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Fashion with Class |
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 By Steve Cook
“For a large state university, outside of New York City,” says Kristin Caskey, associate
professor in VCU’s Department of Fashion Design and Merchandising, “I feel we
have one of the strongest such departments in the country.”
Caskey says that there are over 325 students enrolled, and that a large number of past students
have gone on to both national and international careers in the fashion field. Former students
are now working for such acclaimed corporations, she says, as Kenneth Cole, Ralph Lauren,
Mudd Jeans, and Anthropologie.
Of the four students featured herein, Caskie says, “These students have all excelled in their
assignments. All show great promise for future creative endeavor.”
River City Magazine appreciates Kristin Caskey’s assistance in gathering these four designing
young people, so that we may showcase examples of their creativity in the classroom.
~ Photography by Vince Robertson
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 FASHION IN BLACK AND WHITE
Designer: Kelly Cassady
Hometown: Williamsburg, VA
Kelly Cassady says she’s been sewing since she was in the 7th grade, and has made lots of clothing for herself, her friends at school, and her family. The dress, modeled here by Kristina Porter, a Woodbridge, Virginia native, and a Junior at VCU, was designed for a competition sponsored by the retailer, White House/Black Market. The assignment was to produce a black and white cotton day dress. Kelly’s black and white floral print won 2nd place prize. Kelly says she enjoys outdoor activities, including surfing and swimming. She would like to consider athletic, outdoor, or swimwear fashion design as a career choice. “I’m also very into the environment,” she says, “and might be interested in pursuing eco-fashion.” The Williamsburg native explains that this is a relatively new facet of the industry, using innovative fabrics such as bamboo fibers. Kelly is hoping to do an internship in New York this summer. “I’m not sure where I see myself ending up,” she says. “I like to travel. I think I’d like to work in California.”
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 THE EVOLUTION OF FASHION
Designer: Kevin Blow, Senior
Hometown: (near) Franklin, VA
“I got tired of seeing so much vintage clothing,” Kevin Blow says. “I wanted to wipe the slate clean…to start at the very beginning of fashion.” Kevin’s fashion, pictured here, is one in a series of five he designed to illustrate fashion design from mankind’s earliest history. Here, model Sarah Kelley is wearing a rabbit fur blouse with a China silk lining. The skirt, Kevin says, utilizes a power mesh fabric. Kevin, who became interested in fashion design at the age of 13, when he accompanied his grandmother to her doctor’s appointment and discovered a fashion magazine in the waiting room, studied in London last summer, and says he would like to return there to further his education after graduating from VCU. “Or,” he says, “I may decide to go directly into the industry.”
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 FASHION ENTREPRENEUR
Designer: Aaron Jackson
Hometown: Washington D.C.
Aaron “Ajax” Jackson says he’s always loved the arts “I’ve been drawing since I was little and painting since high school,” he says. But, when he was making his decisions regarding a college education, Aaron chose fashion design. “I didn’t want to be a starving artist,” he explains. The ambitious Washington, D.C. native has already started his own clothing line, Mayhem AVE. The “AVE” stands for “Apparel for Virtually Everyone.” He says his interest is in designing urban, casual clothing. His jeans, pictured here, feature plaid in the lining, the zippers, cuffs, and back pockets. The white cotton shirt with hoodie, features the atomic symbol, which is also the logo for his company. Aaron says, upon graduation, “I’ll probably move to New York and work for someone else, until I can branch out on my own.”
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 STORY BOOK FASHION
Designer: Megan Schuler, Senior
Hometown: Salem, VA
“I just kinda fell into fashion,” says Megan Schuler, senior in VCU’s Department of Fashion. “I don’t really know just where my interest came from.” Schuler, a native of Salem, Virginia, says her design is inspired by the Cinderella fairy tale, as well as by Rashin Coatie, “a darker version of the tale, originating in Scotland.” “I love literature, and have always been interested in fairy tales,” Megan says. Her “rags-to-riches” skirt contains pages from the fairy tale, which came from illustrations created by Schuler, and then printed onto fabric. The skirt actually reverses to tell, through illustrations, the transformation of Cinderella. Megan says that after graduation, she would like to move to either New York or Philadelphia in order to pursue her career in fashion design. “Ultimately,” she says, “I would like to work for myself.”
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