Editor’s note: Elias Matso and Molly Stites are both incoming freshman at Traip Academy in Kittery, Maine. They recently attended a four-day, pre-college course at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. Below, Elias and Molly share their experiences in the Big Apple with a blog-style, day-by-day chronicle.
DAY 1 (by Molly)
Molly Stites in New York City
New York City. How does one describe and experience the bustling streets full of cabs, people, and an overall feeling of pressure, good and bad? Especially from the perspective of two young Mainers who can’t help but stare at the many young men and women decked out in leather and booty shorts.
Elias and I have been fully submerged into this riveting city that never sleeps, and we have been enjoying every moment. Today was our first full day in the city and we started it off by beginning our classes at the Fashion Institute of Technology.
It was a little intimidating at first. We arrived in the morning for check-in and got the opportunity to walk past all the other fashion-hungry teens waiting to check in. Let’s just say Elias and I realized that being cool in Maine and being cool in New York City are two very different things.
However, the day turned out to be wonderful. All of our fellow classmates are very kind and there is something rather exciting about being in a room surrounded by other kids your age who share your same passion.
We began our fashion design journal class at FIT by heading down to the library. Not only were there style-forecasting magazines that the school subscribes to (so cool and highly top secret), but hundreds of Vogue issues, ranging from the 1920s to present time.
After gaining some much needed inspiration at the library, we headed back to the classroom and began designing our swimsuit collections. Our teacher not only helped us find inspiration, but showed us step by step how to correctly draw a fashion figure. I learned so many new skills in just the first day that I can’t image how much knowledge I will gain by the end of the week.
illustrations by Molly Stites
DAY 2 (by Elias)
On our second morning in the city, Molly and I began preparing for another day of NYC adventures. We carefully decided what to wear before walking to school, hoping we didn’t get lost. Luckily, we made it to FIT on time.
Walking through the city is like walking through a museum due to the amount of fascinating people that live there. I found myself constantly looking down at people’s shoes, looking up at their hair, and staring at sites I never thought I would see. Although I’ve been in the city many times before, being older in the city is different because you start to notice people’s appearances and begin to wonder about their lives.
illustration by Molly Stites
Today in class, our teacher taught us about more figure techniques and told us to sketch active-wear collections. Molly and I didn’t exactly know what the rules were in “active wear” and just drew strange but interesting casual clothing. It was refreshing seeing how all these different kids interpreted the assignment and how differently their minds worked from ours.
One of the best parts of the pre-college courses at the Fashion Institute of Technology is the hour-long lunch break we get at noon. Molly and I relished escaping the hot classroom and sitting on a campus bench with Thai food and sandwiches while we innocently sized up other students walking by. Soon we noticed the amount of attention to trends that everyone at FIT seemed to have in common: wide-leg pants, Adidas sneakers, and rompers seemed to be the most common obsessions on campus. Although Molly and I felt a little bit out of place, it was nice not blending in and soon we felt like natural New Yorkers as we laughed hysterically and continued to people-watch.
One would think that six hours of drawing would be exhausting; one would be right. By the end of the day, Molly and I were completely exhausted. However, our adventure continued. After class got out at 4:30 p.m., we ate a delicious meal of homemade Italian pasta and were surprised by seeing an absolutely wonderful musical about Gloria Estefan called “On Your Feet.” The show was filled with hypnotizing Cuban rhythms and energetic salsa dancing. We were lucky enough to be in the very front row, so when the cast began to dance into the aisle we were pulled up and danced along with them. The entire thing was incredibly surreal and magical.
Our day ended with tiny cupcakes after the show and a torrential downpour that struck when we were just a block from our apartment. Despite this, we managed to climb into bed with a sense of warmth and humor at the day’s shenanigans. Hopefully tomorrow will be just as crazy.
DAY 3 (by Elias)
By this morning, Molly and I had developed a routine. It would seem unlikely that two un-city-savvy high-schoolers could have any type of normality in NYC, but it happened. I guess it’s the fact that everyone in NYC has a routine and is always pushing past you with places to be and people to see. This attitude has obviously rubbed off on us at least a little bit.
Each morning I wake Molly up 20 minutes after I wake up and we get dressed while constantly asking for the other’s opinion. Following this, we head down six flights of stairs and eat a bowl of yogurt before dashing out the door around 9 a.m. This morning we made an emergency coffee stop on my request, but usually we imitate our surroundings and walk purposely five blocks north and five blocks west. We figure we are less likely to get jumped if we look confident…
illustration by Elias Matso
Today in class we designed formal wear and learned how to use tricks to mimic the appearance of certain materials like sequins, fur, and lace. First I tried a couture theme and drew a cage-inspired, embroidered mermaid gown, but that looked positively witch-like so I continued with a more classic glamor feel in mind. Molly decided to go with a more casual approach and sketched a collection of beautiful florals and wide-leg pants. Prom was a very popular theme among some of the other students.
After class we went into a couple of far-too-expensive stores and headed south to Battery Park, where we rode an absolutely incredible glass fish carousel that glowed. After a long