Marisol Deluna began her journey through the Alamo Heights Independent School District at age three. She attended Howard Elementary School, Alamo Heights Junior School, and graduated from Alamo Heights High School in 1985. Her time here centered predominantly around art and community service. She participated in several school activities including the National Art Honor Society, Student Council, Mule Stall Council, Keywanettes, American Field Service, and the Wranglers Pep Squad. Voted “Most Artistic Senior” by faculty and “Most Iconoclastic” by her peers, the school offered a special Art 5 class to broaden her artistic endeavors. This class provided her an opportunity to create artwork for the Hoof Print and theater productions in addition to raising funds for the District.
Marisol began her design career in the New York City Garment District in 1989 and founded Deluna By Design, Inc. in 1997 with the launch of her eponymous label, Marisol Deluna New York®. In addition to her lifestyle brand, she designs couture neckwear for nonprofit organizations, notably redesigning items for the Girl Scouts of the USA. Other clientele includes the City of New York, City of San Antonio, Daughters of the British Empire, Association of Junior Leagues International, San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo, Wellesley College, Alpha Phi Foundation, Holland Dames, Order of the Merovingian Dynasty, American Yacht Club, Lansdowne Club in London, Friends of the Canary Islands, 4-H Club, Cosmopolitan Club of New York City, National Society of Colonial Dames, and Pilgrims Society of both Great Britain and the United States.
Marisol’s designs for nonprofit organizations help support scholarships, preservation, and membership enhancement. Her designs have been presented to patrons including Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Maxima of The Netherlands, King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, former King Juan Carlos I, and Queen Sofia of Spain. Her lifestyle brand’s New York Designed. Texas Made. initiative promotes American manufacturing, often shown during New York Fashion Week and is offered at her boutique and online.
While Marisol and her husband Jonathan call Lower Manhattan, Buenos Aires, and Nova Scotia home, she keeps strong ties with her hometown and the Alamo Heights Independent School District. In 2003, she partnered with the Howard Early Childhood Center PTO to create Alamo Heights silk scarves and ties to raise funds for a playground improvement project. She is the founder and chair of the Marisol Deluna Foundation, Inc., a creative educational nonprofit established in 2014. Located at the La Villita Historic Arts Village in downtown San Antonio, her foundation provides mentorship to students and professionals interested in fashion, art, and design, and it practices inclusiveness as one of its core missions.
A graduate of the Kansas City Art Institute and the Fashion Institute of Technology, she is an alumna of the Alpha Phi sorority, member of the FIT Couture Council, Fashion Group International, Texas Fashion Industry Initiative, National Arts Club and supports Housing Works and the Metropolitan Museum of Art among others. Marisol has been awarded a Presidential Commendation by the League of United Latin American Citizens and is an inductee of the San Antonio Women’s Hall of Fame.