Young Va. Designer Makes Fashion News in Seventeen Magazine

ALEXANDRIA, Va. - Cutting, pinning, draping and sewing. It's a typically busy morning in the fashion design workroom at Fairfax County's Fine Arts Academy on the campus of West Potomac High School.

"We teach the students about the whole aspect of fashion industry - marketing, merchandising, buying, visual merchandising, pattern making, you name it," says instructor Maggy Francois.

For student Alexis Foreman, the work doesn't end here. She'll be exchanging her sketchbook for a digital camera-- to share her style secrets with teens all over the country as part of Seventeen magazine's 2010 Style Council.

"I show case what I buy on a daily basis or what I find," says Foreman.

Finding high fashion with low finances can be a challenge for teens.

"I always go in stores and see stuff that I like and then I see the price tag and I have to put it back sometimes," says Foreman.

But she's found ways to make it work.

"I love thrift stores, I get a lot of my stuff from thrift stores," explains Foreman.

For her, the secret to budget chic is to hit sales for basic pieces-- like $8 harem pants her model Shaima Munye is wearing this morning.
Foreman advises shoppers to, "Dig, find-- don't go for what you first see because you can always find something better at a cheaper cost."

Save the bigger money for accessories and jackets, and pull it all together with an inexpensive accent. Foreman has paired the slate grey harem pants with a wide pink floral belt, a blousy white tee shirt and a shiny black cropped jacket.

"I like the blazer, the top and the belt, I like the way she styled it," says Munye.

For one year on Seventeen's Style Council, Foreman will be blogging about her fashion finds and emerging trends. She and her fellow students are using their skills learned in the county's two-year Fashion Design program to bring those styles home.

"They can actually come in here and pay for fabrics and make their own garments," says Francois. "You can get two, three yards for $5, $7 and come in here and create an outfit that's worth $50, $70, $80 dollars."

And perhaps, create some of their own trends in the process.

To find out more about Seventeen magazine's Style Council, click on this link:
http://www.seventeen.com/fashion/special/style-council-2010-intro?click=main