Mom designs and sews the clothes. Aili chooses her outfit and practices poses. The whole family goes location scouting, and when they find the perfect spot, Dad starts taking photos. Later, Mom puts them on Instagram. Meet the Bolers: basically yr fashion-y, Metro Detroit Partridge Family… with a few 2018 twists.

Aili Boler, 5, is the breakout — her recreation of Cardi B’s Met Gala look (also sewn by her mother, Kanaya Boler) earned a shoutout from the rap star and made her Instagram follower count jump from 500 to five digits this month. Kanaya, 27, manages her daughter’s page and posts her own looks for her 6,000 followers. Her husband James, 25, and 2-year-old son Maddox keep lower social media profiles.

The Cardi B buzz was a surprise to Kanaya, who has had work in local fashion shows and is “obsessive” about curating her social media, but still mostly sees designing as a labor of love. She got her start in first grade, cutting up the dress she was wearing to make a two-piece look while taking the bus to school. She realized she could be a real designer thanks to a friend who made her dress for Romulus High School’s homecoming back in the day. Though she studied at Troy’s International Academy of Design & Technology for two years, she’s mostly self-taught.

LONG HAIR DON’T CARE
Boler told Detour she’s loathe to put a label on her style or offer edicts for anyone else’s, but so far this year, she’s sporting lots of neons alongside neutrals, with a smattering of patterns — floral, animal, geometric — in dramatic, boxy silhouettes. And plenty of thigh-high boots. Her one rule: “Wear what makes you feel good.” Case in point, she recently took her pjs out to the Riverfront.

Little Aili also gets free range to choose her outfits. She loves fashion, playing dress up and getting her picture taken since she was a toddler. Following Kanaya’s example, she mirrors many of Mom’s poses.

The family foursome spends their free time exploring Metro Detroit on foot and by car, giving Kanaya a mental map of locations for their photo shoots. She’s constantly planning future posts and is preparing for her next step, a girl’s fashion line. But Kanaya in no hurry to take things to the next level. Instead, she’s focused on perfecting her craft.

“We’re all running this marathon at different paces and just because you see someone else doing it, you can do it in your own time,” she said. “Trust the process. Trust yourself.”

It’s pretty refreshing to hear from someone who isn’t immediately running out to monetize their low-key social media success. All the same, we’ll be watching for bigger things to come from the Bolers clan of influencers-in-waiting. –-Kate Abbey-Lambertz

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