fashion students

Ready, Set, Fashion! Calista’s Journey to Entrepreneurship

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A green sewing machine works on a blue cloth with a spool of red thread sitting next to a pair of scissors

Coauthored by Calista E.

A fair skinned woman with light colored hair, profile shot.
Calista Allen, SUNY Ulster Class of 2018

Another person has started here, to go far in the community with her newly learned skills. Calista chose SUNY Ulster over a well-known private college and says it was “it was one of the best decisions I have ever made” as she knew she wanted to be an involved part of a small business and remain local.

Calista has been designing and sewing for about ten years now. She credits her grandmother for teaching her garment creation basics before her time in college. Saying that her grandmother has been one of her biggest supporters and inspirations.

Most recently, she has turned her long time love of sewing and designing into a blossoming career. Thanks to the real world experience gained from her time in the fashion design program.

SUNY Ulster, Here to Help.

The fashion curriculum at SUNY Ulster has provided continuous opportunities that have shaped Calista’s life, livelihood, and career. The professors on campus encouraged and emboldened Calista to explore her talents and perfect her skills. She enhanced her design methods, portfolio building and interview skills to graduate at her highest potential as a result. Along with the well planned curriculum, the program offered Calista many internship opportunities that were vital to learn the industry first hand. Therefore she interned with brands you might know like: the Robert Tonner Doll Company, Eleven Six Knitwear, and Karina Dresses.

A sewing mannequin stands with a tape measure wrapped around it's top

Calista was proud to say that this school guided and molded her into a networking queen! To clarify she recalls one of the most impactful parts of her educational journey; that SUNY Ulster “provided endless opportunities to meet new people and interact with other local businesses and entrepreneurs in the fashion industry.”

A woman stands in a white dress with leather sleeve and belt accents
The Robin Dress ( made of chiffon with leather details).

After completing her internship with Karina Dresses, the company offered her a full time position. They realized the vigor and passion she had started to hone in on and wanted her skills to stay at their business. Calista has been working there for almost three years as the Social Media Manager and Junior Design Assistant for the brand located in Uptown Kingston. She continues gaining skill and experience while starting ventures of her own in the world of fashion.

Her design aesthetic is athletically inclined clothing with an elegant flair; a mix of sporty and sophistication. In her own words “I enjoy playing with style lines and geometric shapes to create a unique style.” She has used that as a base for a children’s clothing line, entirely of her own making, coming soon.

What’s Next for Calista?

Blue/White Gingham Dress
Cali Bee Kids Spring Line

Calista was happy to express how grateful she is for the fashion program at SUNY Ulster. The way it offered various tools and resources to kickstart her passion, and build strong relationships that continue to support and guide her future to this day. In addition, this driven young entrepreneur has started her own Spring kid’s clothing line. It’s called Cali Bee Kids and is set to launch this August! To check it out for yourself click here: http://bit.ly/CaliBeeKids

When asked what her best memory of her experience here was, she responded: “I don’t have a specific favorite part of earning my degree at SUNY Ulster, because I loved everything!”


Fashion Students Create Apparel Designs for Guatemalans in Need

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Fashion students working on their apparel designs

SUNY Ulster fashion students are participating in a great service learning opportunity and gathering intercultural experiences this semester! Students in Professor Angela Kunz’s FAS 220: Apparel Design II class are working on a set of pattern designs that two Guatemalan women’s groups, one a shelter for survivors of domestic violence and the other part of a small rural community who recently lost all their crops, can use to create fashionable, export-friendly clothing to sell.

The project began when Angela took a trip with a SUNY New Paltz professor and students to Antigua, Guatemala to work with local women. While the group was there, they visited one of the three domestic shelters in the country, where Angela discovered that the shelters were given limited funding. After finding a local with a large warehouse of traditional Guatemalan shirts, she decided to bring a few back for a class project that would give her students a chance to help others in need.

The students have refashioned the Guatemalan shirts that Angela brought back into new, easy-to-sew attire that the Guatemalan women can easily recreate on a larger scale and export. When finished, the students will be able to use the sample they created in their professional portfolio. In December, Angela and one of her students will return to Guatemala to deliver the finished concepts and help teach the steps to the women so they can recreate the garments.

Angela hopes that this exciting new project will build longevity and financial security for these women. She hopes to return in the future with more students from SUNY Ulster and create an ongoing collaboration between the women of Guatemala, SUNY New Paltz students, and SUNY Ulster students.

Angela Kunz poses with several Guatemalans