business background, and I brought the design and construction experience. It gave us the opportunity to combine our strengths and build something together. At first, I wasn’t sure whether custom work and alterations alone could sustain a business, but we kept making connections, showing up for our community, and taking care of the projects entrusted to us. As the work grew, we eventually moved into a dedicated workroom in Simi Valley.

Today, Style Adix is a union costume workroom offering custom builds, tailoring, alterations, and embroidery. Our work has taken us across film, television, commercials, music, athletics, and theme park entertainment. I love that variety. One project might involve researching period clothing, and the next might be a leather piece or custom fight gear. There’s always something new to figure out, and that’s a big part of what keeps me excited about this work.

Building the business has also meant learning to adapt, especially through the changes and slowdowns in the entertainment industry. Throughout that, relationships have been central to how we’ve grown. I want clients to feel comfortable bringing us their ideas, asking questions, and trusting us with the details. I’m proud of the talented team we’ve brought together and the care they put into their work. What started with my own curiosity about making clothes has grown into a place where we get to help other people bring their ideas to life.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It definitely hasn’t been a completely smooth road. When we started Style Adix out of our home in 2020, I felt confident in my craft, but building a business around it was a different challenge. I remember wondering whether alterations and custom builds would bring in enough consistent work to keep us going. Leo’s business experience complemented my creative background, but there was still a lot for us to figure out together.

One of the biggest challenges has been the uncertainty in the entertainment industry. As production picked up after the pandemic restrictions eased, our workload grew, and we moved into a dedicated workroom. Then the strikes and the slowdown that followed changed the pace of everything. Maintaining a space and keeping work coming in becomes difficult when so much of the industry you serve is on hold.

We’ve had to stay flexible and build relationships across different types of work, including theme park projects, athletic apparel, and embroidery for businesses and schools. I’ve always loved variety creatively, but it’s also become an important part of sustaining the business.

That experience has taught me that being good at what you do is only one part of running a company. You also have to keep showing up, connect with people, and be willing to adjust when circumstances change. We’re still growing and learning, but having complementary strengths, a talented team, and clients who trust us has helped us keep moving forward.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I’m a costume maker and technical designer, and I co-founded Style Adix, a union costume workroom in Simi Valley, with my business partner, Leo Abuzaid. I lead the creative and construction side of the business, helping translate a designer’s concept into a finished piece. We do custom builds, tailoring, alterations, and embroidery for film, television, music, commercials, theme parks, and athletes.

My specialty is figuring out how to make an idea work on an actual body. A garment can look beautiful in a sketch, but there’s a lot of problem-solving involved in making it fit, move, and function for the person wearing it. That’s the part I really enjoy: choosing materials, working through construction details, and bringing everything together without losing what made the original idea exciting.

I especially love working with leather, but variety is one of my favorite things about this career. One memorable project was a leather jacket for a McDonald’s commercial that needed to resemble a chicken nugget. It was such an unexpected brief, and figuring out how to create that puffy texture was really fun. I’ve also loved building period pieces from vintage fabrics and creating custom fight gear, where the clothing needs to express the athlete’s personality while supporting their performance.

What sets our approach apart is the attention we give to both the garment and the working relationship. My years in the music industry taught me how to handle tight deadlines and high expectations, but communication is just as important as technical skill. I want designers and clients to feel that they have someone they can talk things through with, who understands the details and cares about getting them right.

I’m most proud of the team and the trust we’ve built at Style Adix. There’s so much skill in our workroom, and it’s rewarding to see what we can accomplish together. Working on a high-profile project is exciting, but having someone return with their next idea because they felt taken care of means a great deal to me.

Is there a quality that you most attribute to your success?
I would say adaptability. In custom costume work, every project comes with its own challenges. A material might behave differently than you expected, a design might change, or you might have very little time to figure something out. Being able to adjust, listen, and find a solution is such a big part of what I do.

That’s been just as important in building Style Adix. The entertainment industry has changed a lot since we started, and we’ve had to stay open to different opportunities and ways of working. Having experience across music, film, television, athletics, and theme parks gives me different approaches to draw from when a new challenge comes through the door.

For me, adaptability also means being willing to learn from the people around me. I bring a lot of experience to the table, but so does our team. Being open to someone else’s idea helps us do better work, and that willingness to figure things out together has been essential to our growth.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.styleadix.com
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Styleadixcostumes705
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/style.adix
• Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/style-adix-alterations-and-custom-apparel-simi-valley