Ella Pritsker

As a young child in Soviet Russia Ella Pritsker began a life long love of fashion design by creating doll clothes for her handmade paper dolls.

She advanced to clothing for herself made from scraps she could cobble together.

By the time she went to school, she updated her fashions with a piece of lace here or an elegant inlay there…

At the age of 21 while in Austria and Italy waiting to emigrate to the U.S., destiny would have it that she met three “old world” European dressmakers and was exposed to the exciting world of high fashion.

Each taught her a piece of the fine art of hand stitched custom couture.

“That’s when I knew this was what I would do with my life,” she says.

In the states, she began her couture business and gained a following with her ELLA MODA line, being named Baltimore’s Best Custom Couture by BALTIMORE Magazine in 2001.

In 2009 Ella decided to share her skills with others and has created the Maryland Academy for Couture Arts.

The Academy’s goal is to preserve the fine art of custom couture and give others with a lifelong love of fashion a chance to learn the fine sewing techniques she has learned to create wonderful fashions for themselves or others, and eventually to make their living doing something they love.