AMDT students ‘Elevate’ to the next level

Many different emotions come along with the experience of graduation. That feeling of accomplishment, of being on top of the world and feeling like the sky is the limit, will be captured throughstudent-designed clothing tonight.

The Apparel, Merchandising, Design and Textiles (AMDT) Mom’s Weekend Fashion Show returns for its 34th show. This year, the theme is titled “Elevate.”

Amy Hughes, AMDT instructor, is the director and facilitator of the fashion show. She also oversees the production class that is in charge of putting the whole show together.

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“This is a really dynamic class, it’s full of experiential learning,” Hughes said. “[The runway show] helps the students use the skills they’ve learned here and put those skills to a practical use.”

While Hughes facilitates and oversees production, the students are truly the ones who put in most of the work, she said. The students themselves produce, advertise and organize the whole event.

“This lets the students hone in on their skills. It’s really exciting to see what they’ve learned and see the whole show come together,” Hughes said. “It’s a way to see our whole program work together to produce something magical that the whole campus gets to see.”

The seniors in the special event production class are the ones who chose the theme “Elevate.” Hughes said the theme was clearly based on how they were feeling about graduating.

“They chose ‘Elevate,’ and all the pictures of what inspired them were about feeling on top of the world and being up in the clouds and the mountains,” Hughes said. “Because they’re graduating, they feel like the sky is the limit, and like they’re just on top of the world.”

While the special event production class produces the event, other AMDT students design and produce all the clothing to run in the show.

“It’s kind of like ‘Project Runway’ because [the AMDT students] see the pieces through from the very beginning to the very end,” Hughes said. “They make up the patterns, they pick out the fabric, they fit the models, they do everything. I love getting to see their creativity come to life.”

The 34th annual AMDT Mom’s Weekend Fashion Show will take place at 7:30 p.m. tonight in Beasley Coliseum. Tickets are $15 in advance at ticketswest.com and $18 at the door.

“It’s a great night to celebrate all that the students have accomplished,” Hughes said. “It’s fun, family-friendly entertainment that shows off the trendy, fun and fashionable clothes the students have worked on.”