Designer Zahiyya Abdul-Karim

Designer Zahiyya Abdul-Karim has always had a gift for design. At the age of nine she began making doll clothes, and by the age of twelve she was making clothes for herself. After graduating from LaGuardia High School with a concentration in Art, fashion became her passion. She honed her design skills at the Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science, now Philadelphia University, earning a BS with honors. Then she launched the clothing design company now known as Region Design Studio, Inc., a unique cutting edge company, that designs and manufactures men's and women's clothing for the shapely body type.

Zahiyya received a grant from the Open Society Institute of the Soros Foundation to work as a Fellow at the Harlem Textile Works. This non-profit organization trains underprivileged youth in art, textile design, and entrepreneurship, and provides a venue in which to sell their creations. She was the acting Artistic Director and was responsible for managing the Design as Enterprise program. She also oversaw the entire product line and trained the instructors. She has been a Designer for many companies with whom she worked in the U.S. and the Orient.

Zahiyya's wedding gowns, designs and textiles have been featured in The New York Times, DNR, Philadelphia Inquire, The City Paper, American Vision and Sew News Magazine. She has won various awards including the National Association of Menswear Buyer's "Excellence in Menswear" and "Best of Show" awards, and "Most Creative Collection" from Philadelphia College of Textiles and Science.