Something on my bucket list has always been to attend a fashion show. On May 25th I was finally able to cross it off my list. When the opportunity to attend a fashion show at The High School of Fashion Industries came about I responded right away. Um… YES?
The day of the show I was so excited. I met at FIT with the other bloggers who were covering the event, Karlie and Sarah, and Michelle Nagel, who is the Precollege Programs Director at FIT. We walked to the The High School of Fashion Industries where we saw window displays that showcased the amazing work of its students; I knew we were in for a treat.
Once inside, plates of hor d’oeuvres and drinks flowed as the most important people of the night arrived, Isabel and Ruben Toledo. Isabel and Ruben Toledo were the honorees at the event and are pretty much the cutest couple ever. In case you aren’t familiar with their work, Isabel designed Michelle Obama’s inaugural gown and Ruben is a fantastic artist! As we tried to snap photos of the fabulous duo Ruben caught us off guard when he asked about who we were and about FIT. We told Isabel and Ruben that we were Precollege bloggers for FIT and that we take classes on the weekends. Ruben thought it was wonderful and asked what part of fashion each of us were interested in. He then proceeded to ask us if we had any questions for them, which REALLY scared us because we didn’t have any questions prepared. Luckily, Karlie came to the rescue by coming up with some questions to ask. We found out that Isabel became a designer by making her own clothes as a seamstress and that she doesn’t even know how to sketch! She just describes her designs to Ruben, who sketches them for her. Talk about teamwork!
We marveled at how cute this couple was and how well they played off of each other as they described that they met in a high school Spanish class when they were 13. Ruben claims “it was love at first sight” but it wasn’t for Isabel, who took 4 years to come around. When we said how great it was that they were able to work as such a team, Ruben shook his head saying “I’m just riding on her coattails” which is clearly not the case for the talented artist who has made quite a career for himself.
Erin exclaimed that he did the art for one of her books and Ruben wanted to make sure that she liked it. When she enthusiastically agreed that his work was fantastic, Ruben told her to steal one of his works that were hanging up. He said “Art crimes are the only crimes I approve of.”
Talking with Isabel and Ruben was very entertaining, their stories and watching their chemistry was so intriguing but the fashion show was about to start so we scurried to our seats.
Even without reading the program anyone could see that the theme was “Continental Couture.” There were sections within each with themes that were from different parts of the world. As someone who can barely sew or draw, let alone design and sew complete collection, I was completely blown away. These kids are only one year older than me and the collections were incredible. They were extremely well thought out. There were many mini collections, but each one stood our on its own and was extremely cohesive. Each mini collection made it clear what area the inspiration came from and what type of clothing it was. My favorite mini collections were the “Gaga International” collection that served as a grand finale and the International Bride collection which featured couples and wedding dresses inspired by many different cultures. The models were energetic and the clothing was amazing and ranged from totally out there to completely wearable. I thought the students did a fabulous job!
Seeing this fashion show was such a great experience and I’m so glad I got the opportunity to go. I think that the High School of Fashion Industries is great because it really allowed these students to push themselves to make garments and produce a fashion show all of their own. I didn’t really know what to expect but I was so excited to see their garments. I saw a lot of “now” trends and some fresh ideas and I really hope that these students keep working on fashion because it would be really exciting to see what they will do next.
Sarah
Here are some of my favorite pictures from the event:
