Auburn University held the 13th annual Fashion Event on Friday, April 12, at the Beard-Eaves-Memorial Coliseum.
The event was hosted by the Department of Consumer and Design Sciences within the College of Human Sciences and the Apparel Merchandising and Design Association. This year’s theme was The Silver Screen, inspired by old Hollywood glamor.
“[The show] was amazing. I’m excited to see what the numbers will be next week,” said Karla Teel, a professor in the CADS department and the faculty advisor for the show.
According to Teel, the event sold over 800 tickets, not including tickets sold at the door. Teel teaches the fashion event planning course as well as the senior capstone course.
“[My favorite part] is watching their excitement when they see their garments come down the runway. You can just see their faces light up, and it’s amazing. [Teaching] is what I’m supposed to do. Everyday I come to school excited,” Teel said.
Each year, students apply to be in the year-long FEP course. After being chosen, students are then placed into one of seven committees: styling and modeling, public relations, media, creative, decorations, fundraising or lookbooks.
Each of the committees had to be at the venue at 7 a.m. on Friday, according to AMDA President Carter Phelps. Phelps also served as the decorations committee chair and assisted with decorating the venue, such as adding a glamorous red carpet for guests to walk. Along with the seven committees is the FEP director who oversees each committee and over 80 event volunteers.
“I was on the styling and modeling committee last year, and after working that, I knew that this was something I wanted to take on,” said Savannah Londre, senior in apparel design and this year’s Fashion Event director. “There’s a lot that goes on behind the scenes. It’s been a full production."
Londre was also one of the hosts for the event. She has been working closely with Teel and the rest of the FEP class to bring The Silver Screen to life.
“I’m most excited about seeing the designers' faces when their garments come out. It’s so awesome seeing their work come to life. I’m also excited for our models who have been working just as hard,” Londre said.
Models for The Fashion Event are volunteers that are chosen by the modeling committee after attending a model call early in the spring semester.
“Seeing all the art is so cool. I have one look tonight, but watching others’ looks is the best part. We got here at 11:30, and preparation has been hard but worth it,” said Ally Verstrate, freshman in nutrition and dietetics and a model in the show.
The majority of the models were fellow apparel merchandising and design students. They have been attending rehearsals throughout the semester in preparation for the show.
“Going into apparel design, I know I’ll be designing in the future, and I thought it would be cool to see the other side of things and be a model. Preparation has been a lot, but it’s been awesome. It’s great to see how much time and effort goes into it,” said Viviana Straniero, freshman in apparel design and a model in the show.
The show began with a general section of garments, all crafted by apparel merchandising and apparel design students.
“I’m beyond excited to see my collection in the show. I’ve been working all semester and now it’s here and it feels so surreal. This is also my second year in FEP, and seeing everything come together is the best thing ever,” said Mary Elizabeth Allen, senior in apparel design.
The capstone collections followed the general garments. Capstone is a senior-level course that mimics an entire product development and design process. Students create sellable clothing lines from scratch.
“We’ve been working on our collections all semester. I’m super excited to see my and my friends’ collections on the runway,” said Thomas Cherones, junior in apparel design and a student in the capstone course.
Each of the four groups in capstone got to display their lines in the show. They also had to create videos that promoted their lines which played prior to the models walking.
The last section was a series of mini collections made by apparel design students who were not required to create these collections but chose to create them.
“I’m excited to see everyone else’s collections in the show. You get so wrapped up in your own collection you don't get to see what everyone else is doing,” said Olivia Heywood, senior in apparel design and creative committee chair.
With over 80 looks, the show lasted around two hours. It ran quickly, with one look right after the other. If not watching the show, guests could walk around and view visual merchandising vignettes created by visual merchandising students.
The show ended with an appearance by Aubie, another walk for each of the models and a few awards for some of the best looks. The Fashion Event, which was recently voted the “Most Excellent Campus Event,” will return next spring with new lines of creative student designs.
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Sam Vise, junior in journalism, is the community reporter for The Auburn Plainsman.
