Underfashion Club, Inc. Purchases Intimate Apparel Dress Forms for Parsons School of Design Lingerie Class

Over the last year, the SAIG (Scholarships, Awards, Internships and Grants) committee has worked endlessly to expand the reach of the Underfashion Club, becoming integrated with more colleges and high schools that support the Intimate Apparel Industry.

Parsons School of Design is the latest school to develop an Intimate Apparel Course and, in the Fall of 2015, the SAIG committee reached out to begin to foster a relationship with Parsons educators and students. The committee met with Julia Poteat, Assistant Professor of Fashion Design at Parsons School of Design to discuss the needs and opportunities of the new program. It was brought to their attention that students were losing valuable class time, as they had to share dress forms with other students in the class. Intimate apparel dress forms differ from other industry dress forms as they have a more defined and projected chest, necessary for draping and fitting bras.

Recognizing the need and wanting to assist the students’ learning and future development of the program, members of the SAIG committee consulted with the leading dress form manufacturers. A decision was made to purchase 14 AlvaForms for the growing class, guaranteeing that each student would have a personal form with which to work. Alvanon, manufacturer of the AlvaForm has grown to be an industry leader in dress forms, which are exceptional due to their plush “fleshy” exterior that resembles a human body. The Underfashion Club provided the funding that enabled Parsons to purchase the 36B/Medium AlvaForms at a significant educational discount, a win-win for all involved.

Professor Poteat couldn’t be more appreciative. “These forms will make a tremendous difference in allowing the students to drape well-fitting garments in the Fashion Techniques Lingerie class. Thank you again, we are very grateful.  I’m looking forward to our continued partnership in the Intimate Apparel Field.”

The Underfashion Club and SAIG committee hope to continue to cultivate this relationship striving to pursue their mission of “Education today for a better industry tomorrow.” They consistently find new ways to positively impact the growth of our beloved industry. Thank you to our wonderful volunteers on the SAIG committee, and our active members who help to push us forward.