Haute-To-Go

Fashion Favors the Bold at SMC

Call it the perks of not being a wallflower. Learning new skills, trying new experiences, and just putting yourself out there — it all makes a difference. Just ask Santa Monica College student and aspiring fashion designer Elaine Justine, who found herself quietly freaking out on the night of the 2024 LA Mode Fashion Show. 

“I was so nervous!” the self-professed introvert says with a bright laugh. “It was my first time doing the show, so the experience was just really scary for me.”

Adding to her anxiety was the fact that her designs would be the first to hit the runway that night. Elaine was one of 18 student designers who created a collection of new looks for the show, and expectations were running high this year. And while Elaine’s mind wasn’t really set on winning any prize — it was her first time, after all — she wanted her work to connect with people.

“With design, you’re telling a story,” she explains. “Yes, you want your collection to stand out and make an impression. But you also want to make it personal, something people can relate to.”

Elaine used her collection to tell a narrative that paid homage to her Filipino heritage while promoting sustainable (and stylish) remedies to today’s fast fashion trends. Her Retaso collection — with puffer jackets made of nylon from discarded umbrellas, handsewn tops of pina fiber, and macrame terno-inspired sleeves sourced from deadstock lace fabric — proved a hit with audiences and judges alike. Elaine not only won the co-winner award for the best collection of the night, but also walked away with the top honors in the Creativity and Sustainability categories. 

“It was a total shock,” Elaine says of the honors. “I hadn’t been expecting anything at all. I just wanted to open myself up to new experiences and learn new skills.”

For the better part of a century, SMC has hosted some version of a fashion show. While early versions were geared toward student social life, SMC’s signature fashion show took a giant leap forward when the Fashion Design and Merchandising programs were formally established in 1990. During that time, the event shifted its emphasis away from student socials and toward student designs.

Produced annually by SMC’s Photography & Fashion Department, the LA Mode Fashion Show of today is practically a de rigeur rite of passage for aspiring designers at the College. The sleek, polished affair offers student designers the opportunity to produce capsule collections that are judged — not just on the basis of creativity, but also on marketability, technical excellence, and sustainability.

“It’s not enough to just create a design,” explains SMC Professor La Tanya Louis, LA Mode producer and Collections director. “Students have to produce a cohesive capsule collection that can be sold in stores. That’s one of our major goals in the department: To teach designers how to create a brand that can be marketed in the marketplace.”

But LA Mode isn’t only for aspiring fashion designers. Students in SMC’s Broadcast Programming and Production program produce the video interviews with designers that are featured in the show. Fashion Show Production Team students go all in on marketing and social media, while also assisting in the production of the show. Cosmetology students manage hair and makeup. Photography students are responsible for capturing images that convey the essence and intricacy of the different designs. The resulting interdepartmental synergy has benefitted not just the event, but everyone involved.

“Working with students from Fashion Design and other disciplines gives our Television Production students tangible, real-world working experiences,” says Gail Fetzer, a professor in the Communication & Media Studies Department. “That’s going to be a definite asset when they join the workforce.”

Photography professor Josh Sanseri agrees. “There are a lot of moving parts to prepare for in advance of the photo shoot day, and especially the day of production. Our students learn to solve problems creatively on the fly and work together with others under challenging circumstances.”

It’s that experiential aspect, adds Samantha Manuel, chair of the SMC Cosmetology Department, that makes LA Mode so distinctive. “The fast pace at which students must work with the expectations of hair and makeup outcomes can be exciting, a bit stressful, and very rewarding,” she says. “Events like LA Mode are essential to the students’ education and can add to their portfolio.”

At a time when many fashion schools are in crisis mode due to high costs and flagging enrollment, SMC’s Fashion Design and Merchandising program is just hitting its stride. With more than 750 students during the 2022-2023 academic year, the program boasts one of the largest enrollment numbers of any community college fashion program, and is well on its way to regaining its pre-pandemic figures. That same year, SMC At a time when many fashion schools are in crisis mode due to high costs and flagging enrollment, SMC’s Fashion Design and Merchandising program is just hitting its stride. With more than 750 students during the 2022-2023 academic year, the program boasts one of the largest enrollment numbers of any community college fashion program, and is well on its way to regaining its pre-pandemic figures. That same year, SMC awarded 38 Associate degrees in fashion design, merchandising, and photography, up 13% from the previous year.

The program’s enduring appeal is due in part to its ability to deliver high-quality education at a fraction of the cost of private fashion schools, where tuition alone can run from four to six figures. That, in itself, is a major consideration for today’s students who are both fashion-forward and budget-conscious.

“When it comes to the cost value,” says SMC Fashion Professor Lorrie Ivas, “it’s hard to beat what Santa Monica College offers. Our program is designed to make a high-quality education in fashion affordable and accessible for all students.”

Another element of the program that students find appealing is its emphasis on not just the art and craft of fashion design, but also the business. Over the years, program faculty members have worked to expand course offerings so that students are better prepared to deal with the practical, everyday aspects of the industry. Today’s course offerings run the gamut from design, technical flat sketching, pattern drafting, and illustration, to accounting, advertising, and entrepreneurship. Other opportunities include independent study and cooperative work experiences, as well as many guided trips to local clothing manufacturers, showrooms, and textile manufacturers in Southern California.

“I guess you’d say our big thing is bringing real-life industry into the classroom,” Lorrie observes with a chuckle.

Arguably, one of the program’s best perks is its extensive network of industry insiders that Lorrie, La Tanya, and the rest of the faculty have been growing over the years. Past students and industry experts alike are invited to engage with current students every year, whether it’s giving a talk, conducting a portfolio workshop, or joining the SMC Fashion Advisory Board. Such interactions often lead to internships, and even job offers, for many design students.

That’s what happened to former SMC student Melody Hellard, who heard from one of her professors that an internship opportunity was in the works at Mattel, working on fashion graphics for doll outfits. It sounded like a dream job to Melody, except for one tiny fact. 
“I had little to no graphic design knowledge,” Melody admits. “But I was so excited for this opportunity, I told myself: I have to go for it.”

Over the next few months, Melody doubled down on honing her graphic design skills, signing up 
for an SMC class on computer-aided fashion design and merchandising with Professor Robert Armstrong, and attending almost every portfolio review on campus. In the end, she not only got the internship, but was also offered a full-time job several months later.

“SMC students bring a strong combination of creativity and practical skills,” says Marta Miller, owner of LA-based Lefty Production Company. “They also have a deep understanding of the production process, which is rare among students from other programs. This blend of creative vision and practical know-how is a real asset to any company.”

One very important feature of the program is its rejection of the standard one-size-fits-all mindset that plagues other fashion schools. Lorrie notes that the program encourages students to tailor their learning experience to best fit their own goals, needs, and life circumstances.

“We make it a point to hit both ends,” she says. “Our students can access the various levels of quality academia they need to transfer and go on to earn a four-year degree. On the other hand, we also offer training and resources for students who want to learn what they need, and then dive directly into the water and take advantage of internships and job opportunities. SMC provides a great foundation for both.”

For students seeking to earn a degree in fashion at a four-year institution, SMC offers a full curriculum of transferable courses, along with Associate degrees and certificates in fashion design, merchandising, and photography. Students in the program can also take advantage of SMC’s transfer agreements — which can facilitate the transfer process — with several top fashion schools, including California College of the Arts.

Rossely Tapia, who recently graduated with an Associate degree in fashion and apparel design, thinks additional education would be a boon to her career. She credits the Fashion Design faculty for helping hone her innate abilities in sewing.

“It was like a dream,” she confesses. “Something that existed just in my mind. I didn’t understand that I could do that with my hands.”

And even though Rossely is already making a name for herself with creations that have graced the runway at both LA Fashion Week and New York Fashion Week, she thinks there’s more to learn in the classroom.

“I’ve barely started,” she shares. “So I feel like I need to work a lot more to achieve what I want to do. There’s a lot more that I want to hone and perfect.”

For other students, the Fashion Design program represents a great way to master the skills and knowledge they need before diving into a new job or starting their own line. That was certainly the case for costume designer and patternmaker Sylvester Cetina, whose creations can be seen today on acclaimed TV shows like HBO’s “Euphoria” and Apple TV’s “Lessons in Chemistry.” But not too long ago, he was toiling away in a thankless job in finance. When the opportunity arose to relocate to LA with his partner, Sylvester saw it as his chance to start fresh in a second career. He soon enrolled at SMC with the goal of exploring his hidden interest in fashion.

“I had very, very little fashion background when I started,” Sylvester admits. “I was really just a lay person — I had no idea what fashion was all about. But I did know that I wanted to discover it and see where it would take me.”

Sylvester says that he soaked up everything he could learn from his professors — design, sewing, technical flat sketching, pattern drafting, garment production, and more. Soon enough, he found himself signing up for the LA Mode show, where he took home top honors in 2018.

“That really gave me the wings to continue studying fashion,” he says. “I realized there was something that I really loved, and I just couldn’t go back to another corporate environment. So it opened a lot of doors for me.”

There’s a lot more underway for the program, La Tanya shares. Discussions are currently in progress on how best to take the LA Mode Fashion Show to the next level, both as a production and as an enriching experience for students, complete with more scholarships and prizes.

New field trips are in the works, as well as a call for more space, especially a larger design studio.

“I want everybody to get discovered,” La Tanya says. “That’s our big goal. We really take a vested interest in helping our designers and our merchandise students to be what they came to the department to become.”

For Lorrie, the first step in that journey to discovery is envisioning the future.

“I recently spoke with my class about a former student who’s now the creative director of a major men’s clothing brand,” she says. “I literally pointed to a chair in the room and said, ‘There. That’s where he sat. And he knew what he wanted, and so that’s where he is now.’”

She adds, “It helps them realize they’re in the right place.

Photos by Ed Gandara and SMC Student Photographer Nagisa Tanaka