interview by Jess McCuan . photo by Matt Rose

Name: Nicole Silver

Age: 23

Occupation: fashion designer and performing artist

Lives in: West Asheville

You look like you’ve done modeling before. I’ve done modeling since I was little. I grew up doing it, and I work at the design house Royal Peasantry. We do photo shoots all the time.

Do you do that full time? I work there on a project basis and for shoots, and I’m a circus performer. I do aerial arts and hula hooping and compact acrobatics.

Wow. Is hanging from the ceiling scary? No. I’m not really scared about it. I do get nervous every time, but it’s not like scared. There’s this rush of excitement. I’m hoping that I hit all of my tricks.

What do you do during winter when the fashion stuff slows down? I like to be creative in my home, and I make all kinds of things, from dresses to yoga pants to aprons and costumes and pillows. Whatever I think of, I want to make it myself. I needed a laundry basket over the summer, so I made one out of bamboo and cloth. My neighbor’s yard has bamboo in it.

What else are you working on? I’m building a bike-powered blender. It’s a stationary bike with a platform off of the seat post that holds the blender. You pedal up a smoothie.