Fashion
struts into spring
By Daniel Frias
On-line Forty-Niner
 It
was not Paris, Milan or even New York, but
Cal State Long Beach, the site of today
and tomorrow’s new fashion styles as the
department of family and consumer sciences
held its annual Spring Fashion Show at the
Carpenter Performing Arts Center Tuesday
evening.
The show featured close to 200 models and
displayed the fashion designs of the fashion
design students at CSULB.
The 15th annual fashion show put on by students
who are fashion and merchandise majors every
year is a big event.
This is the second year the event has been
held at the Carpenter Center. Previously,
the show was held outside on Upper Campus.
“It makes it a better event,” Erin Ennis,
co-coordinator and senior fashion and merchandise
major said. “The Carpenter Center is a more
prestigious venue and it seats more people.”
Fashion merchandise senior and model Chloe
Atnip agrees.
“The Carpenter Center makes it seem more
professional,” said Atnip who was the recipient
of the 2002-03 Outstanding Fashion and Merchandise
Student Award. The lights seem to reflect
the make-up and dresses much better.”
The event cost $31,000 to put on. The coordinators
get about $4,700 of that from a grant and
the rest comes in forms of fundraising.
The students coordinating the show do car
washes, TV tapings and candy sales. They
get a lot of things donated as well. Carlito’s
International Hair Salon donates 35 hair
and make-up stylists every year to do about
180 girls, Atnip said.
All the garments were made by fashion design
students and the majority of the models
were students. The fashions ranged from
simple dresses to more extravagant designs.
Models wore white tennis outfits with poca-dots,
evening gowns, flat pattern dresses, suits,
hats and lingerie.
One model commented on a lime green suit
she wore.
“I hate it,” said CSULB alum Jennifer Puleo.
“It is hideous. They changed my dress at
the last minute.”
Despite not liking her dress Puleo admits
the fashion show is a lot fun.
“This is my second year doing it,” said
Puleo. “I had a lot of fun last year. You
get to strut your stuff and you get excited
when you go out there and the music comes
on.”
“It’s a lot of fun. I’m glad I did it,”
said Claudia Navarro, a senior child development
and family studies major who wore a black
flat pattern dress with a red bow on her
head.
Natalie Villegas was one of the many fashion
design students that designed the fashions
for the show. Villegas got her talent from
her mom who used to take her shopping and
help her make clothes when she was younger.
“Ever since I was a little girl I wanted
to do this,” said Villegas. “I’ve always
loved clothes.”
Villegas designed eleven outfits including
two hats and some lingerie. “I did a business
garment, dresses, suits, tops and lingerie,”
said Villegas.
Ryan Vincent, junior kinesiology major and
model was wearing one of the hats that Villegas
designed.
“I like it a lot. It’s very stylish,” Vincent
said about the red hat with a black stripe
around it that she was modeling. “It’s a
lot bigger deal then I thought it would
be. I’m excited about doing it.”
The show began at 7 p.m. and the models
each came out in sections according to the
patterns they wear wearing. One-by-one they
walked down the runway and showed off their
stylish outfits. A model, Joahn Gonzalez,
came out in a short purple bathing suit
that had light purple ruffles on the back.
“It’s cute. It’s very girly,” Gonzalez said.
The show was put on for designers to show
their work and it was also a chance for
fashion and merchandise students to experience
real life fashion, Atnip said.
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