The Decent Exposure fashion show took place on Saturday and it was FABULOUS.
I’m still recovering, and am actually quite sick, but it was so very worth it, and the video clip below is why. I’m going to post a full recap video at some point this week (I haven’t received the footage from the actual runway just yet) and a reflection on the program tomorrow. For now, suffice to say that this program wasn’t really about clothes. The clothes, photoshoots, and relationships that were formed were great, don’t get me wrong, but that wasn’t the bottom line. This was:
Jessica was bawling off screen and I’ll admit I got a little misty behind the camera too. They got “it.” They really, really got it. And when you have parents come up to you and say, “I have seen a change in my daughter” and give you hugs and say thank you…well…that just confirms that the message was sent AND received AND applied.
Thank you so much for your prayers for my friend in the hospital. She is doing MUCH better and considering her progress after such a traumatic event, I am convinced your storming heaven has helped her tremendously!
In other news…
The Decent Exposure fashion show is upon us! At this Thursday’s session, the girls will get tips on how to “modestize” (haha Jessica made that word up) their wardrobe and get a crash runway course from a member of Models for Christ, a fellowship organization of Christian fashion models here in Los Angeles.
TV actor J. Skylar Testa has agreed to host the show. You may have seen him in Bones, CSI Miami, etc. Actress and singer Caitlin Crosby will be performing at the show AND serving as our keynote speaker. Caitlin has an awesome website called Love Your Flawz.com where she ministers to young women about female body image.
BTW, People Magazine just did an article on Caitlin and her really amazing CD that is on sale now.
As you have already seen, posting will be extremely lacking this week as we make the final preparations for the show. All of the clothes have arrived, but we still have to go shopping tomorrow morning for shoes and more accessories.
If you are in the SoCal area, please do consider attending the show. Tickets can be purchased at our website.
The second week of Decent Exposure was hectic to say the least…
In addition to the fashion show developments I already posted, we had formation session #2, a shopping trip, and a fabulous photoshoot!
At Thursday’s session, Megan spoke about manhood and womanhood, and what Christ-centered femininity looks like in today’s world.
I was scheduled to film Katelyn and Jessica shopping for outfits at Urban Outfitters on Saturday morning, however it was one of those days where everything that could go wrong did…
We were supposed to meet at 10 am, however Katelyn and I were both running late, she from San Diego and me from LA. (We were meeting in the middle in the OC.) As soon as I arrived at the store Jessica comes out of a dressing room with a bunch of dresses in hand, a distressed look on her face, and the words, “HELP ME PICK OUTFITS!” Apparently, she told the girls to be at her house at 11 am. At this point it was about 10:37 am.
What ensued was the pair of us running around the store trying to put pieces together as quickly as possible. Katelyn and her brother arrived about 20 minutes later and we made the final selections. I left the store early to get to Jes’ house to try to host the girls who had already been there for an hour. Thankfully, Lals had arrived long before I did and was able to get them into hair and make up.
Jes’ house in Old Town Orange served as the backdrop for the shoot. Once I get the photos I will post them. (Should be at some point this week.) In the meantime, check out the first promo video for the program with footage from the photoshoot:
Next week, Jes will be giving a chastity talk and I will be pulling my hair out whilst filming and selecting more clothes for the show in LA. Shipments from out-of-state designers will be arriving shortly this week…
Originally we were going to have the show in the parish hall, but from what I’ve heard it’s hideous, so one of the youth ministers that has become a bit of a mentor to the core team tried to get us another location…and she did!
The show will still be on July 11th at 6pm at the Girkis Residence in Orange, CA. Jessica and I went and visited yesterday and are so very happy that the owners are going to let us use their backyard for the show. I know what that sounds like, but trust me, it’s huge and GORGEOUS. The home has been the site of a number of formal events.
The runway is going to be very long, giving each girl about 1-2 minutes per appearance and will circle around a pool and two ponds. (Yes, the yard is big enough for hundreds of people, the band, a large pool, and two ponds. LOL.)
Also, I’ve got a partial list of brands for the show:
- Anthropologie
- The Soon Collection
- Shappy Apple
- Shade Clothing
- Layers Clothing
- Stop Staring Clothing
The staff at each of these brands have been more than gracious in donating clothes to the girls. (Thank you! Thank You! Thank You!) Tomorrow, I will be going shopping with Jessica and Katelyn to pick up more outfits for the show. After that, we will be doing a small photoshoot with Katelyn and some of the girls. It should be fun!
In other news, Alonso Gonzales Zambrano has been confirmed to provide the entertainment. We’re still working on the keynote speaker.
Will blog about last night’s session and put some video clips up on Monday. If you are interested in coming or volunteering at the fashion show, just let me know and I’ll ship out an invitation to you and/or put you on the list.
I know I said I would update on Friday, but things were a little crazy that day (it was a Catholic Underground weekend). Plus, today I have video clips for you!
I think I can honestly say that I have never been so nervous to get dressed before. I kept putting on outfits thinking–Am I modest enough? Okay, now am I fashionable enough? LOl, it was starting to get ridiculous. I told this to the team that night, and apparently they all felt the same way!
The first session was entitled “What Statement Do My Clothes Make?” given by my friends Maggie and Laura (aka Lals). They were both extremely nervous, but in my opinion did an AMAZING job. There were a few points during the night when I looked around the room and it was completely silent, and it wasn’t because the girls weren’t paying attention, it was because they were really listening to what was being said.
The following is a clip of Lals giving an example of the worth of a woman using earrings as a metaphor. I have a pair of pearl earrings that I love dearly because they were a gift from my mother for my debutante ball. I only wear them on special occasions and always make sure I put them back in the box after I’ve worn them. Then again, I’ve got super cheap earrings that I lose all of the time. In this clip, Lals asks the girls that if we take care of material things in such a manner, why don’t we take care of and cover our bodies? (Skip ahead to :12)
The discussion groups were the highlight of the night. All of the girls were very insightful and very honest and open, which actually sort of surprised me given that I had a camera in their faces all night.
In this clip, one of the participants who is a native from Peru talks about the first time she went to a mass in America. It’s funny, but kinda sad:
We had some youth ministers in the audience who gave us some great advice that we will utilize in the coming sessions. One of the surprises of the night that we weren’t quite prepared for was the age range of the girls, 12-18. If you have ever taught kids, you’ll know that is a humongous range, and we want to make sure all of the girls are comfortable and feel like they’re opinions are being heard.
All in all, the session went really well and I’m looking forward to this Thursday. In the next session, Megan will be giving a talk on manhood and womanhood, which I am sure is going to provoke some nice discussion.
In other news, we have almost finalized the list of designers for the fashion show, and I’ll post that as soon as I get the green light. Also, if you are interested in bringing the program to your neck of the woods, just let me know and we will most certainly work with you.
I try to research as many apparel resources for this site as I can.
Be advised that while most of the links in my "Modest Apparel" category are from designers who specifically design modest apparel, some of the websites include only a select amount of modest choices. Modest dress is dependent on styling. If it isn't modest, make it modest.
One asterisk (*) next to a link means it is a plus size site. Two asterisks (**) indicate that the site sells both plus size and average size apparel.
