Tag Archives: Precollege

Spare Change

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Three of my pieces from my first class at FIT!

Change…it’s a loaded word, isn’t it? Many people are hesitant to step into new situations, embark on uncharted waters. But, in our ever-evolving society, change is something we need to embrace. FIT has helped me to cultivate this mindset by teaching me that change can be a catalyst for creativity and positivity. As I travel into the city each week for class, I am kept on my toes by the dynamic developments occurring in today’s fashion industry.

A unique design from one of FIT’s curated museum exhibits. I love how this piece challenges typical fashion through its asymmetrical shape, unique pattern, and beautiful butterfly detail!

Much like New York City, the world of fashion and art is something that transforms every day, every hour, every minute. Being surrounded by such knowledgeable professors and talented peers who have my same passion for this exhilarating field challenges me to think outside of the box and explore new ideas in my own artistic journey. When I sat down in my first FIT class three years ago as a nervous freshman in high school who loved to sew, my perception of fashion was relatively limited to what I personally thought was aesthetically pleasing. As time went on and I enrolled in more classes, however, I learned that fashion was so much more than beautiful clothing; it is an art form that represents the evolution of culture.

This is a Charles James design I saw at the MET a few summers ago. At the time this piece was created, it was completely breaking customary fashion (and societal) boundaries!

My time at FIT has taught me to question social norms and challenge complacency, both in my creations and in daily life. I challenge all of you to step outside of your comfort zones in your artwork and embrace the excitement of change. To quote the great CoCo Chanel, “Fashion is not something that exists in dresses only. Fashion is in the sky, in the street, fashion has to do with ideas, the way we live, what is happening.”

Talk to you next week!

~Kaela

Be your own Motivation

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What motivates you to get out of bed in the morning? Is it knowing that you have a party later where you can show off your new top? That your parents promised you your favorite meal for dinner? Or that you just have a good feeling about the day you are about to embark on? For me, it is success, knowing that if I don’t get up and start my day, I will get no where and accomplish nothing. Whether it be passing a big test or achieving my life goals, I get up and just do. As a sophomore in high school and getting my foot in the door to college, I have woken up extra motivated lately, having the opportunity to start thinking about how I will make it big and display my strive for success.

For me, the only way I believe I can carry out my dreams is doing what I love. So I look at my second inspiration, fashion. This is what brought me to FIT and what made me stay. The Precollege programs have allowed me to develop new skills and a new outlook that will shape my future in the fashion industry. I can not imagine myself anywhere else and the opportunities that have risen from my time here are very valuable. I also can not picture myself working anywhere but in fashion. Like many others, I hope to one day become a successful employee of a major company, and maybe even boss of my own company, and there is no way I can get to that level of achievement without my friends, family and FIT. Especially not without my incentive to get up and trek through the adventure leading me down the path to that fulfillment.

When employers and clients look at your past and see all the great things you have done in preparation for what you are about to pursue, they are made to believe you must have a strong passion for what you do, otherwise what are you doing here. Personally, I hope one day someone will notice not only that I took my preparation very seriously but that they see the time I took away from my weekends to spend in a classroom here at FIT and why I did so. Also that it was not because someone was forcing me, not because I was bored and wanted something to do, but because I wanted to be there. I want to be swallowed up by the culture of the city and FIT, and that I love what I do and have loved it for a very long time. So if it is something like fashion or success that motivates you why not start now, find something like the Precollege Programs at FIT to begin early and get ahead of the game. Along the way do not forget to get up and start your day with intention. Be your own motivation, be your own success, and be your own ambition until it becomes a habit.

 

-Faith

What to Know When Considering Precollege at FIT

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IMG_4680 (1)Hi Everyone!

I hope your week has been great (despite the unexpected chilly weather)! In today’s post, I thought it may be helpful to offer anyone considering a precollege course at FIT with an idea of what they will be jumping into!

Basically, a precollege class here is the absolute coolest extra curricular activity ever. Not only do you get to hang out with some of the sweetest, most hilarious, and talented people every week, but you get a taste of what art school is like! Prior to FIT, I envisioned art school as a place for only child prodigies who picked up their preferred medium at birth and never put it down, but in actuality, that’s not even close to reality! I mean yes, there are child prodigies here, and everyone you meet is extremely gifted, but FIT is a place where you discover yourself in every sense of the word! Whether you want to go into fashion design or marketing, precollege is a tool that you can use to further your understanding of that field and ultimately prepare yourself for it!

Next, precollege is definitely a big time commitment! Now this one is partly depending on where you live and the class(es) that you take; however, even if you live a block from campus and take a class that assigns no homework, it is still at least a 3 hour class. To some people this may seem like a turn off because it is a large chunk of your weekend, but seriously, every class goes by SO fast! When I hear my (amazing) professors say that it is time to clean up I always try to figure out where all the time went!

My third, and last, piece of information that I think you should know is that if you do decide to apply to any art school after going through FIT precollege, you likely will have enough projects to put together your portfolio. I have not had this experience personally (I’m only a high school sophomore), but I have friends who have gone, or are going, through the process of piecing together their creations in preparation for the college application process, and they ALL say that they wish they’d started earlier, and FIT Precollege is a great way to do just that!

At the end of the day, if you are motivated enough to be reading this blog post about FIT Precollege, you will excel in the program :)

I hope you have a great day and an even better week!

~Kaela

The Importance of Construction in Design

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Hi Everyone!

I hope you all have had a great past week! As I turned in my first project (as mentioned in last week’s post), I began to think about how I have grown since my interest in fashion really began.

In the beginning, most of my interest was geared toward the design aspect of fashion. I hadn’t yet fully grasped the concept of producing what I drew, so I just spent hours on end sketching garments that I never thought would leave the pages.

When I began to sew, I started with the basics: stuffed animals, pillows, and mini-purses. I created countless variations of the same basic design before I even began to think about transferring my knowledge of how to sew pillows to the creation of my designs. I soon found myself (poorly) constructing blouses made from curtains and blankets, and wearing them proudly!

As years passed, and I have grown older, my skills have developed more.  I found myself sewing more and more successful pieces, more closely resembling my designs, but I still felt as though there was some sort of disconnect between my, then, abilities and what I thought I was capable of achieving.

In the summer going into my freshman year of high school, I took a two-week long precollege course at a prestigious fashion school, notorious for their incredible design graduates. I went into the program confident in both my construction and design skills, but soon realized that my ability to design far surpassed what I was actually able to make; I knew that I had to develop my construction skills more, but I felt hopeless in terms of how I would do it.

A friend that I met in the course suggested that I try precollege at FIT. She told me that she had found herself in a similar situation where she did not have the skills needed to grow in her design career, but after just one semester at FIT, she felt more confident than ever!

Since starting classes at FIT, I have noticed a HUGE improvement in my construction. FIT does an amazing job teaching the basics, while also helping each and every student find their own style and personal techniques! If I could only leave you with one piece of advice, it would be that in the design world, your ability to make what you design is just as important as the design itself!

I hope you have a great rest of the week and a fabulous start to spring!

~Kaela

Experience Outside of the Classroom

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Hi Everyone!

I hope you have had a great past week and a lovely holiday weekend (if you celebrated) full of pastel colors and sweet treats! Even though FIT did not hold precollege classes this past weekend, because they were on break, that did not stop me from practicing the skills that I have learned so far this term, as well as in past semesters!

FullSizeRender (1)At the beginning of the semester, on my first, of many, trip to my favorite fabric store, I stumbled across an absolutely gorgeous light yellow fabric with a white, paisley pattern. I have historically had a deep-rooted love for anything that brings a little sunshine into any situation, so this fabric seemed like a no-brainer. I eagerly went to the makeshift checkout counter made of stacked rolls of exquisite fabrics and snagged three yards of the paisley perfection for my assignment: a simple circle skirt.

I thought about the fabric constantly in the seemingly endless days leading up to that next Saturday; my pure excitement to begin the L.O. N. G. process of pinning was unlike anything I had every experienced before.

I had set a goal for myself to finish the skirt in time for Easter, as the fabric literally could not have been more tastefully festive, and I was actually able to finish with more than enough time! The only problem was, I could not think of a top that was worthy enough to be paired with my new favorite skirt. I made the executive decision to make the trek back up to my favorite store and purchase another yard of the fabric.
As a result of a combination of a crazy week at school, and the copious preparations for my family’s Easter celebration, I was unable to even think about starting my new project until the final hour: Saturday night.

An onlooker might have described the scene as a final, on-the-spot elimination round on Project Runway. Shreds of paper and fabric were strewn across my bedroom floor as I assembled the simple top, but in the end, I was extremely proud of my finished look: the yellow paisley perfection with pastel blue shoes and a corresponding sunhat!

I am SO grateful for the skills that I have been taught and acquired through my time at FIT, and I am sure that every other precollege student would agree! I hope you all have an amazing day and an even better week!

~Kaela