Project Bloodway

For National Laboratory Week at the Community Blood Center, we are treated to free lunches, bagels and treats, but my favorite part is the fashion show at the end of the week they dubbed Project Bloodway. Each lab could enter a creation that reflected the processes of the lab, the only stipulation being we had to begin with a paper lab coat. Pictured below, I am modeling a gorgeous oversized paper lab coat.

I wanted to take my design seriously, mixing fashion and function, like the designers do in the challenges on Project Runway. I had a good time trash talking my friends in other labs since that is a fun part of any competition. I even went so far to say that if I didn't win, I was going to quit fashion. Below, my friends and previous managers from the Product Testing Lab went with a wedding theme and had some great shock value with the cross-dressing, a major crowd-pleaser.

Second place went to the Immunohematology Lab for their multi-faceted design, pictured below. I was a little worried when I saw how much time they had put into their lab coat. Not only had I placed my career in jeopardy with my vow to quit fashion if I lost, but there was a shiny trophy at stake!

Below is the monologue that I wrote to explain the design and how it related to our lab work:

As you well know, saving lives is the new black, so we always look chic in the Components Lab. This cute little dress exemplifies Spring '09's hottest trends while depicting the workflow of our lab at the same time.

Stephanie, you spin us right round baby with that stylish ruffle skirt, the hottest look on the runway. The ruffles are placed at an angle to represent the spinning of the centrifuge, one way we separate the blood into its components, basically cryo, plasma and red cells.

Applique is very trendy right now and those snowflake appliques around the collar keep Stephanie looking cool while representing the frozen cryo that is collected at the top of the bag and is used to treat burn victims, for example.

Belts can really pull an outfit together this Spring. The plasma belt accentuates Stephanie's tiny waist, giving her a flattering silhouette, while depicting the plasma, the layer found below the cryo that is used by chemotherapy patients, for instance.

Last but not least, the red polka dots add a pop of color, while simultaneously representing the layer of heavy red cells that are collected at the bottom of the bag and used to save many people's lives. Thank you Stephanie for being a model of the smart and stylish Components Lab.

I will be continuing with my career in Fashion Design because I was deemed Top Designer for Project Bloodway 2009!