Circle of Design is a Twin Cities original: local apparel designers incorporate music, dance, and fine art into a narrative runway show followed by a pop-up shop.
Each year, Circle of Design sponsors an entrepreneurial apparel design student by pairing them with a local designer.
During the four months leading up to the show, the established designer mentors the student. The 2016 featured student was graduating senior Tabitha Andelin, who received guidance from Gina Moorhead of House of Gina Marie.
“We did everything from take a trip to the Los Angeles Garment district to just answering all the questions of what it’s like to start a business,” Andelin said. “I have to thank the Circle of Design and Gina for helping me have the confidence to put myself out in the world as a designer.”
Her resulting line—“And Live”—is an activewear collection designed to transition from the gym to everyday life. The looks are a departure from the lingerie she created for Identity Fashion Show, but Andelin was able to apply many of the same principles of working with stretchy fabrics. “It was fun to make light and delicate pieces one semester and use that knowledge later to make more high impact garments that were still beautiful, like a cute underwear outfit,” she explained.
After commencement, Andelin will return to her home state of California to open a Los Angeles studio space for Andelin Activewear. “I plan to be a dynamic brand making cute, low impact athletic clothing for non-athletes but also make high intensity performance uniforms for athletic competitions. I was a rower in college so I want to start with something I know and a sport I love. I’ll be coming out with a new high intensity fit for the common rowing uniform called a ‘uni’.”
Pushing the boundaries of traditional fashion, this year’s senior apparel design fashion show, Amplified, speaks to a variety of lifestyles and cultures. From modest formalwear to colorful street style and theatrical costume play this year’s show explores fashion’s influences on social responsibility, gender fluidity, virtual reality, modern cultural expressions, and much more.
To become more sustainable, Winsome Goods founder Kathryn Sieve (B.S. ’11, Apparel Design) knew she had to find a way to incorporate the leftover fabric scraps from her products into usable items. After discussing the problem with instructor Lindsey Strange (Apparel Design) it became clear that it was the perfect research project for students to tackle in the Apparel Studio I.
What started as a collaboration between two apparel design students has turned into a small business for College of Design alumni Heidi Woelfle (B.S. ’16, Apparel Design), Regena Yu (B.S. ’16, Apparel Design) and Abby Zamis (B.F.A. ’16, Graphic Design).
