Each Spring, the second-year students in the Fashion Merchandising and Design program at Johnson County Community College (JCCC) create an original collection of designs for the College’s annual fashion show.
This year’s sold-out show, “True to Form,” was held Friday, April 18. It featured the work of ten student designers, as well as pieces made by first-year students in the program’s draping course. The works in the show reflected a variety of influences, from the aviation industry to Greek mythology.
Student design process
The student designers choose the show’s theme, which is open to interpretation. Students must work within some parameters – they must design five full looks, including a pair of pants, a jacket, etc., to showcase their technical skills, but they have full creative control over their final collections – they even select their own models and choose their own catwalk music.
Students start working on their collections at the start of the school year in August, and usually, the finishing touches aren’t added until the month of the show. They have class time to work on their garments, but the students spend significant time on them outside of the classroom, too.
Their first step is to create a concept/inspiration board and define a target customer. This serves as the starting point for them to begin to design their looks. Some students draw by hand, while others use computer-aided tools to sketch out their preliminary collection designs. Then, students choose their models, so they can take their measurements and bring the prototypes of their garments to life. Some of the models are JCCC students who attended the Fashion Show casting call, but many students call in friends and family to wear their designs on the runway.
Student designs and inspiration
One JCCC fashion student, Ebony, had both her daughter and her coworker’s daughter help model her collection for the show. Ebony has a full-time job with an area healthcare clinic but has always wanted to pursue a degree in fashion. Her job has been very supportive – Ebony has been a full-time student and healthcare worker for nearly two years. She started imagining her collection by picking her fabrics. She wanted her collection to feature lots of florals and streetwear looks, but with a feminine vibe.
Ebony isn’t the only JCCC fashion student with a full-time job. Another student designer, Emily, is also the Vice President of Product Operations for Charlie Hustle, where she oversees garment development and the design team. Her company empowered her to finish her fashion degree, which she started working on more than a decade ago. Emily’s collection focuses on gender-inclusive pieces made entirely from deadstock fabrics – fabric left over from the fashion industry that would have otherwise gone to waste.
2025 First Place winner
The students are evaluated by a panel of three judges who announce the fashion show’s top three winners at the end of the evening. This year’s first-place winner was Rachel Wisnewski, whose collection was inspired by Persephone, the Greek goddess of the underworld.
Like many of her classmates, Rachel chose her fabrics first. She knew she wanted to use velvet and other flowy, knit fabrics, but her design silhouettes required more structured fabrics. This was initially a challenge for Rachel. When she first began sewing her garments, she used a stiff muslin fabric to sew the prototypes. She was able to work around the differences, learned a new skill, and made a big impact on the judges by incorporating corsetry in her collection.
After she graduates in May, Rachel plans to take a creativity break and take some time to decompress after the fashion show. But she’ll be back at the drawing board soon – her favorite part of fashion design is imagining, sketching, and bringing her ideas to life.
Want to bring your own designs to life?
If you know someone who is interested in pursuing a career in the fashion industry, the JCCC Fashion Merchandising & Design curriculum can prepare them for a career in apparel design, technical design, alterations, illustration, retail management/sales, visual merchandising, fashion product buying, fashion marketing or market representative positions. Find all the program details here!
