To all my fellow fashion majors,

Most of us are nearing the end of our journey here at Genesee Community College and we all have different plans of what we would like to do after we graduate. Some of us will be going to a different state for schooling, some of us will be going to New York City, and some of us are still not sure what lies ahead.

I am still not sure what my future holds, but what I do know now is how much each and every one of you has inspired me. I am so grateful that I decided to come to school here and join the Fashion Merchandising program and I am so thankful for all of the wonderful friendships I have made over the past 2 years and for all of the amazing opportunities that I have been given.

Not only have the students, my peers, inspired me, but my incredible professors, Professor Dudkowski and Professor Ehrhart, have also had an enormous impact on me. When I first came to college, I was very shy and didn’t speak up in class or talk to anyone, but these two professors were able to make me feel very comfortable talking in front of the class; they made me feel welcomed and like I belonged. They were always motivating me and everyone else to be the very best we can be and they taught all of us how to take charge.

It’s been 8 days since the fashion show and I can’t help but feel a tinge of sadness amongst the settling excitement we felt then. While this was an exciting moment for all of us, the thought that this is the last project we all worked on together saddens me.  We have all been working extremely hard on this since the fall semester, and I have enjoyed every single minute. With that being said, we gave it 110% and had a record breaking show!  Congratulations everyone.

Author: Bailey Johnson

Instagram: baileyyyroseee

The 36th Annual Fashion Show: Elysium is less than a week away.  I am excited and can’t wait to see how it works out!

I’m a scene coordinator for the scene Chloris. I major in Fashion Merchandising, but also have an interest for all things related to fashion, including designing, styling, and sewing. I decided to be a part of the 36th annual fashion show this year. When I worked as an intern last year for “Fashion Is…Diversification”, I saw how difficult it is to plan the scene and control all of the models, but at the same time, how amazing when we made it.

However, I’m not majoring in fashion design, so I thought the best way to join the fashion show was to borrow clothing from apparel stores and styling them. When I thought about that again, I finally decided on making the clothing by myself. Once I made that decision, my mind moved forward to create apparel by myself. I like challenges in whatever I want to do, even if it is difficult. My potential will be nothing without execution. So, this is really the first time in my life that I have made clothing. I didn’t know how to sew or make patterns at all, but this wonderful opportunity drives me to learn more about making clothing by myself. This would be definitely valuable for my career.

Basically, our outfits focus on femininity with sexiness. This spring summer trends are involved in sheer fabric so that we obtain the style of translucency as well.

Being an international student, I wanted to take in kimono textiles, which are used in traditional Japanese clothing. I like to mix different field of fashion, just like coordinate street style with high-end brand.  I don’t want to show kimono as a traditional Japanese wear, and I want to show kimono as a part of modern fashion. Our fashion show is going to live stream internationally (link here), so I hope my family and friends will have fun watching our production.

S/S 2017 Trends:

•                Shocking pink (bubble gum)
•                Yellow
•                Flower print
•                Underwear as outerwear
•                Round shoulders
•                Puffball shoulders
•                Off shoulder (one shoulder)
•                Polka dots
•                Patchwork
•                Space style
•                Stripes (art/pop)

Look for these trends in my scene: Chloris!

Author: Momoka Fukatsu

Instagram: @mf_0313

When you think of fashion you probably only think about the women’s wear and men’s wear, active and lounge. There is more to fashion than the basics. Terpsichore is one of the nine muses, the goddess of dance and chorus. I thought about Terpsichore because I love dancing. My inspiration for this scene came from my background of dancing. I have danced 11 years of my life in a dance studio in my hometown. I then continued dancing in college on the dance team for the past 2 years now. Seeing how I could choose any god or goddess, I thought if there was a god or goddess of dance. Soon enough I found there was a goddess of dance.

If you look into the fashion behind a recital or a team routine, there is more to it than you think. There are millions of different outfits for dancers, from lyrical to jazz, tap to ballet, contemporary to pointe, and so much more. There is also a lot of work put into the choreography the dancers will be performing. When learning a routine, it takes several months; this includes learning the dance, putting the dancers into spots, and then finally perfecting the routine so it is ready for either a competition, recital, or festival. I have been in over 15 dance recitals in my lifetime. The number of hours spent in the studio is more than you could imagine.

Author: Kayla Suchanick

Instagram: @kayla_rebecca15

Twitter: @kayla_rebecca15

In Greek mythology, there is the tale of Chloris, goddess of flowers and nature, and the nymph of spring. Chloris was in the forest one day when she stumbled upon the lifeless body of woodland nymph. Saddened by the innocent creature’s fate, she decided to breathe life anew and reached out to the other gods to transform the nymph’s body into a flower.

To this, Aphrodite would add beauty, and Dionysus gave her nectar for a sweet-smelling fragrance. The three Graces gave the blossom the gifts of charm, joy, and splendor. All agreed it was the most spectacular of flowers. Chloris also represents beauty, sexuality, love, and spring, and her symbols are all flowers. This flowering pertains to the human spirit and also the appreciation of beauty in the body.

For this year’s fashion show, my friend Momoka Fukatsu and I are working on the scene together based on Chloris. I make clothing of my own for the scene; however I don’t have much experience with making a patterns and sewing. It is really difficult to do that, but I am gaining valuable experience for my life. It has been my dream to design and make garments. This opportunity caused me to have an increased interest in fashion design, and my love of fashion grew. This scene pursues ultimate femininity and utilizes the various textiles and added details to the garment. The inspiration is the element of garments with elegance and sexiness based on 1960’s style including ruffles, flowers, and ribbons. I’m careful in selecting the fabrics for clothing, and use tulles, velvet, lace, satin and Japanese kimono textile.

It’s my first time doing a scene and it has been difficult, although I’m really happy to have this opportunity. Through it, I think that I have acquired and developed various knowledge and skills, including producing a fashion show, sewing skills, communication skills, and cooperation skills. I will be able to use this experience in the future in just about all aspects of my life. I try to do my best in order to produce a wonderful show and hope many people will come to the show.

Author: Naoko Hayashi

Instagram: @_nao.coco_

Eurybia is an ancient sea goddess daughter of Gaia and Pontus.  Some sources claim that she is obscure and insignificant but that cannot be right because she was given protection over the ocean waters by her parentless, primordial Earth Mother.  She has dominion of the deepest parts with “a heart of flint” and who knows what Shimmers Down There with sunken civilizations and sea monsters as well as vast reservoirs of undiscovered energy — certainly an impact upon the climate.

There seems to have been a coup d’etat  by later sea deities and the  male dominated shipping commerce–especially in the 18^th century.

The oceans erroneously referred to as the “seven seas” are actually five:  Arctic, Atlantic, Indian, Pacific, and Southern.  These “great waters” embody the principle of the sacred feminine as originator and sustainer of all planetary life so women should reclaim their right to journey there.  In ancient times, there were several sets of “seven seas” and this voyage will follow the Mediterranean Herculean Route along the cote d’azur from the port of Barcelona, Spain to Rome, Italy and on to Athens, Greece.

Traditionally, women have been considered trouble at sea but the Male Sailor needs to get over that.  There are many ways for a woman to experience the romance and adventure of the high seas (after carefully researching and assessing the risks, of course).

In a legend as old as time, a Fisherman Wife can wait on the wharf.

Or, have a Selfie Retreat in a cottage or beach resort.

Or, Work the Crew of a merchant or research vessel.

Or, be a Honeymoon Bride on a cruise.

There are several ports of call, including:

Stepping out at Monaco, and…

Sightseeing in Marseille.

After arriving in Rome, an additional trip will return the ancient goddess to Athens Nightlife.  From here, one could cruise up the Dalmatian Coast of the Adriatic or depart on an island tour of the Aegean Sea.

Our Seafaring Vagabond wants to explore the “Seven Seas” of the Black, Caspian, Arabian, Aegean, Red, Adriatic, and Indian Ocean.  There are high risks and rough spots ahead but she is going to ease into it by touring the islands of the Aegean:  precinct of the sun’s renown.  Elysium!!!

One must be confident, well-packed, and non-flirty to “step out on the waters”  and  go beyond.

Author: Nadine Jeffery

My name is Sofiane Hamadi. I was born in France on the periphery of Paris. Although I was very young, I was open to the culture of fashion. People were free to wear whatever they want where I grew up, such as: fancy sneakers with a suit or a tracksuit with some classic shoes. Well, I guess that my visual memory stocked all of those images somewhere in my brain. That may unconsciously explain the fact that today I find myself participating in the production of fashion show. I was focused all my life on soccer and business; I achieved a very good level of soccer and secured a bachelor’s degree in business management. I came to America to pursue my dream of becoming a businessman and playing soccer at a quite decent level. I love challenges and risks; that keeps my mind busy to always find solutions to achieve things on my “to do list”.  However, I have a crazy imagination and enjoy creating and trying new things. At first sight you might not like my fashion style because it is mostly sporty and I wear a lot of simple joggers, but I don’t really fancy to dress up and kind of show off  here since I have no reason to wear fancy clothes. Some days  I have to walk 4 miles to get to school; I prefer more the practical aspect.

In Greek mythology, Apollo has been recognized as a god of music, sun, and light. The music is the big inspiration for me to draw a design and make clothing. In the mean time, I listen to music that inspired me. My favorite category of music is Rock and Roll. I like to listen to the Rolling Stones, The Beatles etc. I also love 70’s and 80’s fashion; these eras express the freedom, culture, and empowerment which are the huge inspirations for me. My favorite designer who inspired me is Hedi Slimane. Hedi is the former creative director for Saint Laurent. He changed my life. He made me want to design both male and female clothes. He taught me the power, sophistication, and beauty of a woman. I tend to wear black and dark colors, and skinny styles because of Saint Laurent. Also, he is inspired from rock as well. I really appreciate that he has helped me to develop my idea and imagination. The other guy is Hiroshi Fujiwara, known as a godfather of Ura-Harajuku fashion and is a globally influential street wear designer, including being the pioneer for Nike’s “HTM” line, and the “Fenom” line for Levi’s. He launched his first brand, Good Enough, POOL, and The Parking GINZA. He is a motivation as a Japanese student studying in the United States.

Saint Laurent Fashion Show Menswear Collection Spring Summer 2016 in Paris Photo by Valerio Mezzanotti

In the fashion show, I will combine both the rock element and Greek mythology. It’s going to be really tough, because I have never done anything like this before. Creating apparel like this will be a good experience, and will connect to my career in the future. Furthermore, I want to acquire knowledge and skill through this show where I hope it builds experience in the fashion industry. I’m really thankful to be participating in the show, because this is my second time. I am going to do my best, and keep going for my dreams.

Author: Masato Tsunekawa

Instagram: @ksizn