Few people outside the fashion bubble here at Lipscomb realize that the campus has a clothing lab. Perhaps it is because our fashion students are a small portion of the student body. Maybe it is due to its nearly-hidden location. To many, the clothing lab is one of campus’ best kept secrets.
Alex Barry, a senior double majoring in fashion industry and textiles and apparel, is the co-president for Rho Xo Delta, Lipscomb’s fashion club.
“It’s not one of those places you just stumble on,” she said, referencing the location.
The clothing lab is down the hall from the computer center in the basement of the Beaman Library.
“If you’re not looking for it, you won’t find it,” Barry said.
Several classes actually take place in the clothing lab. These classes include Clothing Construction I and II, Art Applied to Everyday Life, Professional Orientation for Fashion Majors, Interior Fabrications and Flat Pattern Design.
Sissy Simmons, a fashion professor, teaches Clothing Construction I and Art Applied to Everyday Life. According to Simmons, the Clothing Construction I class “uses every aspect of the lab.” The students use the tables when she is lecturing, the sewing equipment and cutting tables when sewing, the storage space for projects and supplies, the mannequins to display finished looks and the great selection of fabrics to make these looks. Professor Simmons also uses the Halston drawings and donated garments in the lab as references throughout her classes.
The clothing lab has been upgraded recently by acquiring new audio/video equipment. Simmons believes that “[the new equipment] has allowed us to go beyond the classroom, referencing people, places and sharing experiences that encourage the creativity of our students and enhance learning.”
In the future, Simmons envisions a space to display and showcase the students’ work. She also hopes to acquire the actual Halston collection to show.
To many fashion majors, including Barry, the clothing lab “becomes a second home.” She has class in the lab twice a week. However, she goes there every day to work on a sewing project or other homework. Barry said she believes the lab is “a wonderful place to meet fashion teachers and peers.”
Simmons also loves the lab’s atmosphere.
“It is a warm and inviting space that inspires creativity.”