Whether you follow the most recent trends, throw on whatever is not in the laundry basket or you just really enjoyed watching “The Devil Wears Prada,” fashion is something we all deal with every day.

However, something people might not think about is the amount of work that goes into producing a high-quality garment.

Inside Room 210 of Michaelsen Hall, you can hear music and the whirring of sewing machines in the background and see student designers measuring, marking, pinning, cutting and hand-sewing their garments.

There are 16 students, all busily working on their clothing lines. Many of them work in the lab at least 40 hours a week.

On June 1, they will present their original designs–60 garments in total–at the 23rd annual Fashion Show at Milo Smith Tower Theatre.

A matinee show will open at 3 p.m. and an evening show at 7 p.m. with a silent auction before each show. Students can purchase tickets at the Wildcat Shop and online for $10 or for $12 at the door. Non-students pay $12.

Andrea Eklund is the director of the show–her 12th year–as well as an associate professor of the apparel, textiles and merchandising (ATM) program at CWU.

The theme for this year’s show is  “fuego,” which means “fire” in Spanish. According to Eklund, it can also mean something extraordinary that can’t be explained with words.

“For me, the most exciting thing is everything coming together,” Eklund said. “And seeing all the hard work that the students have done come to fruition.”

Eklund said students in her fashion line development class create everything from scratch.

They first start with sketching their designs and narrowing them down to just a few with Eklund’s advice.

Then they drape a neutral fabric piece on a dress form–a mannequin torso–or flat-pattern it to create a template for the garment.

The pattern is then used to make a sample that the model will fit into and depending on how well it fits, changes are made. Designers might have one to three fittings for each garment.

Then the finished product is created with materials that the designers obtain and fund themselves.

“I’m pretty particular on the quality, so that everything’s lined, everything’s finished properly,” Eklund said. “I push them to [meet] the highest quality possible.”

“Age of Reign”

Sean Daniel Reign Helligso is a senior student in the ATM program. Helligso won the award for Judges Choice for Most Outstanding Line in last year’s show.

His clothing line is called “Age of Reign,” a semi-formal or dressy casual wear targeted at men and women in their late 20s in urban settings.

His design poster displays five slim fit black suits with words like “reborn,” “sophisticated” and “utopian” written underneath them.

Helligso said he bought his material from second-hand stores like Goodwill and Habitat for Humanity, which he disassembled and then used to make his garments.

“The entire idea [of my design] is that the future should be sustainable,” Helligso said.

Helligso, whose interest in fashion started early as a kid and made paper hats and outfits for his teddy bears, said he gets his ideas from video games, science fiction or anything that gives a dystopian, futuristic vibe such as “The Hunger Games,” “God Complex” and “Mass Effect.”

“I draw a lot of my inspiration [from] things that kind of look like fantastical worlds like the future and imagination’s allowed to be more elaborate and expressive,” Helligso said.

“Lovesome”

Paige Foggin is a junior ATM student who modeled in last year’s show and is a designer this year.

Foggin’s clothing line is called, “Lovesome.” The line consists of three white dresses, each with a distinct feminine style, embellished with ruffles, frills and other “girly details,” as she described.

“It was inspired by my trip to Italy, where I saw a lot of women wearing a lot of neutral colors,” Foggin said. “I want women to be able to feel confident wearing neutral and simple outfits, but still be able to express themselves.”

She said some parts of her dress like the arm holes needed to be carefully hand sewn to make sure everything lined up perfectly.

Foggin gets some of her inspiration from fashion blogs such as “Dress Up Buttercup” and “Champagne and Chanel,” and from a bridal dress designer named Hayley Paige.

“[Hayley Paige] does a lot of ball gowns, girly details, glitter, frills, sparkle, she’s got everything,” Foggin said.

“DRiP JULeZ”

Julia Jacobs, a senior ATM student, put her own modern flair into Wild Western streetwear and went as far as New York City to purchase her materials.

“I have a horse and I’m into horseback riding,” Jacobs said. “I kind of took my love for that and then said, ‘why not make something that you can wear every day?’”

Her clothing line is called, “DRiP JULeZ,” and is comprised of cowhide and sheepskin crop vests for women and a lamb hide jacket and overalls combined with chaps–or chinks–for men.

Chaps are bottom garments worn by cowboys and cowgirls that buckle around their waists, cover their legs and are open in the back.

Jacobs said that while her garments may not be for everyone because they’re flashy, they could be worn by a trendier person or for a music video.

“I like skin showing, so the [guy models] don’t have shirts on and the girls are just wearing little vests so it’s meant to be revealing and risqué, but tasteful,” Jacobs said. “It’s something that is definitely not seen every day, but at the same time it still has a bit of traditional, classic and Western element.”

Eklund said the ATM department partnered with CWU’s Theatre Department–as they have been for 12 years–to help with the technical side of things like help building the stage and providing lighting, music and video during the show.

“It’s a really good collaborative event,” Eklund said. “[The theatre department] is really integral in having a professional level show.”

For the silent auction, her students in the fashion production class procured items from businesses, independent consultants and their own connections.

Eklund said the fashion show is fully self-supporting, which is partly thanks to the proceeds from the auction.

“It’s a great way to support the program, different scholarships, stuff we give to students [and] field trips,” Eklund said. “Whatever we make for this year, that’s our budget for next year. It’s just circular in our budget.”