For Bronx native Jeffery Ampratwum, fashion keeps him on the go, including teaching at the Fashion Institute of Technology, directing high-level fashion campaigns and styling celebrities. <\/p>\n
“I find it’s, very rewarding to be able to, you know, talk about characteristics, persona, personality, etiquette and professional development in terms of… their style, their personal style and how they choose to the exhibit themselves,” said Ampratwum. <\/p>\n
On Wednesday, Ampratwum spent time with young teens at the Stephanie McKinley Community Center teaching them the importance of fashion and etiquette. <\/p>\n
“Here, at the Stephanie McKinley Community Center. I think community is incredibly important for the youth, particularly for young boys in the Bronx, to give them something to do. We don’t want an idle mind. We want to continue to challenge…their brain,” shared Ampratwum. <\/p>\n
Teens shared with News 12 what they took away from their time with the fashion expert. <\/p>\n
“You don’t always need to have designer clothes. You have good fashion,” said Mustapha Kaloga. <\/p>\n
“It helps me because you could pass it on to another generation and to have good manners,” shared Yusuf Fisiou. <\/p>\n
Ampratwum recently published and created a how-to guide for menswear, hoping to inspire many more to express themselves through fashion. <\/p>\n
“It teaches you how to match separates jeans with shoes and blazers and top and accessories. Very, very simplistic. It’s not like a textbook. Anybody can read it, and it’s supposed to be fun and used as a guide to really promote your personal style,” shared Ampratwum. <\/p>\n