LITTLE ROCK — A self-proclaimed “child of the ’60s,” Jo Claire Dodson admired “mod” fashion models of the time, such as Twiggy, Pattie Boyd and Mary Quant. Today, Dodson’s designer icon is Stella McCartney.
An art teacher for several years in Conway, Dodson also designs clothes. She will showcase some of those designs Friday as part of Little Rock Fashion Week 2011, which began Monday and will continue through Saturday.
Mary Ellen Kubit, public relations coordinator for the event, said the week showcases “collections of emerging local, regional and national clothing and jewelry designers as well as the best of our region’s hairstylists, makeup artists and musical performers.”
Dodson, 57, will be among more than a dozen local and regional designers featured at this year’s event. She will introduce her fashion line, “Just Faux Fun,” during the Young and Fabulous Experience, which will open at 7 p.m. Friday at the Statehouse Convention Center, Ballroom A, in Little Rock. Mingling at the “Fashion District” will precede the “experience,” which is scheduled to begin at 8. Tickets are $15 in advance. Advance tickets are available online at www.littlerockfashionweek.com or at Uncle T’s, The Fashion Vault, Gallery 26 and RK Collections in Little Rock.
“Last summer was my first time to attend Little Rock Fashion Week,” Dodson said. “Seeing all the extraordinary talent on the runway ignited a passion in me to work harder and see if my designs could be on that fabulous runway.”
Dodson, who opened The Art School nine years ago in Conway, said her older brother and sister introduced her to the latest trends in music and fashion during the ’60s. She also caught a glimpse of the international scene when her father, who worked in downtown Little Rock and frequented the only international newsstand in the city, would bring home fashion and music magazines from Great Britain.
“I saw the mini skirts and the wild colors that were popular at the time,” Dodson said. “That was a big influence on me.
“I have always been fascinated with how popular culture, from the Beatles to Motown, to the street art of Keith Haring and (Jean-Michel) Basquiat, have influenced fashiontrends,” she said. “I fell in love with the ‘London Look’ in the late ’60s and ’70s, and have watched fashion evolve and explode into what I consider works of art ever since.
“Fashion illustration is one of my favorite things to do in art, and I have sold many of my drawings in this field,” Dodson said. “I have been dabbling in original design for several years and now am taking that first step into the creation of a line of faux-fur jackets.”
A graduate of Hendrix College with a degree in art, Dodson said she began her fauxfur designs two years ago.
“I was looking for a certain style of faux-fur jacket and could not find the kind I wanted,” she recalled. “Determined, I cut a pattern from a T-shirt and made my own. Several of my art students liked it and asked me where I had purchased it. I told them I had made it myself, ‘just for fun.’
“Then I began to notice that everywhere I wore it, teenagers and some adults would comment on how they liked it and ask me where I bought it. My sister encouraged me to make some more and to name it ‘Just Faux Fun.’ I did, and then started to take a few orders from personal friends and students. Thus, the line, ‘Just Faux Fun’ was born.”
Dodson describes her slipon faux fur jackets, coats, sweaters and vests as lightweight and washable.
“They provide an extra layer of warmth against the cold and, most of all, are fun to wear,” she said. “Worn belted or loose, they are stylish and can add a unique flair to a pair of jeans or a dress. Casual/ street chic is always a timely look and one that can be put together easily by most people. I like providing a special piece of clothing that fashionistas of all ages can work with.”
Dodson said part of her design philosophy is “to provide young people with a quality, affordable product so that they can feel they look good because a young person’s self-esteem is often tied to how they look.”
Dodson hopes to expand her clothing line in the future to include faux-fur jackets for men and a line of hand-painted jeans.
Dodson is quick to point out that she is an animal lover and would never use real fur for her fashions. A native of Cabot, she was once president of the Lonoke County Humane Society.
“Faux fur has really become quite popular,” she said. “It gives people a choice. That’s what people who are shoppers like - a choice.”
Dodson’s assistants with her fashion line are Rachel Morgan, the 13-year-old daughter of Trevor and Yvonne Morgan of Conway and a student at The Art School, and Norma Edmonds Hargraves of Helena, Dodson’s roommate at Hendrix.
Erma Burgess of Conway and Ida Rainey of Little Rock assist Dodson in finishing the products. Dodson makes her own patterns, as well as the products made from those patterns.
Ten models will showcase Dodson’s “Just Faux Fun” designs. They include Brianna Davis, Molly Evans and Dawn Higginbotham, all of Conway; Remi Hodges of Maumelle; Alexandria Gordon, Lexi Tatera, Salem Jones and Maya Merriweather, all of Little Rock; Victoria Moore of Searcy; and Claire Donald of Springdale.
Other models from the River Valley and Ozark coverage area who will participate in Little Rock Fashion Week include Jazmine Brantley, Lindsay Welsh, Darria Johnson, Valdeana Connors, Victoria Vaught, 6-year-old Kekia Jones, Krista Armstrong and Sandra Claire Sellers, all of Conway; Janie Van Horn of Russellville; and Regan Stotts of Maumelle.
Culminating Little Rock Fashion Week will be the Posh Expression Experience, featuring more haute-couture designs Saturday evening at the Statehouse Convention Center, Ballroom A, in Little Rock. Doors will open at 7 for the Expo and mingling, followed by the fashion show at 8. Advance VIP tickets are $40, and general-admission tickets are $30.
Br and on D. C ampb el l founded Little Rock Fashion Week in 2009. For more information on Little Rock Fashion Week, visit www.littlerockfashionweek.com or call (501) 240-7004.
River Valley Ozark, Pages 61 on 07/14/2011