How Emma Rubinson Runs Her Fashion Workshops With Acuity Scheduling
When you walk into Emma Rubinson’s studio in New York City, you step into a space designed for creativity. Ambient lighting, music, and walls pinned with inspiration set the tone for her creations. Emma describes her style as rave couture—nightlife-inspired, elevated evening wear that blends dreamscapes and psychological exploration. Her designs invite audiences to see fashion differently, while her workshops help aspiring designers build work that feels truly their own.
But behind every immersive collection and portfolio class is an entrepreneur juggling calendars and clients. For Emma, scheduling is both the hardest and her favorite part of running a creative business.
“I like planning how I approach my week,” she says. “Running a business as a solo entrepreneur, there’s a lot going on, and having something that can reference my calendar and have availability visible to clients has been really helpful.”
From inspiration to implementation
After identifying a gap in the fashion industry, Emma set out to offer portfolio workshops to support others. “I had a really awesome mentor when I was applying to fashion school, and it's such a specific application process that a lot of people don't have access to,” she reflects.
Her classes take students through the full collection process, from research and inspiration to finished pieces, focusing on ideas and innovation rather than just sewing. “I consider it a living process from the beginning all the way up until submission,” she says. “You can see when they stop designing something they'd wear and start designing fashion that's innovative and reflective of their own style.”
Two out of the three students from her first collection design class went on to apply to fashion school, a testament to the impact of her mentorship and structured guidance.
To make it all work, Emma needed class scheduling software that worked with her brand website to keep her calendar organized. She found that in Acuity Scheduling.
Using Acuity Scheduling with a Squarespace website
When Emma first decided to open up classes to aspiring designers, she turned to her existing Squarespace website. Acuity Scheduling is a Squarespace company, and the website embed made it an easy choice.
“I’ve been a longtime Squarespace user, so when I was going to add a scheduling option to my website for classes, [Acuity] was the first one that was there. I did some research on some other ones and the option of having it integrated with my website was the most important thing for me, so it was just easy to set up and get going.”
Today, Emma uses Acuity for both in-person and virtual sessions, which are all paid in advance. On her website, each class description links directly to book online through Acuity, where students can select their preferred time.
“On my website I have a page where I list all of the descriptions of things that I teach… All of those links are underneath the descriptions on my website, which then takes them directly to my Acuity scheduling page, which is linked to my calendar so that they can select a time slot that works for them.”
Simplifying daily scheduling workflows
A typical day for Emma now begins with planning and organizing. “Every Sunday I go through my calendar and I look at which classes I have booked, and then I plan the rest of my to-do list around them,” she shares. “It gives me some structure and lets me time block around what I’ve already committed to.”
Automations make her life even easier. She has a clear cancellation policy on her website, and whenever clients book, they receive automatic confirmations and reminders so they never miss a session.
“I use the text reminders,” Emma says. “I have a 48 hour one that goes out to a client 48 hours before their session. I have a 24 hour cancellation policy, so that gives them enough time to remember the appointment and cancel if they need to.”
By handling scheduling, payments, and reminders in one platform, Acuity gives Emma the freedom to focus on designing and teaching instead of admin. She says it’s completely changed the way she runs her business:
“Keeping everything organized, from the reminders to making sure that I don't overbook anything. Anything that can help me stay more organized with my time is always a huge plus. Having some of that stuff run automatically so that I don't have to double check my calendar is probably the easiest part.”
Designing for growth and the road ahead
Of all Acuity’s features, the one she relies most on is subscriptions. “I use them a lot for people I work with weekly, and it makes everything automatic and easier,” Emma says.
First, she does an intake consultation to find out where the client is in the process and how much experience they have. Then, she recommends a subscription tier. Clients who sign up for a subscription commit to a number of session hours per week. “Sometimes people prefer to use the time in session to actually do the portfolio work, and some people prefer to use it as more of a feedback session.”
Looking ahead, Emma plans to expand her offers further to better foster collaboration and shared learning among creatives. “I would love to expand into more group classes,” she says. “Being around other creative people allows you to learn from different processes, and I’d love to grow in that way.”
Acuity will continue to play a central role, keeping her workflow organized and scalable no matter what she offers.
“I’ve researched a lot of scheduling platforms, and Acuity is the one that best fits my needs across multiple areas.”
Take your time back with the right scheduling app
For other creatives still managing bookings manually, Emma has a few final words of wisdom:
“Give yourself more time. Take your time back.”
With Acuity handling the logistics, you can spend less time scheduling and more time doing whatever you do best. Creating. Teaching. Training. Healing. Building something that’s yours.
Start your free trial today—no credit card required—and turn your ideas into a thriving business with clients who keep coming back.
