Voices Behind the Runway: A Review on “Child’s Play” by FADS
- Samara Lookatch
- May 6
- 3 min read
By: Samara Lookatch, Staff Writer Edited by: Lianna Gourmos
On April 26, Syracuse University's Fashion and Design Society (FADS) held their Spring 2026 show, “Child’s Play,” in which childhood took center stage. Imagination, nostalgia and play blurred the line between memory and fashion, as the show allowed student designers to bring their childhoods back to life. As the show was held outdoors on the quad, the setting and warm weather added to the reflective tone. Emotional songs such as “Ribs” by Lorde played, reinforcing the show’s sense of nostalgia. The show featured toy block-inspired set pieces, and bubble wands were handed out to the audience members as the models walked. While the FADS runway delivered a flood of color and texture, it was the designers and audience members who gave the show its emotional core, offering insight into what the playful designs meant beyond just the physical garments.
Freshman designer Katherine Taft said her pieces began with a memory. She described attending a Paris-themed party as a child, an experience that stayed with her long after. That memory translated directly into her design process. Taft sourced unconventional materials, including a thrifted pillowcase for one of the tops. She also added buttons and ruffled detailing to build a skirt. Her approach reflected both creativity and resourcefulness, turning something ordinary into a piece rooted in her personal history.
Freshman Kayla Johnson’s design came from a different kind of childhood reflection—one centered on individuality and feeling. She explained that she never gravitated toward pink and stereotypical glamorous things as a child. For her collection, she reimagined what “glamorous” meant in her world. Johnson’s inspiration stemmed from a pair of ladybug rain boots she loved growing up—shoes she wore while jumping in puddles and picking dandelions. That sense of freedom became central to her looks. She scaled the idea up, adding beaded spots for sparkle and incorporating flowers into the purse she made. Audience members could actually smell the flowers as the model walked by. Johnson, whose mother is a fashion designer, said she was also inspired by the sparkly, fun pieces she admired in her mom’s work. For Johnson, the goal was simple: create something that made the model feel good, free, and playful.
Even though the audience did not directly hear the stories behind the designers’ pieces, their reactions still reflected a sense of joy and nostalgia. They experienced these stories through the designers’ overall vision. Audience member Connor Willingham described the show as something that “felt like stepping back into childhood but in a way that still felt elevated.” Another, Harrison Hauptman, pointed to the sensory details, like the flowers in Johnson’s design and the bubbles floating during the finale, saying it made the experience feel immersive rather than just visual.
Hauptman also emphasized how much meaning came through without explicit explanation. As he said, “It’s not just about what’s on the runway, it’s about what those pieces meant to the person who made them,” highlighting how the designers’ stories were felt through the vision rather than directly told.
In the end, “Child’s Play” wasn’t just a display of creativity—it was a conversation between the designers and their audience, built on shared memories of childhood, imagination, and self-expression.
© 2026 by FETCH COLLECTIVE
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