Fundraising through fashion

Last Friday, East Pyne could have been mistaken for a New York hot spot, complete with a disc jockey, hors-d'hoeuvres, racks of designer clothes and a mob of eager shoppers. That's because the space outside the rotunda was temporarily transformed into an art gallery and sample sale for FAbulous: Fashion and Art Opposed to Sexual and Domestic Violence. In less than two hours, the event raised over $2,500 for Womanspace, a battered women's shelter in Trenton.

The idea for FAbulous originated with Lauren Racusin '07, the main organizer of the event. Thanks to countless phone calls that left her with a sky-high phone bill, Racusin was able to acquire merchandise from high-profile designers such as LeSportSac, Milly, Paul Vogel, Tarantino Tarantino and more.

Items on sale ranged from flip-flops to semi-formal dresses, from purses to bracelets, all for less than $30. Cosmetic products from DuWop and perfume by Estee Lauder were also offered as door prizes in a raffle.

Because of the incredibly low prices of the designer clothes, many of the tops, pants and dresses flew off the racks within the first ten minutes. Girls grabbed armfuls of clothes to try on quickly before dashing back out to check out any new additions.

Meghana Gandhi '07 described the atmosphere as frenzied at the start of the event. "Everyone rushed to items," she said. "It was kind of scary, but they kept bringing more stuff out."

Besides fashion, FAbulous also featured student artwork reflecting themes of sexual and domestic violence against women. The artwork served to raise awareness of the issue while reminding students of the event's intent to raise money for Womanspace.

In addition, Susan Switlik, a representative from the organization, periodically spoke about Womanspace's mission and supplied brochures and information about the organization's goal of preventing sexual and domestic violence and providing support to victims of such violence.

The event's constant reminders of the gravity of domestic violence inspired students to support its cause. "Even if you didn't want to buy things in the beginning, it made you eventually want to buy them, because you knew [the money] was going to a good cause," Michelle Lin '07 said.

Switlik was pleased with the success of the event, not only because it raised thousands of dollars for Womanspace, but because it increased student awareness of domestic violence.

"I think [Princeton] is a place where information about our services really needs to be," Switlik said. "I think there were a lot [of students] who saw our information and got a sense of what we do, and that's very important to us."

Racusin came up with the idea for FAbulous last summer, when she heard of sample sales at other Universities. She thought they seemed like a good way to raise money, and was surprised that Princeton had never had one of these events.

"I thought I should do something that's not only fun for the student body, but also gives back to the community," Racusin said. "I was interested in domestic violence, and I wanted something that was more female-related because of shopping."

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In keeping with the theme of women's issues, Racusin enlisted the help of Elizabeth Shutkin '07, the head of Organization of Women Leaders (OWL), which served as a cosponsor of the event. FAbulous fell within OWL's two-week Violence Awareness campaign, which ends today. The organization has also worked with Womanspace numerous times in the past through fundraisers and community service trips.

Another cosponsor was Stella Art Club, whose head, Giselle Larroque '06, helped secure the eight paintings displayed during the event by eliciting donations from Visual Art students. She said many were willing to provide artwork for FAbulous' cause.

"A lot of them said that this was the first time they had done something unrelated to 185 stuff," Laroque explained. "And they were eager to hear about future events to expose themselves a bit more outside the academic framework."

Laroque said she thought the artwork, along with the DJ they had hired, helped to diversify the event and make it more interesting.

"[Lauren and I] definitely collaborated on how to make the event more infused with different things, not just fashion, but music and artwork," she said. "The artwork added a funky element to the event — what we were going for was a New York City gallery opening feel."

Racusin said she planned to continue FAbulous next year and predicted that the event can only expand from this point.

"I saw smiles all night long," Laroque said. "I was smiling myself all night long, so that's definitely a success in my book."