Skyline’s Cosmetology students hosted the “Fashion in Recession” fashion show on Saturday, April 18, during the Skyline Days event at Serramonte Center. The show put forth four categories to suggest stylish outfits for the coming summer months: professional, summer, casual, and evening attire. The six student models showed off a variety of clothes on the runway, striking poses ranging from modest to downright sexy, while their own mix of energetic music played in the background. The show definitely left the audience wanting more – the time slot was nearly an hour long, and the choice of music could have kept the energy up for much longer. However, the show clocked in at only about 15 minutes, with sizeable gaps in between segments to give the models time to change. Although Michael Murphy, a teacher in the Business division at Skyline, was involved, he took a far less hands-on approach to the event. He gave lectures on the subject and answered whatever questions the students had, he ultimately left the planning and coordination up to the students.

“They all worked together,” Murphy said. “They all learned the experience together. You learn how to work in teams, you learn how to deal with the personalities and you learn how to make it happen.”

During the eight-week planning period the students had to set up everything from a timeline to run by, committees to handle all the different aspects of the event, getting models and garments for the show, to making the programs for the show. According to Murphy, the models featured in the show were all Skyline students recruited on campus. Only one had had any previous modeling experience, and she shared her experience by teaching the other models how to walk down a runway. Worth noting is the fact that all the clothes the models were wearing during the event had been donated from stores around Serramonte such as Men’s Formalwear and Forever 21. Murphy didn’t mention if the clothes were donated individually or in complete outfits, but whatever the case, the students made just about everything look good. Despite the short show, the audience enjoyed the display of summer fashion.

“I thought it was really well done,” said Jane Boyarsky, an audience member. “It was a very great show.”

Also present in the audience was Ally Nuschy, another Skyline faculty member involved in Cosmetology.

“Seeing them in this environment they all look so fabulous,” Nuschy said. “I think that it really shows a great team effort to pull off an event like this. It was really charming, and it was great for the school, and great for the students because it got our name out.” In spite of the obstacles of having to setup and coordinate a fashion show themselves, the students came together to pull it off with only a few difficulties. “Just walking down that short runway goes really far for them and how they feel about themselves,” Boyarsky said.