Placed 2nd for senior designers | Shown at New Orleans Fashion Week 2026
This collection is inspired by past visions of the future; how people envisioned the 2020s during the 1980s. It references electronic devices made of beige plastic, analog interfaces with tactile buttons, vehicle dashboards with pops of neon light, and cassette decks with pastel color schemes. An expended version of this collection was presented at New Orleans Fashion Week.
A central area of inspiration for this collection is tactile, analog hardware and technology. Although there are many ways such hardware can offer aesthetic inspiration in the forms of color palettes and geometry, I also wanted it to be present in the collection itself. What suits this role better than seatbelt buckles, which are already designed to interface directly with textiles? This jacket features two buckles as closures in a tonal beige, reminiscent of much of the other technology of the 80s and 90s.
Quilted Double-Knee Pants
These wide-legged pants feature knee panels which have been quilted in a 2"x2" grid for added stability. In addition, they have a phone pocket and two rows of MOLLE compatible webbing for the easy attachment of MOLLE accessories.
Our clothes used to have all sorts of pockets designed for specific items that people carried around with them on a daily basis, like coin pockets, ticket pockets, and watch pockets. These pockets can still be found on modern clothing despite people no longer carrying around coins, tickets, and pocket watches. Today, everyone carries their phone everywhere they go, yet our clothes don't have dedicated phone pockets. With this collection being so influenced by technology, I wanted these garments to directly interface with the single most prevalent technology of the present day, and so many of the bottoms in this collection feature a phone pocket. It's positioned at the mid-thigh, where the hand naturally rests when standing, providing quicker access to your phone than typical side or back pockets.
Grid-Knit Top
Men's knit top in Polartec Power Grid fleece
Quilted Three-Tone Jacket
A common sight among 20th century consumer tech is bright, neon highlights in a sea of otherwise neutral beige and gray plastic. This jacket features a bodice quilted in a 2"x2" grid, with hi-vis orange highlights at the collar, cuffs, and waistband.
Two-Tone Wrap Skirt
Wrap skirt in two-tone polyester canvas featuring fatigue-style pockets
Warped Knit Top
Women's knit top in a lightweight, warped rayon
Hi-Vis Utility Vest
Although MOLLE webbing is most often found on tactical gear, it could prove useful in many different fields and applications. It's an incredibly versatile system for securely mounting accessories and equipment onto a garment, and could benefit anyone who regularly works with a variety of equipment that they need to keep on their person. Many blue collar workers are required to wear high visibility vests, yet they're often made of flimsy materials and don't provide much utility outside of their visibility. Why not make them out of a sturdier fabric and attach some MOLLE webbing, similar to a tactical vest? This allows for the attachment of tools, carabiners, pouches to organize and carry small hardware like screws, personal items like pencils and flashlights, or a first aid kit. MOLLE provides nearly limitless utility.
Hi-Vis Fatigue Pants
These cotton twill pants feature fatigue-style pockets and inner leg panels in a hi-vis yellow, matching the Utility Vest.
Zip-Up Plastic Top
This top was directly inspired by the digital technology of the 80s and 90s in both color scheme and fabric choice. Much like 20th century computers, this top features a beige plastic shell in the form of PVC coated taffeta. The blue lining and exterior highlights reference the internals of a computer and the heavy usage of blue in early digital interfaces, most notably the infamous "blue screen of death."
Plastic Wrap Skirt
This skirt accompanies the matching Zip-Up Plastic Top. It features an integral belt made from rubber tubing, with a roller clamp serving as the closure. This skirt serves as another entry in this collection's exploration and experimentation with tactile hardware. It also features a phone pocket.
Grid-Knit Top
Women's knit top in Polartec Power Grid fleece
Two-Tone Windbreaker
This jacket is made from a shiny taffeta in white and turquoise, resembling windbreakers and skiing jackets of the 1980s. It also continues the collection's use of color palettes found in the technology of the era. It features a full lining, welt pockets, and ribbed cuffs and hem.
Triple Pintuck Pants
My design process for these pants was very simple; everyone loves the look of a center crease, but not everyone loves having to press a center crease into their pants after washing them. The solution? Stitch it into place in the form of a pintuck. While we're at it, let's do three, and now they resemble the vents on an old PC case.
Belted Jacket
This jacket features an adjustable belt at the waist with a buckle closure and a seatbelt pillar loop at the slack end.
Gabardine Fatigue Pants
These pants are made from a polyester gabardine and feature fatigue style pockets and a phone pocket.
Princess Seam Shirt
Women's shirt with princess seams in a teal rayon challis
Geometric Bomber
A true statement piece- this jacket features an abstract geometric appliqué in teal, hi-vis orange, and hi-vis yellow, referencing decorative and ornamental motifs that could be found on many 1980s and 90s consumer electronics. It has a full lining, welt pockets, and ribbed cuffs and hem.
Double-Layer Membrane Pants
These pants are made from two layers of nylon ripstop- a medium weight inner layer for stability and comfort, and an ultra-light outer "membrane" layer which reminded me of the fabric used for spacesuits. It has a plasticky appearance and texture, similar to mylar, and is reminiscent of the clear plastic shells occasionally found on 90s electronics. It also features free-hanging fatigue style pockets.
Metallic RAM Dress
This dress, cut from a silk/wool blend in a metallic silver, was inspired by the shape of computer RAM sticks. It features a two-tone hi-vis belt at the waist and matching buttons.
Suit Jacket
This suit combines the bold and boxy style of 1980s suiting with the casual, utilitarian nature of this collection. Cut from a cotton broken twill and featuring multiple patch pockets, it's the perfect uniform for the lead engineer of an interstellar cruise ship.
Suit Pants
The matching pants to the Suit Jacket, featuring a phone pocket.
Dress Shirt with Seatbelt Tie
A dress shirt cut from a poly-cotton blend in a teal blue. It features a curved front yoke and an accompanying necktie made from a seatbelt.
Pleated Medical Dress
This dress was heavily inspired by medical equipment. It features a center front panel in a soft, clinical blue and a diagonally pleated bodice in a translucent membrane ripstop, the same fabric used for the Double-Layer Membrane Pants, though in the case of this dress it's more reminiscent of an IV bag. At the waist is a rubber tubing belt with a roller clamp as the closure, a device commonly used to control the flow of liquid through IV tubing. The sleeves and skirt are made from a lightweight cotton voile, which contrasts the sterile, synthetic fabric of the bodice. The dress is fully lined and features a metal front zipper and invisible back zipper for ease of putting on.
