The Euphoria 2024 fashion show, the culmination of the students' work

Wednesday April 24, 2024

Media Contact: Christy Lang | Manager, Marketing and Communications | 405-744-9740 | [email protected]

More than 350 people gathered April 19 at the 13th annual Euphoria Fashion Show at the ConocoPhillips OSU Alumni Center for Oklahoma State Universities.

Students managed all aspects of the show, from planning and marketing the event to designing, constructing and modeling the pieces featured on the runway.

Madelyn Campbell, a sophomore fashion design student, was one of 18 students on this year’s production team and served as production clothing chair. After two years of participating in the show, Campbell said she is very proud to be able to support and celebrate her fellow fashion design students.

I'm going to do it (the fashion show) every year, and by the time my senior year gets here, I'll be out of the class, but I'll still be working with the class as a senior. my clothes, said Campbell. By the time my senior year comes, it will be even more powerful because I did so much work in the first three years, and for my senior year, so many students will be doing this work for me.

This collaboration was especially important for Sebastian Arias, one of five seniors who produced a complete runway-ready collection. For the Arias Around the World collection, he aimed to capture the heritage of each model he worked with.

Ruth Ziadzi, who grew up and modeled in Ghana before coming to OSU, said she wanted to feel confident in an outfit that reflected traditional African designs.

He (Arias) wanted our culture and personal style to be reflected in the outfit, Ziadzi said. Back home, I never had a designer call me to collaborate with me on an outfit. It's a new experience and I really enjoyed it. I feel like a part of me is in this dress too.

Ziadzi won the Best Female Model award this year. Prizes were also awarded for Best Male Design and Outstanding Cotton Designs for sophomores, juniors and seniors. The seniors competed for the Most Marketable Garment and Best Constructed Garment, which were awarded to the Arias Ghana design.

Kaitlyn Ayers' Made for Walking collection won Best Constructed Collection and Best Overall Senior Collection. Ayers said she was inspired by Nancy Sinatra's song These Boots Are Made for Walkin' and the growing popularity of Western-inspired designs. She said she wanted her design to embrace femininity, female empowerment and bangs.

With his graduation just weeks away, Ayers said winning some of the show's biggest awards was a bigger testament to his four years of work at OSU than a degree alone ever could. 'be.

I've been dreaming about it for four years, ever since I got here and saw what the seniors put into (the show) my freshman year,” Ayers said. Just seeing what they put in my first year and being like, I have no idea how they did that, and now being on the other side and being like, I could do this.

It's so rewarding. I feel like I've come full circle.

As Ayers, Arias and the other fashion seniors took their final walk down the Euphorias runway, students were already beginning work on next year's show, scheduled for April 25, 2025.

We will have class once again on a Tuesday evening for an hour, Campbell said. We'll go over the pros and cons and what to improve for the next one. And then you will start working.

Next spring, Campbell plans to take the Fashion Show Production course (DM4010) again before spending her senior year designing her own collection. She said working with the judges and production team would help her design a compelling collection, but she was most excited about the chance to celebrate her identity alongside her peers.

It's definitely not just an outfit for us, especially considering how extravagant they are, Campbell said. It’s our personality; this is our story; This is our journey. This may seem silly to some, but it's a real passion for what we do.

Euphoria Fashion Show 2024 Award Winners

• Best female model: Ruth Ziadzi
• Top male model: Pumudu Welikanna
• Outstanding Sophomore: Emily Bass
• Outstanding Junior: Makenna Bayer
• Outstanding Senior: Kaitlyn Ayers
• Most Marketable Senior Apparel: Lauren Selman Ruby
• Best Senior Collection Under Construction: Kaitlyn Ayers
• Exceptional clothing: Sebastian Arias Ghana
• Exceptional collection: Kaitlyn Ayers

Story by: Jessica Pearce | [email protected]