The show is about to start.

8:50

OK, we made it, we’re here, and boy is it PACKED.

The house lights are down, and there’s a fabulous pre-show video (produced by Ologie) playing. And, the lights come back as WBNS-10TV’s Kristyn Hartman takes the stage with Michael and Arlene Weiss who are representing our runway sponsor, EXPRESS. They will cut the big red ribbon to kick off the show.

One of these days I’m going to need to ask someone: where exactly does one buy giant scissors?

Up first is six looks from Rachel Chertoff. The gorgeous knit pieces in this collection were painstakingly hand crocheted. I love how she subtly shapes her clothes to frame, and accentuate different areas of the figure.

Next are designs by Leah Sloane Kennedy followed by Jazzmin Evans. While both are showcasing classic red dresses their approaches are distinctly different.

Side note: the make-up and hair by Mukha Custom Cosmetics and Jolie Laide is the finishing touch that gives our show that professional, fashion-week feel.

custom designed fabric

Antoiné Slater’s looks follow. Her African prints are bold and work well with the strong, structured lines in her designs—her patterned pants and jacket are fierce!

Sarah Frederick also brings us some beautifully constructed pants, but her looks are softer. Her color pallet brings in more creams and blues. There’s a lot of detail work in Sarah’s collection—and she was tapped to create a custom piece for Ms. Kristy Eckert from Capital Style (who looks stunning in the Frederick original).

Our next two designers, Karla Norquist and Jess Betz bring a tropical, beachy vibe to the runway.

Point of interest. This year I’m seeing more pants, shorts, jackets, and men’s looks than past years. Anyone who has watched Project Runway can appreciate that well-fitted pants, shorts, and sleeves are quite difficult to achieve. This crop of designers really challenged themselves and it shows. Ngockhanh Ngo is a perfect example. His Americana-inspired menswear collection is meticulously constructed, fits perfectly, and shows an impressive attention to detail.

Danielle Nicole Jones also bring meticulously constructed garments to the runway, and they are paired with strong vibrant prints that she designed and produced. The ankle-length gown, in particular is a delicious surprise.

Katlin Hatfield’s armor-inspired look is highly structured as Kate Elaine Pohrt’s. Kate has carefully pieced together unique, metallic fabrics to create women and men’s wear that is art-deco-inspired, yet futuristic.

Structure plays a role in Jennica Gray’s look, but the end result feels soft and flows—in part because of the seamless way she has pieced together contrasting colors.

The collection

Nicole Chhuom brings a more neutral palette to the runway, which provides continuity to her two otherwise divergent looks.

Another designer who did mostly menswear and who designed his own patterned fabrics, Dax Thomas Kauser, brings us an edgy, modern, cohesive collection. Each look is beautiful and distinct and yet there is still a sense of unity between his pieces.

Olivia Brezinski’s look combines sleek leather with soft feathers, giving it a goth-princess feel.

In contrast, Phoebe Isaac’s looks are celestial with their soothing blue tones. The long-sleeved, floor-length dress, is particularly stunning as the model turns and we see the cut-out back.

Old world meets new world with Tina Hughes’ collection. There is definitely a European feel to her collection, and yet there are pieces that have a distinctly vintage American flavor.

Kassie Haji brings us a nice range of garments in her five-piece collection, but what really stands out is her menswear look. The suit is sleek, modern, and original.

Stunning

From Katharine E. Hire’ sassy patterned jacket with the triangular cut out in the back to her stunning, purple, a-symmetrical dress; this collection is a crowd pleaser. Point of interest: she bought her fabrics in Africa while on a medical mission trip.

Olivia Mitchell’s architecture-inspired collection is a futuristic wonder coming down the runway and is a perfect segue to Krista Guanlao Sison’s looks. I’ve been looking forward to seeing one piece of hers in particular. Her collection was inspired by a Spanish cathedral, and the last look in the show is truly wearable art—like a moving sculpture.

Twenty-one designers, 66 looks, and now we get to the part of the show that always makes me tear up. Each designer comes out to be recognized. The riotous applause of the crowd and the love they are showing to these young designers is palpable. And as each designer finishes their loop on the runway they are met by their fearless leader, Fashion Design Chair Suzanne Cotton, who gives them flowers. The designers now return the gesture and present Ms. Cotton with her own bouquet—seriously, tears here.

As the audience begins to settle down Kristyn Hartman takes the stage once more, and presents Katharine Hire with the Easton Fashion award, sponsored by Easton Town Center. With that there is only one thing left to do…DANCE!

See you in a bit.

Rachel Chertoff’s collection concept is “Human Desire.” Photo by Kristen M. Foley

By Kristen M. Foley

You often hear stories from artists about how they were able to channel a certain personal experience or passion into their work. Rachel Chertoff takes raw emotion and channels it into wearable art.

“I am able to come up with my concepts when I am kind of miserable, as weird as that sounds. It helps me get whatever is bouncing around in my brain onto paper and then to move on and forward with that concept,” she explains. “At the end of the day I know I will have my creativity and that’s what I rely on, especially through those rough times we go through in life.”

She describes her collection, “Human Desire,” as having everything to do with the beauty she sees in the way humans desire, whether it’s one another, materialistic things, or ideas. She also notes that there is beauty in the low points of our lives.

“I kind of was lost this past summer because I was just getting out of a long relationship with someone who helped get me where I am today as a designer,” said Rachel. “So I was trying find myself and figuring out what I wanted with my life and what I wanted my next step to be.”

Her experience and emotions fueled her creativity as she developed her collection, but her themes are also reflected in tangible ways.

Rachel’s collection features several hand-knit, hand-crocheted pieces. Photo by Lacey Luce

“I went to this idea of showing parts of the body that I think are beautiful and what other people desire to see,” said Rachel. “The designs are also functional pieces for the carefree person who is taking things one step at a time.”

Rachel incorporated her love of knitting and crocheting, or as she calls it her “grandma habit,” into her collection, but on an elevated and youthful level.

“I hand-crocheted and knitted big pieces. It’s one of the most time consuming things I have done, but it’s worth it in the end,” Rachel said. “Using those skills helps convey my concept because this collection is like showing the public a very special secret piece of me that I wouldn’t normally share. I am excited to be conveying this piece of me to the public.”

Expressing her personality through fashion has always been important to Rachel; however, it wasn’t always easy to do, especially since she relied on the hand me downs of her sister and sister’s friends.

Rachel makes adjustments during the photo shoot. Photo by Katlin McNally

“I am a girl of 5’1″ stature and clothing that I would want to wear was always difficult to come across,” she said. “But it was always a way for me to express how I was doing in my life.”

After years of hard work at CCAD, Rachel can express herself through designs of her own making. Her CCAD journey began when she visited the college on the advice of her guidance counselor.

“I came and received a tour and then I was told about the College PreView program, which I then attended, and I just fell in love with the school,” she said.

Now as graduation nears, Rachel reflects on her time and offers those just starting their college experience a little advice.

“Don’t get discouraged. Things get tough and it’s a difficult journey but you can’t forget the good times you have along the way and focus on the bad,” she advises. “You will have great friends who last a lifetime and the goofy memories that you’ll keep.”

To see Rachel’s six-look collection on the runway May 10, you’ll need to get your tickets ASAP.

Rachel Chertoff is a native of Buffalo, NY, and a graduate of Williamsville East High School.

How fun is the CCAD Senior Fashion Show event? take a look at last year’s event.

February 28^th was a long arduous day for CCAD designers, as they presented their final collections to a jury of seven industry professionals.

The job of those professionals was to evaluate the designs and choose the best looks for the runway show. The jurying was blind in that they did not know which designers were attached to which looks when they did their review—their choices were based on the strength of the design and construction alone. The end result: after reviewing more than 100 designs, 68 have been chosen for the May 10 show.

Below is our list of participating designers, including where they hail from. Sunday we’ll be covering the fashion photo shoot, and next week you can start getting to know these designers a little better as our fashion blogger Kristen Foley sits down with each one to talk design, inspiration, and the future. The jury has done their work, but the only way you get to see what they’ve selected for the runway is to get your tickets now. The May 10 fundraising event is shaping up to be spectacular.

1. Jess Betz, from Toledo, OH, graduate of St. Ursula Academy
2. Olivia Brezinski, from Perrysburg, OH, graduate of Perrysburg High School
3. Rachel Chertoff, from Buffalo, NY, graduate of Williamsville East High School
4. Nicole Chhuom, from Columbus, OH, graduate of West High School
5. Jazzmin Evans, from Columbus, OH, graduate of Independence High School
6. Sarah Frederick, from Swanton, MD, graduate of Southern Garrett High School
7. Jennica  Gray, from Columbus, OH, graduate of St. Francis DeSales High School
8. Kassie Haji, from Columbus, OH (previously from Providence, RI) , graduate of Feinstein High School in RI
9. Katlin Hatfield, from Adamsville, OH, graduate of Tri-Valley High School
10. Katharine Hire, from Mansfield, OH, graduate of Mansfield Christian School
11. Tina Hughes, from Cleveland, OH, graduate of Eastlake North High School
12. Phoebe Isaac, from Lexington, OH, graduate of Lexington High School
13. Danielle Nicole Jones, from Westerville, OH, graduate of Westerville South High School
14. Dax Thomas Kauser, from Columbus, OH, graduate of Groveport Madison High School
15. Leah Sloane Kennedy, from Ypsilanti, MI, graduate of Ypsilanti High School
16. Olivia Mitchell, from Columbus, OH, graduate of Reynoldsburg High School
17. Ngockhanh Ngo, from Columbus, OH, graduate of Beechcroft High School
18. Karla Norquist, from Eagan, MN, graduate of Northridge High School,
19. Kate Elaine Pohrt, from Ann Arbor, MI, graduate of Ann Arbor Pioneer High School
20. Krista Guanlao Sison, from Parma Heights, OH, graduate of Valley Forge High School
21. Antoine Slater, from Dayton, OH, graduate of Wayne High School

Promotional image for Nigel Ewan’s collection for One

CCAD’s Honors Program has always been inventive in their projects (think DNA necklaces), and this semester is no different. This semester’s honors retail class chose to create a pop-up store on campus called One. The store will be open in Beaton Gallery Dec. 9, 1–9 p.m. and Dec. 10, 8:30 a.m.–3 p.m.

“One is a curated shopping experience for the creative community in Columbus,” said Lillie Templeton, a senior in Advertising & Graphic Design. “We are handpicking the product, designing the space, and building the displays. To give it an extra twist, we’re working with 14 of CCAD’s finest designers across multiple disciplines and classes. These designers are making one-of-a-kind collections specifically for the store.”

Templeton worked alongside six other students in the class with Adjunct Faculty Marcia Tabler leading the project. Students handled everything from the marketing strategy to the promotional photography and video, to the store design. Students in the retail class include Advertising & Graphic Design sophomore Qisha Kendy,  junior Haley Fischer, and seniors Lillie Templeton and Katie Westbrook; Fashion Design senior Krista Sison; Illustration junior Katie Vasey; and Media Studies junior Amanda Hess.

Promotional image for Ryun Harrison’s collection for One

“It seems like a fun and creative way to try and sell some of my creations,” said Audrey Swart, Fashion Design junior and designer for One. “It is an interesting and beneficial way to get my name out there for people to see.”

Swart’s collection for One will include classic denim fashion that has been updated with studs, leather, and other innovative materials to create a more punk and edgy look.

Fashion Design junior Ryun Harrison is making unisex clothing inspired by various spiritual practices, goth and grunge styles, and the eccentricities that surround him.

Promotional image for Audrey Swart’s collection for One

“Doing a collection for One enables me to influence what my peers wear, become a part of various established styles, and get my name out there as a designer,” Harrison said. “This is a great project, and I am glad to be a part of it.”

Work in the store will range from bowties to screenprinted shirts. The student designers will keep 100% of their profits.

“I was really intrigued with the idea of creating a store with other designers with different styles,” said Bryston Walters, a Fashion Design junior. “I think it is going to be a really fun experience to be able to walk through a store and see just how differently people handle materials, and what their design aesthetic is.”

The store will sell designs from Advertising & Graphic Design junior Nigel Ewan and seniors Warren Kipperman and Alex Laniosz; Fashion Design juniors Rachel McElvogue, Ryun Harrison, Seth Stephens, Audrey Swart, and Bryston Walters and seniors Rachel Chertoff and Heather Hodge; Fine Arts sophomore De’Niro Brown and seniors Ariana Lindenfelser, Greg Ponchak, and Ben Quinn.

To read interviews and information on all 14 designers, click here. One will be open in Beaton Gallery Dec. 9, 1–9 p.m. and Dec. 10, 8:30 a.m.–3 p.m. The store will accept cash and credit/debit cards. Check out the video documenting the building and final result of One here.