Inside SMS Fashion Mod: Hands-On Learning in Sustainable Fashion, Culture, and Creative Design
Mountain Connection, November 5, 2024
By: Jed Donnel
Last week, I had the pleasure of visiting Lainey’s fashion mod—a class that made me long to be a high school student again (at SMS, anyway) and learn how to use a sewing machine. The class is truly an idyllic microcosm where students experience the best qualities of experimentation, collaboration, and support. As Lainey explains, “My goal is for students to discover or rediscover the joy of making something from scratch, to acquire new skills from old traditions, to question the relationship between culture and clothing, and to gain a deeper understanding of the impacts of fast fashion and overconsumption on the environment and labor forces in the fashion industry.”
Far from the home-ec classes of the past, Lainey’s mod is a deep dive into aesthetics, ethics, and consumer culture, all approached through hands-on exploration of the subject matter. Each week focuses on different central concepts, and I visited during the tail end of week three: “Connecting Culture to Textile Art and Clothing.” This week’s lessons centered on understanding how clothing defines us culturally and the ethical implications of appropriating clothing from other cultures. The class I observed began with a discussion of an assigned article about cultural appropriation in the fashion industry, especially in high-end fashion. The students—representing grades 9 through 12—engaged in thoughtful, civil discussion about the complexities of these trends. To make the conversation locally relevant, Lainey prompted students to reflect on styles around Steamboat that might be seen as appropriation, and how similar concerns extend to Halloween costumes. In discussing the latter, they considered appropriate limitations, especially concerning religious or sacred symbols, a topic that nicely set the stage for Matt’s campfire presentation later that morning.
The boundaries in these contexts are often unclear, making it all the more important for students to reflect on them as they create their own designs. Alongside these discussions, students are learning to use (and often fix) sewing machines, repurposing items from their wardrobes or other found materials into one-of-a-kind creations—a process known as “upcycling.” Their designs are impressive, each a unique blend of personal ambition and audience awareness. Zoe, for instance, is collecting about 70 Coke cans, each one hand-cut, flattened, washed, and pressed between hardcover books to be sewn together into a 60s-style mod dress. She plans to add a protective lining to make the dress wearable, and has only cut her fingers twice in the process! Meanwhile, Julian has stitched together pieces of various sweaters to make a new hoodie featuring his own logo, creating a commentary on how branding affects the value of clothing. Eva, too, is upcycling by sewing together plastic bags used for Halloween candy to make a skirt.
The class also explores the business side of fashion, featuring guest speakers from the industry. Lainey shared, “One of my favorite moments was when Tim Kaeding (Coop’s dad and Co-Founder of Mother in Los Angeles) agreed to a virtual meeting with the class during lunch in week three. The thoughtful questions they asked, with little prompting from me, exemplified the power of letting their curiosity drive their learning.”
Weeks one and two of the mod were titled “Design is Everywhere: Branding for Objects & Accessories” and “Subverting Traditional Craft Skills and Gender Roles for the Modern Era,” respectively. Students designed and hand-embroidered personal logos using a variety of stitches, learning to interpret and observe symbols and considering how inclusivity, belonging, equality, and innovation contribute to personal expression, creative freedom, and style development. This week, the final week of the mod, shifts focus to “Fast Fashion, Value Ethics, and Global Consequences.” Students are examining the evolution of our relationship with clothes, fashion, and style, as well as the impact of overconsumption on the environment and clothing production. The course covers an international range of artists, from Cannupa Hanska Luger and Bisa Butler to Henry Hussey and El Anatsui.
At the heart of the mod are the students themselves, who warmly welcomed me into the room and eagerly shared their work. Lainey remarked, “One of the things I’ve appreciated most is watching them carve out time to make art during lunch, conference periods, after school, in the dorms, and on weekends. It’s such a joy to see them set up a sewing machine or pull out an embroidery project and dive in. They’ve been incredibly motivated self-starters.”
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