The angel wears Schiavoni

Courtesy of Aili Schiavoni

By Antonio Machado Copy Editor

Stars are usually born when atoms of light are squeezed under enough pressure for their nuclei to undergo fusion, but Aili Schiavoni was born after breaking into her mother’s art supplies to paint a pair of Christmas pajamas to look like Samus Aran from Metroid.

She said, “It worked when it was wet, but when it dried, it was really stiff, and you couldn't put it on.”

Since then, designing has been her passion, and her cosplaying has improved, too. She has had her work featured in multiple Framingham State fashion shows, became president of the Fashion Club, and even received a Student Spotlight Award at the Nov. 4 Board of Trustees Meeting.

When the Fashion Club needed help the most, Schiavoni rose to the challenge after a recommendation from Fashion Department Chair Haewon Ju.

Schiavoni said, “I didn't think I could do it, or I didn't think I was capable,” but after an email exchange with Ju discussing Schiavoni’s qualifications, in which Ju said “something along the lines of, ‘Now is the time for you to step up as Fashion Club president.’ “I care about this department so much, and I do everything I absolutely can in order to - whether it's faculty or staff - help. And I was like, ‘You know what? Screw it. I'm going to do it, and I'm going to put everything I’ve got into it,’” Schiavoni added.

Since becoming Fashion Club’s president, Schiavoni has grown to better understand herself and has undergone a change in her career trajectory.

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avoni said, “When it happened, it was just like, for some reason, a door just opened up. And I was like, ‘Why do I think I'm not capable of doing things like this?’ And it made me start thinking about how much I enjoy taking a leadership position. “It's always so nerve-wracking when you think about stepping up into it, but when you actually do it, and you're actually confident in your abilities to lead, it makes you wonder why you were ever scared of it in the first place, right?” she added. Schiavoni is planning on taking a gap year based on when she completes her senior portfolio before pursuing graduate school to become a professor of fashion design. “I found out from being [in Fashion Club]. This is something that I'm so passionate about, and more than just the design aspect - the helping others aspect of it.” she said. She added, “I like an ever-changing environment. I like being able to always work with my hands, and especially work on something new. But I also really loathe the idea of stagnation, and the fact that I'm even ending my education come spring was something that heavily weighed on me, because I love learning, and I always wanted to. “I wanted to pursue potentially higher education, just so I could keep learning new techniques,” Schiavoni said. Learning is a passion of hers, so being selected for the Student Spotlight Award was a moment of immense validation that Schiavoni has learned the right things. “I wasn't thinking of it too much as a career opportunity as much as I was thinking of it as an opportunity not to puke in front of the president of the University,” she laughed. “In light of what I want to be doing with my life now, I saw it as a good opportunity to almost further validate my experiences, in a way. “I know, historically and on paper, these are all things that I've done, and I've participated in this department: programs, activities, committees, and I costumed for the theater group and all this other stuff. But in a way, it was a validation to know that these things are actual qualities that people would be looking for in a person, hopefully as a faculty member one day,” she added. Fashion is an intrinsic part of Schiavoni, having been part of her since she was very young. Being a child of divorce who was eventually adopted by her best friend’s mother, Schiavoni was forced to relocate schools several times during her teenage years. “When I started moving schools, I struggled adapting socially because I lived in this one place my entire life, and I just kind of grew up being the kind of kid that I was, and then I suddenly had to learn how to be a new person in a new environment, and I had to do it over and over and over and over again,” she said. This time period was when fashion was thrust into the forefront of her life, as Schiavoni found that clothing was a means through which she could express and establish herself in these new schools. “It’s hard to speak about yourself when you feel like you were hiding for so long. Fashion allows you to express yourself in a way I wasn’t able to when I couldn’t speak,” she said. “It’s also a form of escapism, I feel like,” Schiavoni paused, “what you wear can be a way to escape how you feel about yourself. You put on an outfit to show how you want to feel. With everything that happened growing up, I think I turned to these creative outlets as a means of escapism,” she added.

However, ever since studying abroad in Seoul, South Korea, Schiavoni’s relationship to her clothing has shifted. “I really feel like the thing that I took away from it was confidence. And I feel like, even coming back this semester, I'm way more glib. I'm more gregarious. I feel way better just having small talk. And that's such a funny thing, because before I went, the thing I was most nervous about was talking to people, and it's something that hasn't even crossed my mind - how little it concerns me anymore,” she said. “I'm not wearing makeup! Do you know how often I don't wear makeup these days? Like, even that is crazy. I used to wake up at, like, 4 in the morning in high school to curl my hair, do my makeup, put together an outfit, and try not to cry,” she added. Senior Emily Crossin, who is one of Schiavoni’s suitemates, knew her in high school, she said. “We were both way shyer than we are now. … I was trying to make friends, and I didn’t know how, and she was always really nice to me. “I could immediately tell she was a ray of sunshine and a really intelligent person and really brave. … I just got the vibe that vibe immediately - that she holds herself to a really high standard, which I really respect,” Crossin added. Another one of Schiavoni’s suitemates, senior Sage Sampson, said, “I don’t know what the trajectory of my life would look like if I hadn’t met her when I did. “She’s so caring and compassionate. … If you could give the word ‘role model’ to anyone, it would be her - like, dictionary definition. She’s just always been there for me when I need her to be but will also, you know, she’ll call you out,” Sampson said. Schiavoni’s compassion does not limit itself to her friends, however, as she is a major advocate for the environment. Schiavoni said, “One of the things that I wanted to do as president for the reimagined trashion and upcycling project was to encourage designers to think of fashion more as an ecosystem … and think about their own impact on the fabric that goes into their clothing and waste management. Because unfortunately, the truth is that our industry is not very eco-friendly at the best of times, and there have been wonderful movements to change that, but it really does need to start at a smaller level.” She added, “I think there's this misconception with fashion that when you hear it, you think of runway models and haute couture. Fashion is for everyone in some capacity, whether you consider yourself not to be particularly fashionable and you just buy things off the rack at Walmart, or you specifically seek out small designers who make very specific patched denim pants. Everyone experiences fashion in their own way,” she said.