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Student Creativity, Research Flourish Despite Pandemic

Lily Barozzini

By Sarah Stone

Despite the pandemic, students and employees at the Wilson College of Textiles still managed to create and conduct research in meaningful ways. 

Click the link below to see some of the projects they’ve completed, from classwork to extracurricular projects.

Shahida Afrin

Ph.D. Textile Technology Management, 2022
Course: TT 571 (Spring 2020)

This project was created at the beginning of the pandemic. When we had to leave campus suddenly, we were not sure how our textile design project using on campus equipment would be completed, but at last we made it. I am satisfied with my laser engraving and laser cutting project for textile design.

Natalia Barnack – Project One

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2024
Course: FTD 200 (Spring 2021)
Project Name: Envy

Natalia Barnack

We were instructed to design and construct a jacket composed of upcycled or resourced materials. My final product, which I titled “Envy”, was a conceptual piece constructed with end-of-the-bolt upholstery fabric and recycled computer pieces (specifically: cut up motherboard). I specifically chose to work with a monochromatic color palette to provide unity in the design.

Natalia Barnack- Project Two

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2024
Course: FTD 104
Project Name: Metric

Natalia Barnack Entry 2

Metric was a two piece avant-garde garment consisting of a geometric patchwork design and embroidery floss embellishments. The piece was inspired by different Pablo Picasso style paintings featured in the Variations project. The upcycled denim fabric was manipulated in a way to create 3-D elements that built off the natural silhouette of the body. The yellow tassel earrings and the side hanging embroidery embellishments helped to promote balance and unity within the final garment design.

Lily Barozzini

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2024
Course: FTD 200 Design Skills Workshop (Spring 2021)
Project Name: Confetti Scrap Jacket

Lilly Baronzinni Project

“Confetti Scrap Jacket” is an experimental jacket constructed from pre-consumer waste, upcycled bedding and repurposed curtains. My mission was to find a unique way to use textile waste and create a new material surface. Additionally, I wanted this confetti-like material to reference the images we see of monumental amounts of material added to the landfill. By inserting fabric scraps into the design of the jacket, pre and post-consumer waste that was never to be seen by consumers is highlighted as the prominent design feature. This jacket stands for sustainability in the fashion industry and makes the statement that what most people see as waste can be turned into something functional, unique and leave little impact on our environment.

Emma Gibson – Project One

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2023
Course: FTD 216 (Spring 2021)

Emma Gibson Entry 1

By using thrifted sweatshirts only I recreated young designer Asata Maise’s masterful technique of patchwork in current fashion trends. Creating this look for FTD 216 was very time consuming but also very rewarding, and I am very happy with the outcome!

Emma Gibson – Project Two

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2023
Course: FTD 216 (Spring 2021)

Emma Gibson Entry 2

This was my final project, in which I created my own patterns to execute a design I started with as a sketch.

Latoya Giles

Lead Extension Program Specialist, Zeis Textiles Extension

After 25 years of not touching a sewing machine, the COVID-19 pandemic gave me a reason to. I searched for and found the “perfect” pattern with a filter pocket to give to family and friends.

Anne Graf – Project One

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2022

I drew a candle in the rayonism style, then digitized it and turned it into a print. I did a bunch of different colorways and then also put one on a pair of Vans shoes (using their online design studio).

Anne Graf – Project Two

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2022

Anne Graf Entry 2

I took a picture of some koi fish in a pond and then used the Apex software to program that picture into something readable on the Shima Seiki Knitting machines. Then, I knit the program on the SRY machine. It is a six color birds-eye jacquard.

Anne Graf – Project Three

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2022

Anne Graf Entry 3

I take white converse and color them with Sharpies (also sometimes using rubbing alcohol to make the ink run in order to create a watercolor effect). This is my fourth pair.

Anne Graf – Project Four

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2022

Anne Graf Entry 4

I drew a collection inspired by graffiti and California vibes. This is one of about six different looks.

Brianne Haas

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2022
Course: FTD 375

Brianne Haas

This is a handwoven broken lozange twill on a tapestry loom utilizing alternating colorful warp yarns and a creamy white weft yarn to create a subtle color shift throughout the weave.

Micho Hanna

B.S. Fashion and Textile Management, 2023
Project Name: Perplexed Clothing Co.

These pieces are part of my clothing brand’s latest drop, the t-shirts were screen printed, and the hats were embroidered all by me and my childhood best friend who started Perplexed with me. Perplexed is our brand aiming to give people a sense of comfort when navigating through life. We are all perplexed about what the future has in store for us and oftentimes there is pressure put on us to know it all, so it is best to recognize we may never know all the secrets of life, so live with ease knowing that we are all in this together to figure our lives out. It’s okay to be perplexed.

Annie Hoyt – Project One

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2025
Project Name: Inferno Dress

Annie Hoyt Entry 1

This was made for a project in my English class. The designed, painted and sewn dress represents the layers of hell based off of the “Inferno” by Dante Alighieri.

Annie Hoyt – Project Two

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2025
Project Name: Tissue Paper Dress

Annie Hoyt Entry 2

This dress was constructed entirely out of tissue paper and dyed with beet juice. It was inspired by the idea of increased sustainability within the fashion industry.

Annie Hoyt – Project Three

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2025
Project Name: The Homework Dress

This was made for my Environmental Science Class. It Constructed entirely out of my old homework and inspired by my school uniform. This is a dress that I wore while giving my final class presentation. I sewed each individual piece of paper to make a quilt, and from there I cut out the pattern and sewed the dress.

Sarah Jarrell – Project One

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2023
Created during the Fall 2020 semester
Name of Project: Indubitably Sunshine

This coat was created completely from fabric from my mom’s old pants.

Sarah Jarrell – Project Two

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2023
Created during the Spring 2020 semester
Project Title: Queen

Shayleigh Larsen

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2025
Created during the summer of 2021

This piece was my second attempt at embroidery where I free hand stitched a koi fish onto a pair of jeans. Taking around 170 yards of embroidery thread and fifty hours of my time, you can see my improvement in stitching from the head of the fish, where I began, to the tail, where I finished.

Garyn Levitan

B.S. Textile Technology, 2022

This is a poster of the research I had conducted over the summer in the Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) related to a Corneal Endothelium Trans-Endothelial Electrical Resistance Test (TEER).

Anna Stuffelbeam

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2023
FTD 374 / FTD 373 (Spring 2021)

Anna Stuffelbeam Project

This rug hooked pillow features hand dyed wool yarn and uses plant dyes.

Kit Walsh

B.S. Fashion and Textile Design, 2024
Created during the Spring 2021 semester

Kit Walsh Project

Assistant Professor Kate Nartker tasked us with creating a jacket out of upcycled materials. I went with a clown theme. The jacket is made up of three layers of tulle that was given to me by my high school drama teacher. She also gave me the orange and pink tulle/netting that make up all of the ruffles. The large bows were made with various fabrics that I was able to find in the fashion studio. Many of the small details were done using materials I already owned.

Ziyu Wang

Ph.D. Fiber and Polymer Science, 2024 Summer 2021
Project Name: A Standardized Procedure for Quantitative Evaluation of Residual Viral Activity on Antiviral Textiles