Senior Colleen Alonzi designed and created her own prom dress. Here are her responses to a few questions about her dress.

Why Did You Decide to Create Your Own Prom Dress?
I always like to be working on some sort of huge, ridiculous, impossibly ambitious project. This year’s big artistic adventure was the dress. I didn’t really think about how much work it was realistically going to take before I jumped into it. I just knew that I wanted to challenge myself artistically, get more experience on a sewing machine, and have a chance to wear my own design. Prom was the perfect opportunity and don’t think I could forgive myself if I let that one go.

Have You Made Other Types of Clothing?
I’ve done stuff like turning shorts into skirts, making pajama pants, and making parts for costumes, but most of my fashion design experience has been on paper. Until now, my biggest sewing project has been in a class I took at the School of the Art Institute. We had to make kimonos, which are basically just a rectangle with two smaller rectangles sewn onto the sides. It’s a lot harder to make than it sounds. I got really good at hiding mistakes in that class.

What material are you using? Are you using a particular pattern or creating from some other inspiration?
Since I designed the dress myself, I had to draft my own pattern. I used pattern blocks, which are just basic pattern pieces for a foundation, and altered them to fit my measurements and the shape of the dress. I used a black and cream flocked stripe fabric for the bodice, anti-static polyester for the lining, and an unreasonable amount of black mesh tulle for the skirt.

How long have you been working on your dress?
I started designing the dress at the end of last summer and the actual sewing took about four months that felt like fifty years.

Will you continue to make clothes?
I will definitely continue to make clothes. It’s something I love doing and I want to possibly pursue a career in fashion design. I genuinely look forward to a future full of pricked fingers and tangled threads.

Do you have a fashion style or someone in the fashion world you admire?
I like fashion that doesn’t take itself too seriously. I like fashion that’s got life and movement and nostalgia for a time that I probably wasn’t alive in. A lot of my fashion is inspired by music, movies, and old photographs.