Spark Magazine No. 6 - Senior Design 2016: Elements

KATHERINE KYKTA Editor-in-Chief

Managing Editor ELLIE WENDLAND Art Director MOSES LEE Assistant Art Director HILLARY HENRICI Assistant Art Director EMILY JARVIS Head Artist ERNEST CHAN Creative Director LILY ROCHA Head of Hair and Makeup MAIYA EVANS Assistant Head of Hair and Makeup MARIAH BECERRA Head Model Coordinator TONY REDMER Head Photographer HANNAH LAAMOUMI Writing Director SAMANTHA BOLF Writing Director AIDEN PARK Assistant Writing Director NIKKI LASALLA

ELEMENTS STAFF 2016 OLIVIA ANDERSON MARIA ANDRADE NATALIE ARRIAGA ANDREW CHIEN ISHA DIGHE REBEKAH EDWARDS KRISTIN EVANS ANNA FIELDS ALEX FRANK ARDEN FRANK LONDON GIBSON ILANA GRABARNIK ALANA HERNANDEZ KEVIN HWANG KRISTINA KIEU SUNNY KIM TIFFANI LE AUDREY NGUYEN

PATRICIA OLDANI LYNDEN ORR MELINA PEREZ BECKY PHUNG SOPHIA QUIROGA JAMILA RAJA ALEXA RAY MANUELA RINCON FELICIA RODRIGUEZ NATASHA SABOUR NATALIE SCHULTE BRIANNA SEIDEL SHELBY STEBLER GABRIELA TAN JESSICA TERAN LAUREN TRAN ABBY WILLS

Special thanks to Hannah Laamoumi for the senior designer headshots

CONTENTS

DESIGNERS 4

Rachel Ruth Baker

10

Arlet Betancourt

104

Raluca Popoviciu

110

Paige Rahe

16

Tiffany Chan

114

Carolina Ramos

22

Kara Crosby

120

Tasneem Saifee

28

Victoria Espinoza

34

Debby Garcia

40

Marisa Garcia

46 52 56

Hira Jethwa Aaron Kubacak

126

BACKSTAGE 131 132

Hannah Leonard

62

Taylor Litman

68

Kristen Mellberg

74

Peter Middleton

80 86

Tre Miles Clare Moore

92

Emily Noel

98

Avani Patel

Mario Salazar

133 134

Max La

Carolina Ramos Wilfrido Rodriguez

135

Avani Patel

135 136

Tiffani Le

Karinna Lopez

136 136

TrĂŠ Miles

Lily Rocha

Morgan Meadows

RACHEL RUTH BAKER

Knowing what to be when you grow up is not a hard thing.

At some point we all knew we wanted to be president, a doctor, or, granted, maybe even a princess. But how many of us actually achieved those early goals? Making a decision is one thing, but being so committed to following through with it requires a passion and a persistence that not many of us are fortunate enough to possess. It’s a kind of anomaly. A shooting star caught blazing in the static, black firmament above. Lucky for us, there is one such star blazing full speed ahead to achieve her dreams. Rachel Baker is that burst of light hurling towards a career in fashion and design. At an early age, Rachel had the inkling that fashion was right for her, but it was not until an auspicious visit from a fashion school scout during her sophomore year of high school that the stars aligned and her fate was sealed.

Now she is here at the University of Texas at Austin finishing her final year as a design student. Her collection combines influences from a wonderful menagerie of art and culture to create something purely her own. It is no wonder, since Baker was an expatriate who spent time living in Beijing, China. Spending time there gave Baker the chance to experiment freely with fashion, and she has since used that experience as inspiration for her designs. According to her, Chinese culture has always been and still continues to be influential throughout her career as a designer. But her inspirations cannot be limited to one country alone. She also cites Russian culture to be a prominent inspiration. Having also recently worked with Japanese cotton crepe, she is clearly no foreigner to the idea of having a global reach in creativity.

Aside from the various cultural influences, pop culture and fine art also play a large role in Baker’s design vision.

Baker revealed, “Mark Rothko paintings, Elsa Schiaparelli designs, and the Memphis style of interior design were all inspirations for this collection.” Considering the fact that Rachel also enjoys painting and drawing when she is not designing, it comes as no surprise that she holds art to such high esteem. “Fashion is a personal expression of creativity. It symbolizes a mood, or an emotion, just like a work of art. In that respect, fashion is art. It’s how I express myself,” said Baker.

During her downtime, Rachel likes to spend time with her family. She and her husband are quite the creative pair, so, upon graduating, she plans to work towards creating a fashion label alongside him. A normal Saturday for them consists of taking their dog, Sid, for a long walk and then venturing out to their design studio in Coupland. “In ten years, I want to be creating with my husband in a place that excites me. I am interested in so many different facets of design. As long as we are creating interesting, uncompromising art, I will be happy”.

With her understanding of various cultures due to her time abroad and her interest in drawing and painting, Rachel is set for achieving the kind of uncompromising art that she dreams of. Perhaps one day she will be the next Phoebe Philo, the woman that Baker reveres as the fashion world’s King Midas since she claims, “…everything [Philo] touches turns to gold.” Hopefully, it will soon be Baker who has that effect on the things she creates, and knowing how dedicated and talented she is, there is no question that she will.

Writer: Natasha Sabour, Photographer: Moses Lee, Model: Rachel Pychinzska, HMUA: Rachel Ruth Baker, Layout: Maria Andrade

ARLET BETANCOURT

Arlet Betancourt never imagined living out her childhood dream. As a little girl, Arlet made dresses and purses for her Barbie dolls. She was fond of drawing and designing, but she never considered pursuing a career in fashion design. Arlet came to UT as a biology major and soon discovered that was not where her passions lied. She switched her major to French while she perused for a new field of study that she would find more thrilling. As she was researching majors the University of Texas had to offer, she learned about the fashion program. After taking a few courses in fashion, she fell in love.

Born in El Paso, Texas, Arlet spent the first half of her life in Mexico. A majority of her family still lives in Mexico so Arlet visits often. Her love of design and knowledge about fashion comes from her family. As a child, Arlet and her sister learned how to make Barbie dresses with the sewing machine from her aunt. Arlet also remembers her aunt making them kimonos once. Arlet’s mom also hand-made their Halloween costumes, and as a child, Arlet dreamed of being able make a Halloween costumes of her own when she had kids.

Due to her time spent in Mexico, Arlet was inspired by the vibrancy and liveliness of Mexican culture. Whether it is in the vivid colors or bold patterns, her heritage always shines in her designs. A few years ago, she designed a collection inspired by Mariachis, a design journey she will never forget.

The inspiration behind her senior collection comes from her favorite TV show “Once Upon a Time.” While watch-

ing the show, Arlet paid close attention to the costumes the characters wore and was inspired by the velvet dresses, ball gowns and elegancy of the time period. During the design process for her collection, Arlet also took a course called History of Dress and Culture. Studying medieval dress peaked her curiosity and led Arlet in the direction of a fairytale/medieval inspired collection. Arlet even designed medieval inspired coats for the collection.

To Arlet, fashion is expressing character through clothes and style. Clothes show off personality and Arlet is happiest witnessing someone’s bright personality through fashion. Personally, Arlet enjoys showing expression and character through design. Her style is never constant, it is always changing and that is in part due to the effect fashion has on our lives.

After graduation, Arlet plans to move to a bigger, more fashion-forward city. She plans on keeping an open mind and going where her designs take her. Arlet aspires to expand her knowledge of the fashion industry and design skills. She will be participating in an internship this summer and hopes that will flourish into something more permanent.

In the next five or ten years, her dream is to own a bridal boutique or design wedding gowns, due to a fascination with bridal wear. She also hopes to slowly start building up her brand and business by doing freelance work or interning with bridal designers like David’s Bridal or Vera Wang. Keep an eye out for “Arlet’s Bridal Boutique” somewhere in Dallas.

Writer: Abby Wills, Photographer: Oliva Anderson, Model: Ava Ibanez, HMUA: Jessica Teran, Layout: Manuela Rincon

TIFFANY CHAN

Tiffany is a great designer and a friend to all. Keep your eyes out for Tiffany Chan in the future!

Tiffany Chan is from Austin Texas and needless to say, the energy and motion of the city inspires her every day to explore and innovate in design. Although, she did not always start out as a design major. Primarily, she was majoring in engineering, to which she quickly learned was not her thing. Inside, she knew she needed to be doing something she was passionate about, something she could really invest herself in and the more she learned about the fashion industry, the more she fell in love with the textiles and apparel major.

Now years later, Tiffany is working on her senior collection. She was inspired by the strength and elegance of ballerinas and the unbounded curiosity of children. She believes that woman can be both powerful and also graceful- it is not an either/or situation. The woman she is designing for has a presence; she is on the forefront of her field; she is innovative and ambitious, but also a protector and guardian.

Lately, Tiffany has also been looking to design label Ralph & Russo for inspiration, not only because of their beautiful garments, but because of their story. They were

founded only nine years ago in 2007 and they quickly established themselves in the industry and couture world.

They now officially show at Paris Haute Couture Week.

The quality of their designs and fabrics are incredible, as is the exclusive bespoke experience they strive to provide for their clients. A few other design labels Tiffany finds intriguing are Ashi Studio, Marchesa, Elie Saab, and Cortana by Rosa Esteva.

To Tiffany, fashion is a form of communication and expression of thoughts that we all partake in consciously or subconsciously. It is a language in which designs are phrases or words that individuals can combine to make statements. She believes fashion would be improved if drastic high-low skirts were to go. Although, she would be interested in seeing the mixing of textiles and textures in the same color palette In no particular order, Tiffany plans to continue her education, work in some capacity of the fashion industry, to explore and travel, to have a family, to adopt a cat, to start her own company, and to give back to the world. In five years, she sees herself working in London doing something creative even if that means crafting at the dining room table or maintaining her mood board visual library on Instagram.

Writer: Katherine Kykta, Photographer: Andrew Chien, Model: Nicole Nagel, HMUA: Maya Evans, Layout: Sunny Kim

KARA CROSBY

Kara Crosby is from Dallas, Texas, a city that is really into fashion and what is trending. Moving away from there has shown her how every city has its own style. She says all the pretty things in Neiman Marcus caught her eye at a young age, but her design aesthetic is more representative of Texas as a whole. She cannot recall the exact moment she realized design was for her, but ever since she can remember, she has loved to create. Early on, art was her strong suit, and around age 12 she began sketching costumes and dresses inspired by her favorite movies. She later realized fashion would be not only a career, but also an outlet for her creativity. She says she learns something new about herself, who she is, how she grew up, and what she believes is a part of everything she creates when she designs. She is constantly challenging herself to make something with purpose.

Her community is a big inspiration to her. She enjoys how supportive her classmates are, and believes it is rare, within the world of fashion, to have such a strong support system. Kara believes that fashion cannot truly become forward thinking until it is a collaborative effort. She thinks

of the industry as having different realms within it. Fashion can be an expression of self, so she does not believe there are rules or limits in fashion. It is simply the clothes you wear and how you wear them, and can hold as much or as little meaning as the wearer wants. Additionally, Alexander McQueen is a constant inspiration for Kara. She states he has changed the way a lot of people think about fashion design. The thought and purpose behind each of his collections inspires her to push herself. She says McQueen was not only interested in clothing the world, but was also trying to change it.

Kara’s appreciates teamwork, as her collection is heavily influenced by sportswear. She has always loved watching a group of people work together to achieve a common goal. She has also incorporated knits into her eveningwear, because she does not think you should have to sacrifice comfort for style. If she had to choose one type of textile to make her designs with it would be a woven cotton, such as twill. Most of her designs have a decent amount of structure, but she always tries to keep comfort of the wearer in mind.

Writer: Melina Perez, Photographer: Alexa Ray, Model: Hannah Seavey, HMUA: Sophia Quiroga, Layout: Kevin Hwang

VICTORIA ESPINOZA

Born in Lockhart, Texas, a small town in just southeast of Austin, Victoria had always known when she was growing up that apparel design was the right path for her.

Her grandfather was a professional tailor, and sewing was taught in her family as an art form. Unfortunately, her high school offered basic home economics classes that barely touched on fashion, and she didn’t realize her interests could be anything more than a hobby.

When she came to college, “[she] learned more about the program here and I knew I could start making it as a career.” Though Victoria is actually a Journalism major at UT, she is minoring in apparel design, and wants to eventually work for magazines with a focus on writing about fashion, preferably in New York City. But she’s open to other avenues. “I’m such a day-to-day or weekto-week kind of person,” she stated, “I’m not going to let a long-term goal dictate what I do.” She wants to someday be the sole proprietor of her own business, but is adamant against becoming “just another trend predictor.”

“I’m not so much into trends,” she said, “I see something, I like it, I buy it. Same goes for anyone, wear whatever you want.” This attitude is especially relevant to today’s generation of millenials, whom Victoria cites as her biggest inspiration right now. Millenials are “starting to make a difference in the world,” she said. “It’s a beautiful thing to be a part of and to witness.”

The individuality of the millennial generation helped inspire her collection, aptly titled “Diamond in the Rough.” While partly inspired by the aesthetics of the 1960s, “Diamond in the Rough” focuses on “fun and

body confident girls who aren’t afraid to wear something different,” whether it be to their prom, homecoming, or another formal event that might cause them to stand out.

Victoria believes “each girl or woman is different and beautiful in their own way,” and this belief is demonstrated in her designs.

Victoria herself embodies the type of individuality her designs encourage in women. One of her preferred pastimes is dying her hair different colors, and she owns a cat named Koray, who “takes up a lot of my time actually.”

Her typical Saturday morning involves her waking up at six a.m., “like every other day,” and you can find often find her at the sewing labs the second they open, if that allows enough time to do her work.

In terms of fashion, Victoria is not only an individual, but an individual with a vision. When asked what she would do if she could design with only one type of textile, her choice was “silk, because it’s so beautiful and sexy. There is so much you can do with it.” Her evening gown that she “loves so much” is made entirely out of silk charmeuse.

Victoria also mentioned that Calvin Klein is her favorite designer, because she’s “always loved the simple and elegant designs” of the “iconic label,” something she has always been able to connect to.

The ability for fashion to connect different people and personalities around the world is an aspect of fashion that is extremely important to her. “[Fashion is] a way to connect with people in wearable art. I get really excited when I see a design in my head come to life. Especially when someone wears it.”

Writer: Samantha Bolf, Photographer: Audrey Nguyen, Model: Morgan May, HMUA: Miriah Becerra Layout: Manuela Rincon

DEBBY GARCIA

Debby Garcia is from McKinney, Texas near Dallas. Living in such a safe and and quite suburb inspired Debby to work hard so that she can someday travel the world and experience a wide variety of cultures. She got her start in fashion design when her mother taught her how to sew clothes for her Barbies as a little girl.

In her free time, Debby loves reading, crafting, photography, and fitness. She also loves to make her own skin-care products and is a huge makeup junkie. Currently, she is having a lot of fun experimenting with making her own sustainable and eco-friendly makeup.

At the moment, Debby’s biggest inspiration is nature. As a vegan, Debby finds nature fascinating and believes that sustainability is an issue that must be addressed in the fashion world. She has made it her mission to make fashion affordable and ethical.

Debby’s background also greatly contributes to both her design aesthetic and her plans for the future. Growing up in a low income Latino family in a predominantly wealthy, conservative and white area, she always turned to fashion as a form of self-expression. With her mother’s help, Debby began making her own jewelry and became an expert thrifter. Instead of being looked down on for having less money than her peers, she was seen as a fashion icon. Her humble roots have helped her to realize that with her talents and skills she can make a difference in the world.

the deer and caribou, and in particular, inspired by their antlers. An avid watcher of documentaries on the Discovery channel, Debby found herself fascinated with the way that the antlers of deer become entangled when they fight.

The geometric shapes of the antlers as well as aspects of surrounding nature like leaf veins and tree trunks can be seen in her collection. She uses many organic pieces such as slouchy cardigans as well as geometric laser cut jewelry. Overall, Debby hopes her collection speaks to the circle of life and the beauty of nature.

Fashion to Debby means so much more than just clothing.

She sees fashion as the way that people present themselves to the world. In her opinion, it is the most powerful and personal form of art and self-expression. Accessories, tattoos, hairstyles, makeup, piercings, and clothing all make up the overarching label of fashion according to Debby.

She plans on taking a few years off to freelance and travel the world after she graduates from the University of Texas. During her time off she would also love to spend a year volunteering abroad. After that, she plans to end up either in Los Angeles or New York City, working an entry level design or merchandising position for a hip company that she feels passionately about and working her way up.

Eventually she will go back to school to get her Masters in business before starting her own company that will include a natural skin-care and cosmetics line and all vegan apparel and accessories.

For Debby’s collection, titled “Stag,” she was inspired by

Writer: Patricia Oldani, Photographer: Hannah Laamoumi, Model: Melina Perez, HMUA: Miriah Becerra, Layout: Lauren Tran

MARISA GARCIA

Marisa Garcia knew that apparel design was right for her after her sophomore year of college. Surprisingly, she originally studied medicine. “The pre-med path always seemed like the route I was going to take,” says Marisa.

“But then I picked up skateboarding,” she adds. The summer of 2013 was her turn-around point, and she’s been making skating clothes - and skating - ever since.

Skateboarding is one of Marisa’s passions. Skating influences her fabric choices, inspiring her to choose fabrics that are strong, comfortable, and durable. “Everyone who skates wants to wear something that is comfortable and is going to last,” maintains Marisa. However, it is important to Marisa that her designs look good too, so that her clothing is both functional and stylish. Although Marisa loves to skateboard, she also spends her time playing video games on her PS3 or 3DS, drawing, and going to the arcade. Her typical Saturday morning is usually uneventful: as a senior college student creating a collection, Marisa tries to spend her Saturdays sleeping in until noon.

The girls that Marisa skateboards with are an important inspiration for her line. Marisa believes that observing the limited skating styles for girls influenced her to create durable, functional, and stylish clothing for the girl skater. In addition, Craig Gleason and Lucas Beaufort inspired Marisa to screen print her own artwork for the pieces in her collection. Gleason and Beaufort are significant in Marisa’s creative process, as they create unique art that inspires her to keep drawing. “Art is a crucial part of

skateboarding and being able to create unique drawings for boards and shirts to share with the skate community is really rewarding,” Marisa states.

When asked which fabric she is most interested in working with, Marisa answered, “Denim is one of the most enjoyable fabrics to work with.” She discovered her love for the textile after making some pants for her collection.

“I think denim pants might be one of my favorite things to make,” she discloses.

Marisa hopes to live in Austin working freelance remote jobs for surf/skate/snow companies in the next few years.

She is currently selling prints and shirts of her graphics, but wants to take her work online and start her own local company to sell her screen-printed shirts. She sees herself working from Austin to California, hoping to eventually get her designs into stores there and everywhere in between.

To Marisa, fashion is a blank slate. She loves the freedom to showcase her style through the medium of textiles, and utilizes clothing as a creative outlet. “You can express yourself and what you do through clothes or you can use them as your own personal canvas,” she says. Fashion is a way to communicate with others and utilize the creativity of those around her as well as within herself. When asked what fashion means to her, Marisa replied, “It’s an awesome and unique way to bring fabric and art to life.”

Writer: London Gibson, Photographer: Alex Frank, Model: Brianna Vance, HMUA: Natalie Arriaga, Layout: Kristina Kieu

HIRA JETHWA

Ever since elementary school, Hira Jethwa has always known she wanted to do something in fashion. Hira was born in Brooklyn, NY and is a Pakistani-American Austenite. Hira believes it was her culture that lead her toward design because Pakistan has a large fashion industry that incorporates very colorful and embellished garments.

Hira has always had a passion for design and debated whether she should major in architecture, advertising, or fashion. But in the end, Hira chose apparel design because she feels that is has a broad range of careers within the industry in which she can combine her multiple talents and interests.

To Hira, fashion is an expression. As if you can express how you are feeling without even having to speak. Kira believes, “fashion gives a glimpse into someone’s personality without them having to open up.” That is what she loves about fashion. Her fashion style is mostly inspired by menswear. Hira loves the refined look of menswear and likes to layer elements in ways that make them feminine. She loves several different clothing pieces like button up shirts, loafers, and blazers. Every fashionista has a certain clothing item or accessory that they love and just have to have. Hira’s biggest weakness while shopping is spotting a nice blazer because that is something she feels she has no control over when it comes to shopping.

Hira believes that learning apparel design, business and staying up to date on fashion trends has given her a bet-

ter understanding of fashion. Before she was exposed to the world of fashion, she thought fashion was an industry only for people who want to make clothes. Now she has learned that the industry is massive and that there is so much more to it than just making clothes.

The inspiration behind Hira’s collection was iridescent objects and the colors that they reflect. She finds it interesting how one object can be seen in a new perspective in different lights. It is little things like this that fascinate her.

Her collections draw from prismatic shapes and iridescent colors contrasting with black. Hira says it is definitely menswear inspired and transforms some of the classic pieces in menswear.

Hira feels that her biggest inspiration for fashion relates to history and architecture. She has always been drawn toward the little details that people often overlook, such as in buildings and in art. In her free time, she likes to do photography and explore new places. Hira feels that “doing photography has taught her to focus on details.”

Everywhere she goes, she notices the smallest things that inspire her.

Since Hira loves graphic design, photography and fashion, her plans for the future are to combine her interests and pursue a career in fashion publication, editorial, or even in social media. One thing for sure is that she “sees herself doing what she loves to do and is excited to take on the next day.”

Writer: Alana Hernandez, Photographer: London Gibson, Model: Anahita Pardiwalla, Layout: Kevin Hwang

AARON KUBACAK

Aaron Kubacak, from Round Rock, TX has always had an interest in fashion. “I used to love dressing up Barbie when I was a kid,” Aaron said. His mother had a great influence on him. He is now grateful that his mom let him have a Barbie when he was a child. His mom also taught him how to sew and he had an interest in drawing from a very young age. He even had a toy called a “fashion plate” where he would use scraps of fabric to create different looks on a plastic form of a lady. Later he started sketching out different dress designs and thought how great it would be to learn how to make those drawings into something real.

That is where the University of Texas came to play in Aaron’s life. He chose UT for the wonderful opportunities the school provides. Not only is the hands on experience of getting to design and sew garments amazing, but so is the wonderful fashion photo shoots that are available to the students as well as the Fashion Show. Aaron thinks that this program is great opportunity to learn the skill of designing and sewing and getting his work out there in front of an audience.

During his time at the University of Texas, Aaron has had the distinct privilege of interning with local fashion designer Linda Asaf and has helped design and create costumes for “Dragoween,” a local charity drag show for the

past three years. He also has stitched in the costume shop for Glimmerglass Opera in Cooperstown, NY. Currently, he works part time at the University of Texas costume shop as a stitcher/product assistant.

Aaron describes his style as fashion forward with throwback elements. He aims for designs that are versatile and could be worn out to the club or to a red carpet event. Aaron likes to design “separates” that coordinate with other pieces in his collection or can be used as a stand-out garment with other pieces in your one’s wardrobe. He loves his designs to be eye-catching, with high-contrasting colors and a mixture of modern and classic fabrics.

Aaron’s collection was inspired by Sci-Fi posters and Pulp Fiction art from the 1960s. He imagined styles for a troupe of characters who might have played a part in these campy stories. The collection is called “Love’s Lost Starship” and each look is based on a character. In this collection, Aaron wanted to include romantic elements by using antique-looking closures paired with a mix of modern and classic, high intensity colored fabrics.

After graduation, Aaron wants to work in an atelier for a prominent design house or design costumes for the next Star Wars movie.

Writer: Olivia Anderson, Photographer: Maria Andrade, Model: Sean Hwang, HMUA: Natalie Arriaga, Layout: Maria Andrade

HANNAH LEONARD

Designer Hannah Leonard grew up in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, realizing that she cared more about fashion than the vast majority of people around her. That is, excluding her mother, a local costumer extraordinaire, who influenced her to become a designer. Although she has always wanted to have some sort of career in fashion, a turning point was when she realized how impactful fashion was on people’s personalities.

From then on, Hannah drew inspiration from the people around her, who offered her endless amounts of creativity.

Always taking in the information around her has allowed Hannah to see beauty everywhere and almost constantly be inspired. This collection in particular was inspired by fashion icon Twiggy and the 1960’s in London.

She puts her passion and heart into her clothes, designing based on her mood. As a result, her clothes are constantly evolving, usually including loud colors and bold prints, to match her active personality. Loving individuality and the personal side to fashion, Hannah hates to see the same old t-shirt and Nike shorts that she says is practically a uniform in the South.

Hannah considers fashion to be the “art of personal expression,” taking on special meaning to individuals after being lived in and experiencing life. With such a unique take on fashion, it comes as no surprise that Hannah

dreams of traveling to as many far-off places she can and experiencing life to the fullest.

Like her personal design aesthetic, Hannah’s favorite fashion designers are always changing. She has loved Betsey Johnson since she was a kid, inspired by the “colorful burst of energy in her clothes.” Today, she is equally obsessed with Dolce & Gabbana for their timeless, feminine collections. These inspirations carry through to Hannah’s own designs, in her love of feminine shapes and extravagant textiles.

Hannah has always been creative, dancing for 15 years growing up. Now, she still tries to find time in her busy schedule for herself. “I like to take a dance class, workout class, or yoga class to de-stress my mind,” Hannah says when asked what she likes to do in her free time. She also loves crafting and baking.

In the future, Hannah would love to see herself launching her debut collection at New York Fashion Week. Until then, she is focusing on the personal side of fashion.

“All I have ever wanted to accomplish is to make people feel whole when they put on my clothes,” Hannah says.

“I want them to hold their head high and have a certain strut in their step because they feel so confident in my clothing.”

Writer: Shelby Stebler, Photographer: Natalie Schulte, Model: Rachel Real, HMUA: Hannah Leonard, Layout: Anna Fields

TAYLOR LITMAN

Taylor Litman is from Dallas, Texas. Her roots in designing were planted early after enrolling in a sewing camp in the seventh grade. Spending everyday in a hot attic that summer, she remembers sifting through swaths of fabric, cutting long strips and sewing them together to make headbands. The feeling of being able to create something totally unique and wholly hers made a memorable impression on Taylor. It was that summer, Taylor says, she realized apparel design was right for her.

Besides London, Taylor remarks her sense of individuality has greatly contributed to her understanding of fashion.

She says she was taught growing up to always be herself no matter what. Trends and fads have almost no effect on her; she says if something makes her feel good when wearing it, she is going to do just that - wear it. She enjoys having her own unique sense of style that differentiates her from the norm. To Taylor, fashion means being herself, expressing herself, and being a fierce individualist.

Although Taylor believes Dallas’ fashion scene mostly surrounds retail merchandising rather than designing, she remembers the malls of Dallas as being a hub for inspiration. Practically living at the Northpark Center, she recalls the mall had a strip dedicated to high end designers and stores such as Neiman Marcus, Valentino, and Roberto Cavalli; stores that have made a lingering impact on her. She fondly reminisces looking at dresses in the shop windows and imagining she would one day design something that would become the subject of another little child’s dream. However, the influence for this collection can be traced back much sooner than when she spent her time window shopping as an adolescent.

As for Taylor’s favorite textile to design with, she says if she could, she would make her entire wardrobe out of jersey knits. Her favorite fashion label is the simplistically beautiful Opening Ceremony and is thrilled with the subtle comeback of 1990s fashion - the resurrection of dark lips, biker jackets, and mini-skirts are very much her style. However, Taylor is not a big fan of the two-piece sets that are so prevalent in today’s fashion scene.

After studying abroad in London, England, Taylor says the capital of the UK is one her biggest muses. She regularly draws inspiration from London’s dark color scheme, the rich velvet booths of pubs, and as Taylor describes, the city’s “luxurious homeyness.” She notes that the splendor and grandioseness of London most often find their way into much of her work.

Upon graduating from UT, Taylor sees herself living in New York City as a stylist. Her love for creating and constructing outfits have melded and mixed into a desire to style. Her goal for the future is to style for either a publication, a big company, or a celebrity. Nevertheless, no matter which platform Taylor chooses, her eye for individuality and distinctive ensembles will continue to inspire; perhaps from the same Northpark Center windows that so impacted Taylor.

Writer: Aiden Park, Photographer: Andrew Chien, Model: Gabby Tan, HMUA: Isha Dighe, Layout: Emily Jarvis

KRISTEN MELLBERG

Kristen Mellberg is from Harker Heights, Texas, a small town outside of Austin. While she did find her love for fashion in the small town, her journey into apparel design did not garner much inspiration from the actual town of Harker Heights. Instead, she knew what she wanted to do when she grew up when she was in kindergarten.

She came to class in mismatched socks, leggings and a backwards dress. After that day, during play time, instead of playing on the playground, she would go to a fabric box they had in the classroom and drape all of the scraps of different fabrics over her clothes, imagining that she could be wearing something else.

ers are Betsey Johnson, Elie Saab, and Valentino. In her own words, she loves how Betsey Johnson mixes crazy loud prints and colors, and it is always a really fun to look at collection; how Elie Saab’s detail and beading is always amazing and intricate; and, finally, how Valentino’s garments speak for themselves: they are timeless. When you cannot find Kristen designing, you can find her binge watching her favorite TV shows, reading, hanging with her boyfriend and her dog, or finding any activity that helps her express her creativity. While these activities do help her relax, Kristen loves designing, especially if it is with silk, her favorite textile.

Today, Kristen has created a collection that is edgy and romantic. Her style mixes these two inspirations together to create a stylish cocktail outfit that is perfect for going out to dinner or drinks. It creates a style for a night out on the town. She was also inspired by Castle De Haar, a 124-year-old castle in the Netherlands. Known for its ornate woodcarvings, the castle’s interior reminds many of a Roman Catholic Church. On top of that, there are delicate porcelain pieces from Japan, and richly colored tapestries all throughout the castle. Kristen says that she drew from the details and colors of this astonishing place.

In the future, Kristen hopes not only that the ‘90s choker trend disappears, but also that she is ultimately designing her own line of clothes for the world to see. Before that happens, though, she would love to work with Vera Wang.

Ultimately, Kristen’s love for fashion stems from a love of herself. “I never really understood fashion,” she says. “I just decided that I would dress myself how I wanted to. I just wanted to be comfortable and still look cute in whatever I wore.” That core theme is what brings Kristen’s love for fashion, and her designs, to life.

However, much of her inspiration actually comes from home. Her parents, she says, are her biggest inspirations.

They are incredibly creative and have always inspired her to do what she wants to do. Without them, it would be harder to live her dream. Of course, there are industry professionals who she also admires. Her favorite design-

happens, though, she would love to work with Vera Wang.

Ultimately, Kristen’s love for fashion stems from a love of herself. “I never really understood fashion,” she says. “I just decided that I would dress myself how I wanted to. I just wanted to be comfortable and still look cute in whatever I wore.” That core theme is what brings Kristen’s love for fashion, and her designs, to life.

Writer: Nikki LaSalla, Photographer: Name, Model: Khouri Iziren, HMUA: Alexa Ray, Layout: Kristina Kieu

PETER MIDDLETON

Peter Middleton is from right here in Austin, Texas and he discovered the University of Texas’ Textile and Apparel program in high school. His mentor from Younglife went through the same program and sung its praises to Peter.

The idea of going to UT, his dream school, and pursuing his passion seemed unreal, when growing up the only options seemed to be engineering or business. Although, he really knew apparel design was right for him when he started to ask people what they wanted to do for the rest of their life if they were paid the same for any job. He started to think about his answer and realized it was exactly what he was planning on doing; designing clothes.

Now that he is at UT and happily integrated into textiles and apparel, Peter looks to designers like Ralph Lauren and Billy Reid. He appreciates Ralph Lauren’s fresh perspective on fashion, especially his recent decision to show five western inspired looks for his Purple Label FW 16 line and successfully incorporate cowhide in so many ways. Peter considers his favorite designer Billy Reid, because his line feels more comfortable and natural than most others. He believes he could wear only his line for the rest of his life and never feel out of place or uncomfortable. That is exactly what he wants to achieve with his work; clothes that are wonderful, comfortable, wearable.

In the collection he is working on right now he was inspired by a blending of the materials of the West and the sensibilities of the urban East, because of the places he has been in his life. He was born and grew up in Texas,

worked in Colorado for three summers, and will now be heading to New York to work. That might even be why his ideal textile to work with would be a blended wool and cashmere coat-weight fabric and also because of its softness and versatility.

To Peter, fashion is an umbrella term for how we present ourselves to others. What we wear really effects how we walk, our posture, and our mannerisms. One saying they work in fashion means that their job is to try and design clothes and fabrics that help people express themselves in a more genuine way. Furthermore, he believes that not being very close to New York City has enabled him to make better judgements of what he truly likes to wear and design. He did not grow up with a ton of access to high fashion brands, so he started from colors and textures when looking for inspiration and went from there.

He hopes the way his life has played out serves to keep him grounded. He wants most people to be comfortable wearing the clothes he makes.

In his free time, when he has it, Peter likes to rock climb, make coffee, run trails on the greenbelt, and look on eBay for 100 year old Navajo rugs and blankets. On a typical day he usually wakes up around 7 or 8 am, makes coffee, reads his Bible, then starts sewing or cutting fabric. With the fashion show coming up, he is generally working on it every day for at least five or six hours. On good days he is able to eat dinner with his roommates and take a break.

Writer: Katherine Kykta, Photographer: Anthony Redmer, Model: Chrisam Reiter, HMUA: Natalie Arraga, Layout: Sunny Kim

TRÉ MILES

Tre Miles is a Retail Merchandising major with a minor in Business foundations and Textiles and Apparel Design.

Tre’s path to design wasn’t always clear and defined. Tre was originally a nursing major; he spent the summer between his freshman and sophomore shadowing his mother as she worked in the labor and delivery unit. This experience led Tre to question the direction he was headed. Ultimately, his mother gave him the advice, “You should never be able to look back and regret the choices you could have made.” These wise words prompted Tre to meet with his advisor and change his major on the first day back for sophomore year.

This decision was not just random; Tre was raised in a very understanding and liberal household that allowed for a natural path of development into who he is today. The women in his house used clothing as an outlet. His grandmother had richly decorated blankets and Native American pieces. His aunt always seemed to be making bedding or costumes from scratch, and Tre’s mother always wore clothes slightly to the left of the trend. Along with the women in Tre’s family, his understanding of fashion was shaped by his untraditional life being a mixed queer lower-middle class kid of a single mother house: it forced Tre to get creative.

Tre’s biggest inspiration right now is the current progressive state of the social and political atmosphere in terms of gender, race, sexuality, and more. This is evident in his collection. Tre decided that he would not make clothing

without a purpose. He believes that fashion can inform how society views social and political issues and in turn how those who follow or do not follow the norms are treated. Tre sets his collection apart through his marriage of an eclectic group of fabrics and the socially aware statements he makes through his clothing. Tre’s inspiration for this collection comes from how one identifies oneself and uses this identity to either follow the masses or set themselves apart. He was inspired by gender neutrality and expression, so he sourced where gender is more of spectrum naturally within the animal kingdom. Tre discovered the parrotfish and spotted hyena, which are animals that dance around the lines of gender and are not constricted by a binary.

Tre has a very specific plan for his life. In five years he sees himself, “Living in New York, in a small studio apartment. I have 4 to 5 roommates, a few them are queer and all of them are in the arts. One of the roommates is definitely making beaucoup bucks, while the rest of us are broke. I’m hopefully styling for musician and/or part of a fashion collaborative designing, creating, and informing for a new generation.” Tre’s goal in the fashion industry is to be loud with a purpose. Tre wants everything he creates to say something more. His ultimate goal is to inform a new status quo through design, music, filmmaking, and/or any other creative avenue. Fashion is his first impression and ultimate expression. Fashion allows Tre to say who he is to the guy at the other end of the football stadium without ever having to say a word.

Writer: Ellie Wendland, Photographer: Kristan Evans, Model: Yasmeen Dahiya, HMUA: Jessica Teran, Maiya Evans, Layout: Maria Andrade

CLARE MOORE

Clare Moore is from Allen, a suburb of Dallas, Texas. She says she always dreamed of living in a bigger city since the style in the suburbs was often repetitive and unoriginal. She says a lot of people stuck to the same trends, not being bold enough to dare to be different.

Fashion for Clare has always been an expression of one’s self. She has always been passionate about this idea of visual communication, where a dress, for example, can reveal a multitude of things about someone’s character.

When she sees the confidence in what that person is wearing, she “sees” them. Being able to see a person through their fashion choices allows her to take great amounts of inspiration from street style because she is able to capture the essence of people interacting in day-to-day life. Furthermore, this has ultimately been an inspiration behind her collection.

“My collection is inspired by rush hour in a foggy city, say London or New York, when thousands of people are passing by you and you automatically make one word associations with people as you pass them by. But then later, you realize that people have many more layers to them and much more than just that rushed one-word judgement,” Clare says.

Other than “fashion designer Clare Moore,” she also has her everyday “Clare Moore.” This side of her enjoys being surrounded by great friends, watching John Hughes movies (or any cheesy chick flick for that matter), traveling, and sourcing inspiration from magazines and people watching. Although the semester has kept her fairly busy with her senior fashion collection, Clare likes to take some downtime on her weekends.

While the semester comes to a close, Clare looks at the possibilities ahead of her, determined and empowered. In the near future, she sees herself outside of Texas, maybe in a place like New York, Australia, or London. She hopes to work in public relations for a fashion designer.

As for the years to come, Clare sees herself living abroad for a couple of years before moving back to the states. She hopes to start a family as well as being a successful social media manager at a major fashion house.

Wherever fashion takes Clare, she will do it with a bit of spark.

Writer: Felicia Rodriguez, Photographer: Kristin Evans, Model: Lynden Orr, HMUA: Lynden Orr, Layout: Lauren Tran

EMILY NOEL

Even as a young child, design has always been on Emily Noel’s mind. A native of Colleyville, Texas, a suburb of Dallas-Fort Worth, Emily has had several influences over the years that hinted toward her future in the world of fashion. Her parent’s luxury custom home business first opened her eyes to the nuance and importance of visual aesthetic. This revelation quickly expanded into her creation of a pretend fashion line, complete with a name, a logo, and illustrations of clothing and handbags. As she got older, Emily found herself continually “unimpressed” with the clothes that she found in the shopping centers near her, imagining little additions to garments here and there that would make the piece so much edgier, more interesting, and more unique. Despite this, it did not hit her that design was the right career path for her until she successfully completed her first menswear look while taking Apparel 2 at UT, which she views as “a huge undertaking for her skill level” at the time.

Emily’s collection showcases her fascination with textured and novelty textiles, an interest that originated as she observed her mother’s interior design process growing up. Based on the Western conception of Chinese culture and initially inspired by the exhibit “China: Through the Looking Glass” at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, her pieces reflect the richness, ornateness, and luxury that the country’s textiles and artifacts exude. Her collection is an interesting and modern fusion of Chinese motifs with elements of the Western world.

Outside of her collection, one of Emily’s main inspirations, not only as a professional but also as an individual, is the designer Naeem Kahn. Having met him while on the UT in NYC trip, Emily was able to discuss his creative process with him and learn “how he thinks.” His breathtaking gowns, dramatic party clothes, and exceptional eye for “gorgeous textiles” have particularly influenced her.

According to Emily, fashion means “expressing yourself in your own unique way.” It is “all about the attitude.” It confuses her when everyone dresses the same and buys trendy pieces just to fit into the crowd instead of conveying their own individual identity through what they wear.

As she puts it, “you don’t have to nail every outfit, every time.” You just have to commit to it.

Currently, Emily’s desire for success is her biggest motivation. Every time she misses a social event or a night out with friends due to a late night in the studio, she reminds herself that all of her hard work will pay off in the long run. She hopes to relocate to either Dallas or New York City in the next five years, finding work in the creative side of a fashion company or clothing line. In addition to “making her mark on the fashion industry,” she hopes to travel the world and eventually get married. However, when she does find free time, she loves to be with her family and friends as well as going to weekend brunch and exploring the “amazing city” that is Austin.

Writer: Rebekah Edwards, Photographer: Aiden Park, Model: Katie Cameron, HMUA: Emily Noel, Layout: Anna Fields

AVANI PATEL

Avani Patel is from Sugarland, Texas, and grew up twenty minutes away from the Houston fashion scene. Now pursuing a double-degree with Textiles and Design and Finance, as well as being a part of the Business Honors Program, attending the University of Texas helped her realize there were “so many options” with which to make her long-time interest in fashion a reality. Though her goals make room for the possibility of becoming the North American director of retail for a European luxury brand, she would like to continue creating her own designs.

“As my understanding of art and fashion grows, I have a more solidified sense of my personal style, regardless of trends,” Avani said in our interview. But while designing, she takes inspiration from art, and the expression of different emotional states.

“Right now,” she mentioned, “I am inspired by Monet’s Water Lilies.” For her collection, Avani was primarily inspired by Theo van Doesburg’s Rhythm of a Russian Dance (created in 1918). “While it was created nearly a

century ago,” she said, “the piece is modern in so many ways, and inspired my color palette and geometric print.

As the founder of the De Stijl movement, van Doesburg believed in pure abstraction, using only primary colors and form to achieve universality in art, which creates a sense of movement and liveliness in the piece. I hope to achieve a similar concept.” She also said that her collection is “meant to be sassy, chic, and exuberant with just a touch of kitsch. “ In the end, the most important element of fashion to Avani is feeling more like yourself when you wear it. It is not about being in style or on trend, which are both about wearing something because other people would like it.

According to Avani, fashion can cultivate a relationship with yourself that eventually “helps you better understand why you like the things you like.” Fashion, to her, is primarily a way to communicate who you are, and take joy in self-expression, both of which are qualities demonstrated in Avani herself and her fantastic collection.

Writer: Samantha Bolf, Photographer: Kevin Hwang, Model: Hannah Seavey, HMUA: Gabriela Tan, Layout: Ilana Grabarnik

RALUCA POPOVICIU

Originally born in Romania, Raluca Popoviciu moved to the vastly different world of California when she was 7 years old. As a little girl, Raluca remembers putting together outfits and loving fashion and clothing in general, so it is no surprise that she started her path to becoming a full-fledged fashion designer here at the University of Texas at Austin.

However, Raluca did not always have this aspiration. She started her college career at UTSA, then transferred to UT, hoping to get into the architecture program. Although she did not get in, she was able to later switch into the School of Human Ecology for fashion in her junior year.

Although, architecture still continues to influence her designs. This can be seen in her use of “structured and curved draped lines,” as well as her expression of “the feeling of openness and space.”

Architectural design elements are readily found in her current senior collection, entitled Pieces of a Whole. In a recent trip back home to California, Raluca visited the iconic tiled houses set in Venice Beach. All types of mosaics fascinate Raluca, from deliberate, simple tile repetitions to small shards of tile “strategically placed to create a bigger picture.” To Raluca, mosaics symbolize the journey of life, each shard coming together to form a perfectly arranged conglomeration of the various events and memories one has. The final image is an accurate representation of a person’s entire life itself.

Like a mosaic, Raluca is not just composed of a single tile - she also has different “shards” from her life aside from being a fashion designer that make up who she is as

a person. A typical Saturday morning for Raluca consists of a 6 AM yoga class, some weight training, and getting to the studio to work on her collection.

Inspiration can come from anywhere to Raluca, and her favorite labels include fashion giants Chanel, Christian Dior, etc., as well as Zimmerman, an Australian-based brand. Through their work and brand, Raluca cites these labels as her favorites because they manage to elevate the fashion industry to new heights by pushing the current boundaries of the industry with their creative passion and creating a space for self-expression.

Additionally, more than just pretty dresses on the runway or deliberately styled outfits thrown on mannequins in store windows, Raluca believes that fashion ultimately serves as a wordless outlet for self-expression. As such, Raluca thinks that trends themselves should disappear because “following your own style and aesthetic will always set you apart from the pack following the latest trend.”

Raluca finds translating the idea that appears in her mind into reality the hardest part about designing. However, she loves everything about fashion, from the long nights and hard work to the joy of finally seeing her finished creations in real life.

When asked what her plans are for the future, Raluca cooly replied, “Plans are for people who haven’t yet realized nothing ever goes according to plan.” Although her time at UT is coming to an end, Raluca unabashedly looks forward to the future with hopes of owning her own fashion line and being in her “happy place” in 10 years.

Writer: Becky Phung, Photographer: Aiden Park, Model: Alayna Enos, HMUA: Raluca Popoviciu, Layout: Manuela Rincon

PAIGE RAHE

Paige Rahe is from San Antonio. She grew up touring the construction sites of projects her dad designed, sparking her interest in the design field. She considered doing interior design, but her experience with designing her own evening gown last semester really locked in her passion for apparel design and fashion.

Paige’s favorite fashion designer is IRO. She is obsessed with their coats because how easy it is to match with any kind of outfit. For an evening night out, she loves to wear Zac Posen because of their unique design that shows off a woman’s body. Every time she sees them on the red carpet, she can identify who made the coats.

On a typical Saturday morning, Paige and her ten roommates wake up, get coffee and breakfast and sit in their living room to talk for hours on end. They also like to watch the TV show, Friends. During her free time, Paige likes to go out with her friends and take exercise classes to stay fit and healthy. Paige likes to be active, but also stay in touch with the people she loves.

If Paige could design something, she would choose the textile wool crepe because of how sharp and crisp it is.

She believes wool crepe gives her the flexibility to design anything casual or luxurious, which is great for any type of clothing.

Bianca Jagger is Paige’s main source of inspiration for her collection. Jagger’s bold style with white pant suits and Studio 54 outfits vastly influenced a lot of Paige’s ren-

dition of “The New Suit.” She mixed pants, dresses and coats and is looking forward to the end results.

Looking back on her freshman year of college, Paige is surprised by how much she has grown. Out of many experiences and learning about fashion, Paige believes her study abroad in Florence was instrumental in bringing a new outlook into her designs today. Spending her weekends traveling to different European countries also gave her a new cultural aspect into her aesthetic. Paige believes that every obstacle she had to overcome in her twenty years have shaped her into the woman she’s become and made her a stronger and independent thinker.

In 15 years, Paige sees herself as the owner and creative director for her small business. On the side, she is planning to collaborate with her friends to have boutique shops to sell her friend’s art and her line of clothing as well. She plans to move to Chicago or New York to pursue a job in the fashion industry and see where her opportunities will take her. She is eager to learn everything and start from the bottom to the top.

Fashion means more than just clothing and design. It is a statement of individual personality. Paige believes every individual has their own aesthetic, and fashion is an accurate depiction that allows designers to communicate their artistic creativity to the consumers. Fashion is a sense of self and it is the most powerful tool to express your personality to strangers. People who are able to stay loyal to their own image are the ones who are truly unique.

Writer: Sunny Kim, Photographer: Olivia Anderson, Model: Mary Curry, HMUA: Mariah Becerra, Layout: Ernest Chan

CAROLINA RAMOS

Carolina Ramos did not always know she wanted to be in fashion. In fact, it was not until she joined the University Fashion Group as a freshman that she even realized the University of Texas had a fashion program. Before becoming a Textiles & Apparel major, she, “didn’t really know much about the actual fashion industry, [and] only saw what everyone else sees – fashion through the eyes of magazine editors or TV shows or online blogs.” She quickly became passionate about clothing, however, and now believes that fashion is art and there are no rules to how it should be worn or interpreted.

Carolina’s favorite designer is New York based designer, Alexander Wang. She loves his sleek, modern, and clean designs, and sees many similarities between his work and her own. She also admires his mixing of fabrics, and his use of predominantly dark colors in many of his designs.

Besides other fashion designers, Carolina takes much of her inspiration from her friends and family. Her family has always been supportive of whatever she wants to pursue, and has been an uplifting and motivating presence in her life for many years. Her friends, many of whom are living and working in New York City, have proven to her that with hard work and passion, she can accomplish all of her goals. She believes that it is imperative to be sur-

rounded by passionate and positive people who will not drag you down in anyway.

Carolina’s senior collection features mainly outerwear and started as an extension of her final project in her Product Development class, where she made a collection of blue and black leather jackets. She was first and foremost inspired by her primary fabric choice, leather. Though she usually designs in dark colors, for this collection she was inspired by lighter neutrals and one of the two Pantone colors of the year, Rose Quartz. She really wanted to focus on the juxtaposition of the tough and edgy leather, with the light, fresh, and natural aesthetic that her color choice brought.

After graduating, Carolina plans to move to New York City to complete her design internship over the summer.

Afterwards, she hopes to continue working as a designer in a large design house and eventually starting her own brand.

In her words, fashion is “an expression of your own individuality and is what sets you apart from others at first glance. [It] is fun and creative and crazy and can be anything you could ever imagine.”

Writer: Brianna Seidel, Photographer:Tony Redmer, Model: Alayna Enos, HMUA: Tiffani Le, Layout: Ilana Grabarnik

TASNEEM SAIFEE

Born in Norwich, Connecticut and raised in Houston, Tasneem Saifee was exposed to the art of sewing at a young age. She would often find her mother sewing and use her scraps to make clothes for her dolls. Tasneem knew design was her niche from this point forward, but did not believe she could make a career from it.

Tasneem began school at UT with a more “practical” major as a bio/pre-med student. She soon learned about the Textiles and Apparel program and immediately switched her major. So far, switching into Textiles and Apparel has been the best decision she has made in her undergraduate career.

Joining the Textiles and Apparel program has allowed Tasneem to channel her favorite authors, places and documentaries into designs and collections. Much of her free time is dedicated to watching documentaries with a “critical eye making note of the design lines and sometimes formulating the patterns for clothes.” Documentaries combined with inspiration from Jane Austen and J.R.R. Tolkien often steer her creative process. The Elvish culture Tolkien creates in his books brought Tasneem to design a “majestic, yet powerful” bridal gown. ‘Skylar,’ her collection for the senior fashion show, was inspired by both the obvious and hidden beauties of Austin. Architectural lines of the Austin skyline and dispersed light through the windows of buildings stand as pillars in the construction of her garments. Much like the hidden gems of Austin, the real beauty of Tasneem’s collection can be found deeper within her designs. A closer look at her patterns reflect the infamous Graffiti Park and Cathedral of Junk. The intricate linings of her jackets and skirts further demonstrate that one must delve deep into the surface of an object to find the treasures it holds.

Zuhair Murad’s equivalently profound attention to detail makes him one of Tasneem’s admirable role models in the fashion industry. Only after her experience with bridal gown construction did she realize “how tedious it is to precisely cut, place and sew lace.” Murad’s “voluminous gowns with lots of intricate bead and lace work” have redefined Tasneem’s respect and admiration of his work.

Moving forward, Tasneem has much to accomplish. While exploring Austin and cooking with her roommate currently fills her spare time, she plans to move to Seoul, Korea shortly after graduation. In ten years, Tasneem would like to launch her own line, but would like first to accumulate more experience, possibly in the field of historical/fantasy costume movie design. Short term goals include working with Crepe back satin: a fabric ideal for making gowns due to its “perfect drape, weight, and texture.” Long term goals include work with unconventional materials and exploring the fusion of cultures.

Raised in a diverse household, Tasneem understands the stylistic differences amongst global fashion. While trends in the West come in wide varieties, Eastern trends tend to remain slightly traditional. Many view these cultural differences as barriers in the creative process. However; Tasneem takes them as an opportunity to think outside of the box with confidence. She knows that if her designs do not cater to the American market, Eastern markets might be more interested. Either way, Tasneem plans to continue to use fashion as a mean to “express and, ironically, escape.”

Writer: Arden Frank, Photographer: Jamila Raja, Model: Nicole Nagel, HMUA: Maiya Evans, Layout: Hillary Henrici

MARIO SALAZAR

Mario Salazar is from Eagle Pass, a small, but growing town on the border of Texas and Mexico. He has always had an eye for fashion, but never really pictured himself doing it as a career. That is because growing up his interests were more geared to technology and computers.

Between all the video editing and graphic design he did, it made sense to come to UT to study Computer Science.

But something about the major and the study was not for him. With time, he found the culmination of his move to Austin and his love of the costumes attracted him to the Apparel Design major. Before long, the switch was made and Mario never looked back!

Right now, Mario’s biggest inspiration comes from listening to music. A second form of inspiration comes to Mario as an inner desire to make his parents proud. They have supported him every step of the way and he felt it is the least he can do to repay all of the love they have shown him.

With respect to his current collection, Mario’s inspiration comes from the movie Interstellar. He fell in love with everything about it: the cinematography, the score, and the production design. The movie inspired him to name his collection Relativity, which references Einstein’s Theory of Relativity, space-time, and the underlying theme of

the movie. There is no end to how space, in its dark and mysterious ways, enchants Mario, so there was no other option but to dedicate his collection to that.

Mario looks to Calvin Klein’s simple silhouettes and lines that consistently grace the collections. Creative directors Francisco Costa and Italo Zucchelli have an incredible way to make the clothing feel sophisticated and provide creative direction enough for the brand so that advertisements are consistent and worthy of falling in love.

In the future, Mario hopes to become an assistant designer or work for GQ Magazine, Ralph Lauren, Calvin Klien, or Tommy Hilfiger when he graduates, so that he may build up knowledge until he has saved up enough money to start his own company. For fun on the side, he would love to design clothes for Kendall Jenner or work for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show. In roughly ten years, Mario sees himself having his own clothing line based either out of Texas or California. And as not to leave his love of technology behind, he plans to use a lot of digital printing in his future designs.

But no matter where Mario ends up in the future, he will always wear his cowboy boots and jeans. That part of him will always be there.

Writer: Katherine Kykta, Photographer: Jamila Raja, Model: George Chidiac, HMUA: Jessica Teran, Layout: Moses Lee

BACKSTAGE letters from UFG leadership

TRÉ MILES president I will always remember the first University Fashion Group – or UFG for short – meeting I attended October of 2012.

I was so nervous, trying to decide what to where, wondering if the members like me or if they would exclude me. I had arrived around ten minutes before the meeting was scheduled to start, sitting alone amongst all the people around me. I looked around and there was a mix of characters: the stylish, the oversized-shirt and sweats, the designer name-dropper, the athlete, the thrift shopper, and so on. Just as the meeting was about to start and I had overused the fake “check and reply to my texts” game, someone was walking my way and took the seat right next to me. He first compliments my shirt then went on to introduce himself as Demetrius. He informed me about the org and everything I needed to know. After five minutes of talking, the president, Angeli began the meeting. She stood so well-dressed and spoke so eloquently with an edge of business-savvy and zeitgeist influence. After the meeting ended, I knew immediately that I needed to be a part of this group. I signed up, paid the dues, walked back to my dorm and knew I had made the right choice.

Fast-forward to my senior year and many things have happened and changed: I switched majors from pre-nursing to retail merchandising; I dropped the y and added an accent going from “Trey” to “Tré”, and I went from never visiting New York to working backstage at NYFW. As President, this year has been like no other as my role in UFG has become bigger than I had imagined. My position not only calls for me to oversee the organization as a whole but I also lead the meetings, make big decisions in relation to the annual fashion show, choose the speakers, and oversee the 30 officers and the various duties. Along with those duties, I mostly try to keep everyone motivated, comfortable, and happy with their positions.

Starting around August, all of the officers and I begin to individually strategize our duties for the upcoming year.

The Vice Presidents, Caro and Max, work together to plan NYFW and oversee their individual officers; In September, the Model Coordinator, Lily and her committee work their first show of the season with Linda Asaf; Around October the Event Team, Marissa, Tiffani, Denise, and Giselle begin scheduling the semester’s socials; Along comes November, the Art Director, Wilfrido and his team plot the name and designs for the show while the Treasury Heads, Blair and June, plan the team budgets. Then comes December through January, which is winter break where we get a nice but temporary break from the chaos. We recoup in February, where the Show Production Team, Avani and Clare poll amongst the designers to choose the music and hair and makeup for the show, while the Head of PR, Morgan sends out the official ELEMENTS press release. We hit the final lap in March, where the Social Media Director, Karinna and her team film the behind the scenes and promo videos. Finally, we hit April where all of the members, officers, designers and advisors come together to set up the show at the Frank Erwin Center.

Come April 14th, around 9 or 10pm, when the show is over and we have to take apart the stage, and even after that in the weeks following, there will be a mix of emotions. I know that I speak for many members of UFG when I say that I’ll be excited to no longer have the stress of the show; I’ll be shocked at how fast it all it went; I’ll be sad that we’ll will have to move on and there will only be the memories to hold onto; and lastly, I’ll be happy to see all of our hard work pay off, to have made all of these great friendships and to keep watching as each of us walk into the future with so much talent, heart and passion. So make sure to get the autographs of these designers and officers as in the next few years they will be the trend forecasters, the designers, the stylists, and much more in tomorrow’s fashion industry.

Thank you for everything,

MAX LA vice president of production As my last and final year in the University Fashion Group, I’ve had the time to reflect upon the well-being of this organization from the time I started to the present – and let me tell you, it has been a journey. I’ve had the amazing opportunity to see this fantastic organization grow through the love and development of all the fashion-loving longhorns on campus. As an organization, UFG aims to inspire members to one-day do incredible things with their lives. UFG has brought together some of the most creative minds from all aspects of the University of Texas at Austin. We welcome absolutely all majors who have a keen eye for fashion and style, and we offer a variety of experiences that they can partake in. UFG goes the extra mile to connect our best students to some incredible internships, host social and fundraising events, offer experiences at local fashion shows, a chance to attend New York Fashion Week, and of course our annual UT Senior Design Fashion Show, Elements.

As Vice President of Production, my responsibilities entail overseeing our Art Direction, Show Production, Model Coordination, Public Relations and Social Media teams.

I work hand-in-hand with my Co-Vice President of Operations, Carolina Ramos, to plan our biannual New York Fashion Week trip. Together, Carolina and I create the Elements Exhibition Room, where we showcase work from our junior designers for the Lexus of Austin Challenge, UT in NYC, merchandising internship program, Nike U collaboration, illustrations/mood boards/advanced textiles research from our textiles & apparel students, and business plans and visual store layouts from our merchandising students. In addition, we play the role of being the UFG President Tre Miles’s right hand men. Tre, Carolina and I make up the executive board, where we work together to lead our team of more than 30 officers. Our triforce is also in charge of selecting the upcoming board of

officers, which is based on the level of participation and dedication from our members. It’s truly an amazing experience working with such a talented and ambitious group of students. And they continue to surprise and inspire me every day.

Leading up to the event, I like to follow up with all officers who play a key role to the creation of the show. This is to ensure the runway stage is being designed and executed properly, the lighting and music is compiled, and all model shoots and fittings are organized. Press releases are then whipped up and sent out, reaching out to our VIP guests, and all social media platforms are continuously active and trending with new content. Overall, my responsibility is making sure the show runs smoothly, with the help of our talented production team.

Lastly, none of this would be possible without our lovely Faculty Director, Ockhee Bego. She is one of the most passionate women I’ve ever met. The amount of respect and love she has for UFG and her students over the past 15 years is beyond unbelievable. So I think I can easily speak for the entire organization when I say she is truly the heart of UFG and we couldn’t be more grateful. Thank you for all you do, Ockhee!!

It’s an extremely bittersweet feeling being a senior. My entire college career is wrapped around UFG and I owe the rest of my life to this organization. The generations of fashionable students I’ve met have helped me realize so many things and inspired me to strive for nothing less than my best, and some of which will hopefully become life-long friends. This journey has been tear jerking, stressful, nostalgic and breathtaking, but I wouldn’t have it any other way. To my fashion family – let us end this year with a bang and make it the best yet!!

CAROLINA RAMOS vice president of operations UFG has been a huge part of my academic career at UT since I was a freshman. I joined during my first semester and I was fascinated at the idea of an organization dedicated to giving students the opportunity to experience the Austin and New York fashion industry from a first hand perspective. One of the benefits of joining UFG is that you are entered into the point system and are eligible to be given the opportunity to work backstage at New York Fashion Week. I remember being really active in UFG as a freshman because I knew that if I wanted to go to New York, and also eventually become a UFG officer, I had to earn a lot of points. I kind of dipped my toes into everything my first year, from working with the art committee in building the stage, tabling with the PR committee, and working backstage at local fashion shows through the dresser committee. I loved every minute of it because not only was I learning and gaining experience in the industry that I plan on working it, but I was also making some of the greatest friends I will ever have.

My hard work in UFG earned me the position of Head Event Coordinator as a sophomore student and I went into my junior year taking on that responsibility for one more year. The event coordinator position is definitely underestimated for all the work and organization that it is. I was in charge of bringing food to feed our 100+ members at each bi-weekly meeting, planning multiple social events for members and officers, seeking sponsorships and assembling our VIP gift bags, providing food for all of the backstage volunteers at the Frank Erwin Center on the day of the fashion show, and last but not least, planning the official fashion show after party. It was definitely a lot

of work but I learned a lot from that position and I definitely improved my organization and time management skills, which are really essential in the fashion industry.

In my last and final year of UFG I took on the position of Vice President of Operations. I oversee a handful of our officers who are associated with the more business side of UFG. This includes the treasurers, event coordinators, development team, alumni relations team, and secretary team. It is my responsibility to be checking in with my officers and making sure they are doing their jobs smoothly in preparation for the fashion show. In addition, I am the president’s right hand and fill in for him whenever he is unable to lead the UFG officer and general meetings.

This year I am in a very unique position because not only am I involved in the production of the fashion show, but I am also a senior designer and my work will actually be walking down the runway. It’s kind of like an added bonus, being involved with the fashion show on both ends, because I can give UFG my perspective and opinion as a designer in order to improve the show and make sure it is everything the designers imagined and more.

I am extremely excited for this year’s show, Elements.

We have a very strong team of officers behind us who I know will do an amazing job and producing an even better show than the last. As for the content of the show itself, my senior classmates are all so incredibly talented, I am so impressed with each and every single one of them.

We have all been working so hard all year to create art through fashion, and we are so excited for everyone to see our finished product!!

WILFRIDO RODRIGUEZ art director I am Wilfrido Rodriguez Jr., a business marketing major and design minor. My relationship with University Fashion Group (UFG) began before I came to college. As a local Austinite, I attended the 2012 fashion show, “Contour,” and I was impressed with the work that the UT designers and UFG students were doing. The following year, I attended “Transcend” and when deciding where I wanted to attend college, UFG was one of the reasons why I came to the University of Texas. Ever since then I have worked my way up from member to Assistant Art Director, and now Art Director.

As Art Director of University Fashion Group, I am in charge of all the creative aspects of the organization, from the flyers to the t-shirt, stickers, to the design of our content on social media. I wanted to create a brand identity this year so I spent weeks looking at brands that I admire and I analyzed how they approached their advertising campaigns. I looked at social media posts and took note of how to successfully manage a brand. My mission this year was to rebrand UFG as an artistic and fashion forward organization. The Art Director duties begin in the summer and the inspiration derived from our president, Tré Miles.

If you have the honor to meet Tré, you know that his style is very loud and fun and expressive. So I wanted that to reflect through our graphics, imagery, and signage.

For the annual fashion show, I have the honor of designing and building the stage set and runway. I did not realize how big of a deal this was until I realized that what we are in charge of building the backdrop for the runway and that

many people will be taking photos and video. The timeline begins in September, when we get our members and designers to submit fashion show name suggestions. Once these submissions are in, our designers vote for a name.

My job is to take that name (ie. Elements) and brainstorm possible graphics for our promotional poster and any other “swag” (t-shirt, pens, stickers, etc). We then send our ideas to a graphic designer who renders possible ideas for the graphic.

Once we get back from the winter holidays, we start working on prototypes and figuring out what kind of materials, design, and layout we want to create for the stage set. After the prototype is approved by the UFG officers and the designers, we start the building process. There are many challenges that arise, but ultimately it is my job to make sure the stage gets executed. The stage or runway would not be built if it wasn’t for the help of my hard-working and talented committee. With the help of my lovely assistant, Rachelle Allen and Eleanor Grisebaum, we manage a group of about 50 - 80 committee members. The set up for the runway and stage set usually begins the Wednesday before the fashion show. After Wednesday afternoon, my job as Art Director is almost complete. I get to enjoy the show. After the show is over, our committee members help break down the stage set and runway, load the truck, and then unload at Gearing.

UFG has been a huge part of my college career. I am truly blessed to have been able to learn from and work with the smartest and most talented students.

AVANI PATEL head of show production As Head of Show Production with University Fashion Group, I manage the hair and makeup, lighting, and music for the fashion show with my co-Head of Show Production, Clare Moore. I joined University Fashion Group as a freshman, went to New York Fashion Week with the organization my sophomore year, became the Assistant to the Head of Show Production my junior year, and am now the Head. It has been amazing to see all the effort and management that goes into producing our senior fashion show, and now that I am also a senior fashion designer, I am so thankful to be involved on both ends. It has been an amazing journey to grow with other members who I met as freshmen or sophomores and now see them take on leadership in the organization as well. Every year the fashion show is a special moment for us, and the day itself is filled with tons of excitement. We start setting up the arena and stage the day of, and sometimes the night before if there are no events. After the show is over, we take down everything and transport it back to Gearing to unload.

It is a very long day to say the least, but it is so rewarding to see the fruits of what we have been working towards and discussing since before school even starts!

TIFFANI LE event coordinator As an Event Coordinator, I contact various local businesses to request sponsorship, plan food for backstage preparation of Elements, and put together the VIP bags with my other event coordinators, Marissa, Denise, and Giselle. I remember the anxiousness I felt from transferring majors to Retail Merchandising after being Pre-Med Biology for my first two years at UT. I was highly encouraged by my old friend from my hometown to join University Fashion Group. Coincidentally that old friend turned out to be Max La, who is now the Vice President of UFG! Since joining, I became really involved in the organization by dressing backstage at local fashion shows in Austin. I went to every show that I could make it to, trying desperately to rack up enough points in order to go to New York Fashion Week. Being super involved with UFG was how I met some of my best friends within the Textiles & Apparel department. I’m so thankful that UFG gave me the chance to create extraordinary friendships while giving me the opportunity to work with them in a more business sense as well. We work alongside several senior designers in UFG, which allows us to witness the remarkable hard work they put into their collections. The fashion show is so amazing in that the UFG officers also put a year’s worth of endless blood, sweat, and tears into a production that honors all of the senior designers’ collections. Everyone that works backstage at the fashion show knows that there’s a flurry of raw emotions that are packed with adrenaline, but it’s so rewarding in the end to see the product of everyone’s work. It’s a truly amazing experience that we get to participate in, but it’s even better being able to do it all together.

KARINNA LOPEZ social media director As social media director, my main responsibility is to communicate with our audience through our website and online platforms with updates relevant to our organization, the university, and the greater fashion community. I’m responsible for upholding the content and consistency throughout all of our outlets, including our website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat and Vimeo. I photograph and document our social events and general meetings as well as portraits of our officers and senior designers to promote UT’s fashion show. I work with the art director in designing headshots incorporating the show’s logo for the team to advertise on their personal online channels and we form a creative team to help produce promo videos for the show to attract wider audience and generate excitement as the fashion show approaches.

LILY ROCHA model coordinator As Model Coordinator, I build and maintain relationships with local fashion designers who give us the opportunity to help and work backstage at their shows. We have a whole committee that is devoted to volunteering whether it be dressing, front-of-house, or ushering at these events. As spring comes around, my main focus is to act as the liaison between designers, models and dressers. I recruit models, collect their measurements, produce the model cards, and run the fittings. I help create the run-of-show order and assure everything is organized and running smoothly backstage during the senior fashion show. Altogether, I make sure the designer’s vision is executed and their concept is fully grasped.

MORGAN MEADOWS director of public relations As Director of Public Relations for University Fashion Group, I organize all tabling on campus, contact sponsors for the fashion show and act the liaison between UFG and the UT campus and Austin community at large. I actually joined University Fashion Group this year, after deciding to minor in Textiles, initially running for assistant to the the position I hold now. Diving all in as soon as I got position of director, I attended New York Fashion week in the fall and then again this February. While my involvement in UFG has been comparatively brief, this past year has been one of the busiest and most rewarding. With the fashion show always in mind, it has been such a unique experience balancing the day-to-day activities of UFG with the culminating work done to prepare for Elements. Contacting sponsors and organizing events all have the dual purpose of promoting the show and spreading the name of UFG. Getting to be the one that organizes our outreach, I feel a personal connection to anyone who has stumbled across UFG this past year. Having only found the organization by chance last spring myself, I look forward to seeing this years efforts and hard work come to life and inspire more students to get involved.

A big thanks to all the senior designers, UFG, and Spark staff for giving your time and talent to create this beautiful Elements edition of Spark. We are extremely grateful to be a part of everyone’s journey and lucky to be surrounded by so many talented people here at The University of Texas!

SPARK MAGAZINE