Twelve and 13-year olds roamed a hall at the Philadelphia Convention Center in matching blue t-shirts as if a season of camp were ending. They were there for Discovery Night, the culmination of a semester-long mentoring program for local students at Lea Elementary School, located at 47th and Locust in Phildelphia, called Spark. Among the attendees were six students from PennDesign who had volunteered to meet with a Lea student each week of the semester.
During a “discovery” session last fall, the elementary students defined a project for the spring, ranging from an earthquake-resistant building to a solar-powered garden. Seventh grader Winter Newman asked, “What does it take to start my own fashion line?” Combining her passions, she chose to design a line inspired by candy and the fluorescent colors associated with sweets.
Newman was hesitant, at first, to be mentored in a school like PennDesign that didn’t offer fashion studies, but grew to understand how design skills can be applied across different mediums. Her mentor, Sarai Williams (CPLN’17, LARP’17), studied landscape architecture and city and regional planning, but she learned to sew from her grandmother, and in turn taught Newman basic drawing and design skills.
“I gave her goals each week,” Williams said. “I told her it’s about owning your mistakes and sketching big.”
Williams took her mentee to the Fab Lab at PennDesign and a Penn fashion show to explore the full process of fashion design, from iterating to promoting a new line. Winter brought in fabric remnants from home, where she makes some of her own designs to wear. By the end of the semester, the pair were working with fabrics and candy wrappers to create a look to present at Discovery Night.
“My mom asks me to stop cutting holes in my clothes, but it’s my design and makes me feel original,” said Newman, who wears a uniform to school.
On Discovery Night, Newman carefully answered questions from classmates, mentors, and parents inquiring about her clothing designs. She was visibly excited to show her drawings—having learned to draw on unlined paper from Williams—and talk about how she incorporated her favorite candy, Now and Later, into the design worn by her model.
Williams, meanwhile, hopes to continue to be a mentor after graduation.
“It can be daunting to look ahead,” she said. “Spark shows kids there are attainable goals they can shoot for.”
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