FDM senior designer, Leah Aoki, has been accepted to present one of her garments at the 2023 International Textile and Apparel Association’s (ITAA) annual conference.  The conference will be held in Baltimore, Maryland, on November 8-11.

When asked about her achievement, Leah said, “I am very excited to present one of my original pieces at the ITAA this coming November!”  There’s good reason for her to feel excited.  Her garment went through a rigorous blind reviewing process in which the acceptance rate for the undergraduate category this year was a mere 28%.  Leah’s mentor and advisor, Professor Minako McCarthy, and the entire FDM ohana is very proud of her.  --Minako McCarthy

The 57th annual UH Manoa fashion show was held at the Hawaii convention center on April 30 and, by all accounts, it was an appreciable success. Nine seniors and twelve juniors formed the largest group of student designers at a UH fashion show in over 14 years, showcasing a solid year of hard work on collection concepts, themes, color pallets, and fabrics (Wach a video). The theme, “Supersonic,” was chosen to highlight the extraordinary engagement of the participants, especially the seniors, who came to the project intending to make a meaningful, lasting impression through their efforts. The show was particularly noteworthy since the COVID safeguards that hampered previous events were no longer in place and the venue was sold out well in advance. This year, fashion was clearly able to return to UH at supersonic velocity. As with any hugely successful venture, this year’s event was a broad-based, sincere team effort....[For the full article, click "Read more"]

With our FDM banner nicely displayed along with a beautiful garment on a form, Drs. Reilly, McCarthy, and Cristi-Kim had the opportunity to meet with Farrington High School students during their Career and College Fair on April 6th. Students from the various Academies visited the FDM booth and shared their interests in the different areas of the fashion industry. Many of the students enthusiastically discussed their interest in fashion design and styling, which is a trending area in the industry among the Generation Z cohort. Some of the students we spoke to weren’t sure what industry they’d like to pursue, which is a common theme amongst high school students, but were impressed by the work (from various FDM courses) from our FDM students nevertheless. This was a wonderful recruitment event, and we are grateful to have been invited to share our program with the Farrington High School students and talkstory with them. We look forward to participating in more Farrington High School fashion events, as well as the opportunity for more partnerships with our local high schools. 

--Abby Cristi-Kim and Minako McCarthy