Photo and Story Credit: Tim Hynds and Earl Horlyk, Sioux City Journal
Sioux City, Iowa -- A teenage girl's prom dress is meant to be stylish, memorable and, perhaps, a tad bit dramatic.
In reality, a teenage girl's prom dress is usually too tight, too cumbersome and a nightmare to wear.
Thankfully, East High School junior Chloie Roupe has discovered a way to make female formalwear contemporary as well as comfortable.
A member of the Career Academy's fashion design pathway, she conducted market research of her peers before creating a four-piece collection that uses pajama material for dresses that are stylish enough for a formal affair yet breathable enough for a night on the dance floor.
Roupe will be taking her prom dress innovations to a special Family, Career and Community Leaders of America (FCCLA) fashion competition in Cedar Rapids, March 26 - 28.
A national nonprofit organization with more than 175,000 members in more than 5,300 chapters, the FCCLA points students towards career exploration while helping them to develop the planning, goal setting, problem solving, decision making and interpersonal communication skills needed at home and in the workplace.
Make no mistake about it, Roupe wants to take the fashion world by storm.
"My family always said I was born with a needle and thread in my hand," the 16-year-old said with a laugh. "That's an exaggeration but I can't remember a time when design wasn't important to me."
Read more of Chloie Roupe's story in The Weekender.