Burgeoning designers learn from one of the industry’s most iconic fashionistas: Barbie
This year’s ASU FIDM summer camp experience took participants to the Mattel headquarters in El Segundo, California. Panelists included (from left) Carlyle Nuera, lead designer for Barbie Signature at Mattel; Lauren Colley, senior creative director of Barbie Global Brand Creative; Kiko Sunata, senior director of PR and partnerships at Edikted; Adriana Velasco, director of franchise marketing at Barbie & Dolls. Photo by Monica Orozco
At 15 and 17 years old, it’s been a while since high schoolers Bailey Lozano and Bea Reyes have played with dolls. But their interest was reignited at an ASU FIDM summer camp, where they were joined by one of the fashion industry’s most iconic fashionistas: Barbie.
This summer, high school and community college students joined ASU FIDM for a unique experience featuring hands-on fashion design instruction, a tour of the Handler Team Center at Mattel Global Headquarters and a panel with creative executives from Barbie and the fashion brand Edikted.
Reyes, a senior at the Girls Academic Leadership Academy in Los Angeles who plans to study fashion design or art history, said the panel opened her eyes to new career possibilities.
“Obviously everybody knows Barbie, but there's so much that goes into just even a single doll,” she said. “I think it was really cool to bring design students and show that there's other options than just making clothes for people or a label.”
Reyes said she was fascinated to learn that the creatives behind Barbie’s hair and makeup are licensed cosmetologists, and both Reyes and Lozano marveled at an old-school hair-rooting machine on display at the Mattel building.
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ASU FIDM summer camp participants and advisors take a group photo at Mattel Design Center in El Segundo, California.
Photo by Monica Orozco
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Carlyle Nuera, lead designer for Barbie Signature at Mattel, addresses ASU FIDM summer camp participants in the Mattel Global Headquarters.
Photo by Monica Orozco
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As part of the summer camp experience, participants attended a panel on June 25 featuring industry experts from fashion company Edikted and Barbie, the iconic fashion doll brand by Mattel Inc.
Photo by Monica Orozco
This wasn’t Reyes’ first camp with ASU FIDM, but she said the opportunity to learn from creative leaders at Barbie and Edikted made this year’s experience especially memorable. She also sewed her first-ever invisible zipper into a dress at the camp — a notable achievement for Reyes, who was already familiar with a sewing machine and even made her own homecoming dress.
“I went last year and I really, really liked it, and I learned a lot,” Reyes said. “So I came back this year, and I loved it even more. It was a good mix of design, creation and construction.”
This year was a standout for the camp. For the first time, Barbie and Edikted funded scholarships for ASU FIDM summer camps in both Los Angeles and Phoenix. Their support, along with additional support from area nonprofits, allowed more emerging fashion talents to join the immersive experience.
"At ASU FIDM, we are proud to bring the next generation of fashion leaders into the heart of the industry," said ASU FIDM Director Dennita Sewell. "The support of Barbie and Edikted allowed us to do what we do best while expanding access to our summer camp. As these students go on to pursue their dreams in fashion and design, I'm sure many of them will look back on this experience as a core memory in their careers."
The summer camp collaboration with ASU FIDM is part of a larger partnership between Barbie and Edikted that included launching Barbie by Edikted, a fashion collection imagined and designed by Barbie. Through scholarships and access to industry professionals, the collaboration highlighted a shared goal among the three entities: expanding access to young people in fashion and design to make their dreams a reality.
Lozano, a sophomore at the Los Angeles County High School of the Arts, said she walked away from the camp with valuable industry insights and increased confidence in sewing.
“Something that I was sort of nervous about before coming to the camp was my sewing ability, because I was fully aware that, specifically in the second week, there were going to be many other students that were more experienced with sewing than I was,” she said.
But that second, more advanced week of camp proved to be a defining moment for Lozano. After she successfully made a dress inspired by businesswomen in the city, ASU FIDM instructors encouraged camp-goers to do something unconventional: paint directly onto their dresses.
“That was when I really felt like I could let my creativity shine,” Lozano said. “I’m super into having a lot of intersectionality and crossover between the different art forms that I’m interested in, and I was able to use the paint to create a whole new sort of image on my dress.”
In keeping with her theme of working women in the city, she painted a taxi onto the fabric. The best part? Campers got to take their creations home.
Changing Futures
This collaboration was part of ASU’s Changing Futures campaign, a global effort to attract philanthropy and new partnerships to fuel ASU’s commitment to prepare future leaders to solve the complex challenges facing society every day. Learn more about Changing Futures.
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