While their educational goals may have been cut from the same cloth, 35 students from Kwantlen Polytechnic Universitys Fashion Design program will be eager to put their own stamp on the catwalk next Wednesday evening (April 17).
Thats when the group, including four from Richmond, will be displaying their apparel collections at The Show, which caps four years of study at the Lansdowne Road campus.
Each will be given about 80 seconds for models to show their work on stage.
And getting ready for that brief exposure has involved much more than the years at school, said the students who have spent the better part of their lives developing and refining their skills.
I was always leaning towards the creative arts when I was growing up, said Vivian Mui, 21.
My parents have a really big love for fashion, and they really influenced me a lot while we were traveling. Wed go to a lot of shops so that rooted in me in that clothing was something that was really beautiful and a creative way to go.
Mui said she remembers spending plenty of time wandering the aisles with her parents in fashion-focused stores such as Holt Renfrew and Leone, and just absorbing their tastes into my own aesthetic.
As a result, much of her collection is classic in design and can carry over from season to season, because thats the way my parents shopped.
Mui already has a job she is working at the clothing brand Kensie as a technical design assistant and is excited to see whats in store for her future in fashion.
Its also a really strange time because everyone is trying to come up with new goals for themselves because weve all reached the big hurdle of graduating, and so, whats next?
For Fion Cheung, she knew from early on that her future lay in fashion.
I think I always knew, starting from a young age because my parents owned an apparel manufacturing company, she said. So, I kinda grew up in that environment
Its always been a dream for me. But it wasnt realistic for me until Grade 10 when I enrolled in a textile class and I finished my first garment and just that feeling of fulfillment, making something beautiful and suitable for a customer really inspired me.
Cheung described her collection as sophisticated, casual chic and added her time at Kwantlen has been a challenge, but one that has been enjoyable at the same time.
While its been a hard four years, its also been fulfilling and Ive made so many friendships, connections and learned a lot about myself.
Daneille Holyk said her career path was influenced at a young age by her mother.
She taught me to sew when I was 12 and I wanted to learn because growing up she would make outfits for me and matching ones for my younger sister and my dolls, said Holyk who is currently working for Lululemon Athletica in the firms product development department.
She attended a Kwantlen fashion show when she was in Grade 9 and saw there was an opportunity for a career in fashion.
Also starting young in the artistic and creative world was Sarah Fairweather.
Ive been around sewing since I was a young child. My nana was a quilter, so I think thats where I initially picked it up, she said. But Ive always wanted to make things. I was always painting. I would staple together fabric to make clothing.
After graduating, Fairweather plans to earn a Masters degree in Europe, with a view to moving there.
Now with the lights soon to go up on their fashion show, the four are experiencing a myriad of emotions.
Im nervous about tripping in heels, joked Mui of the opportunity the student designers will have to accompany the models on stage at the end of the show.
Its quite nerve-wracking because I feel that a lot of us have made these garments but weve never seen them on a body, and with producing a total of three garments, theres concerns about it being cohesive, she added. Will the colours go together, thats a little scary for me, I think.
Im not so much as nervous about the show. I am really excited to see everyones work, Fairweather said. I think Im more nervous for after the show, because then the four years are done.
The one scary thing about the show is that its going to be viewed by a mass audience of family and friends, Holyk said. I think we share design work in school, but I think Im a little bit more secretive, not sharing it any further than colleagues. So, I think the show is a big step.
Its also scary because other people have a different perspective about what the fashion industry is, said Cheung said. And for a fourth year collection we are designing for an underserved, niche market.
So, maybe its not the most exciting thing. But were trying to fulfill a market and produce something thats needed. And other peoples perspectives are that its supposed to be high fashion and not always that practical.
