Sustainable fashion steals the show in on-campus project

  Freshman Eve Szylleyko showcased handpicked secondhand and student-made clothing in the ReWear Fashion Show on April 16 in the Student Union Theatre.

  Szylleyko was the driving force behind this event, which was originally organized as a project for an honors class. The event included a model walk as well as a local and student run vendor fair.

  Szylleyko designed and thrifted all but one of the outfits that the models wore when they were walking the stage. 

  “There are enough articles of clothing on earth to clothe the next six generations, and thrifting is extremely valuable to UMKC students on a budget,” said Szylleyko.

  As students walked across the stage, a PowerPoint featured an itemized list of each piece, its price, whether it was borrowed, thrifted or “rescued” from the landfill, along with the model’s name.

 “We have so many different expressions. So many different ways of presenting ourselves, and we can use the materials that are already on Earth, instead of making new ones and hurting our environment,” said Szylleyko.

  Arizona Trading Company (ATC) and River Market Antiques are two local secondhand shops that offer an eclectic selection of used clothing, frequented by many of the models and guests at the event.

  “I loved that while Eve was the main curator of it all, we got to have our own input. I walked for my brother, who has a booth here, Uri, and I got to wear clothes that he made,” said Isa Soulliere, one of the models and a friend of Szylleyko’s.

  Junior business administration major Stella Secor loved modeling for the show and supporting local entrepreneurs.

  “You set a good example and are a role model when you wear sustainable fashion,” said Secor.

  Despite having no available fashion degree, UMKC does offer a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Costume Design and Technology program. 

  “I’m really hoping that at the next event, I could have more designers and more models. I designed all the outfits this time, and I thrifted them all, but I would like to make more of a community effort and bring people together over their shared love of fashion and the environment,” said Szylleyko.

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