Photo: Maya Kern LLC.
If you like comfy flowy skirts and gorgeous unique patterns, Maya Kern is a fashion brand you need to know about.
Maya Kern LLC is a queer-owned fashion boutique focused on size inclusivity, ethical manufacturing, and comfort above all else. The star of the show, Maya Kern herself, began selling her work in 2012 on Etsy and artist alleys at conventions while attending MCAD. Maya Kern also had a very sizable following on Tumblr for her illustrations and comics, her style being characterized by coziness in her use of colors and character designs. Fans also flocked to her page for her representation of strong lead heroines and plus-size representation in both her art and fashion.
Related
Valentino showed off its pre-fall 2025 collection, with one bag being called out as it bears a strong resemblance to Indigenous beadwork.
Culture, unfiltered
Our newsletter will bring you the pulse of queer culture, from the tastemakers to the groundbreakers.
When it comes to her fashion brand, Kern’s style strongly pours over with unique designs that owe their comfiness to ethically-sourced soft fabrics with quite a bit of stretch allowing a nice fit to any body type. The fabric’s stretchiness is only one of the ways this brand promises size inclusivity, offering sizes up to 8XL for some items with detailed measurements.
A common complaint many people have with skirts and dresses is a lack of pockets. Kern addresses this by tailoring pockets into her skirts that are large enough to hold a Nintendo Switch. The majority of their clothing is crafted from viscose, a semi-synthetic fabric made from plant cellulose. Kern prioritizes a slow fashion business model that promotes curbing overconsumption and overproduction in providing eco-friendly products at a higher quality, evident in some buyers reporting very little fade in darker fabrics over long periods.
Few bad things can be said about this brand, as most customers express satisfaction with items they’ve purchased. However, the limited availability for certain items could be a letdown as it is a small store with a slow-fashion model. Personally, I felt disappointed upon seeing certain skirt designs get sold out, leaving me to feel like I’ve missed out. Making fewer items does, however, make every piece feel that much more unique and creates a level of excitement when new items are released in the store.
Maya Kern’s story is also one of a community coming together to show support for queer-owned small businesses. In late 2024, the store suffered financial woes, and Kern realizes she wouldn’t have enough for next month’s payroll. Upon hearing this news, previous customers gathered on social media to promote their thoughts and support for the brand and the clothing Kern provides for folks so often left out of the broader fashion environment. Through this support, the store was able to make enough sales to keep everything afloat.
But Kern and co. aren’t out of the woods yet. Despite the surge in sales solving their immediate problems they still have a long way to go before everything is smooth sailing, and I for one support them on their journey.
Overall, their clothing appears very nice and casual while still having the potential to be paired with certain items for an extra bit of flair. For my personal favorites, I enjoy the Bee pattern design of skirts and the red hand design which you can buy as a sheet of fabric for any DIY sewing projects you might have.
They also recently started selling petticoats, which add so much more shape and figure to their printed midi skirts.
Sign up for the INTO newsletter and get your twice-weekly dose of stories that shape the queer experience, culture, and lifestyle.
