Fashion Design Students Earn Top Honors at San Diego County Fair

This July, JPCatholic Fashion Design students earned two major honors at the San Diego County Fair Student Showcase, recognizing their creativity, craftsmanship, and innovative approach to fashion and costume design.

Reyann Perez, Katherine Placke, Vera Miller, Lily Robeck, and Veronika Meilaender received Best of Show in the Costume Design category for their work on JPCatholic’s production of The Taming of the Shrew. The students designed more than 30 costumes combining Elizabethan influences with modern elements. More than 20 costumes were handmade from scratch, with careful attention to color, detail, character, and relationships within the story. Judges praised the quality of the work as being at a professional level.

Fashion students Katherine Placke and Veronika Meilaender received Best of Class in the Creative Reuse/Unconventional Material Design category for their collection “Media Static.” The collection began with a donation of textile remnants from HP and challenged students to transform the unusual materials into fashion-forward designs. Drawing inspiration from 1960s fashion and contemporary pop art, the students created a collection that highlights the possibilities of fashion reuse.

The Media Static collection was also featured at the Annual Recycled Materials Runway Show, hosted by Escondido Arts Partnership on June 6th.

“These awards are a wonderful reflection of the creativity, dedication, and craftsmanship of our Fashion Design students,” said Prof. Elena Chirkova. “At JPCatholic, our students have the opportunity to take their ideas from concept to finished work through hands-on, real-world projects. Seeing their designs recognized at this level is a testament to the talent and hard work they bring to their craft.”