Carolina Amato is a designer graduate of Ohio University with a Bachelor's Degree in Fine Arts; she originally intended to be a painter. Amato hails from a family of Italian textile professionals, a legacy that began with both her maternal and paternal grandmothers, each of whom were skilled craftswomen who plied their craft in New York's garment center. Her grandfather made his living as a furniture upholsterer and the designer recalls her childhood filled with days spent playing with the ribbons, trims, and fabrics that adorned her grandparents' workshops. Rather than apprentice to a working designer Ms. Amato jumped head first into the fashion business, establishing Carolina Amato, Inc., her own accessories design company, in 1979 with a small loan from her husband.