Designers audition at campus clothier

Walking into the Walnut Street fashion boutique Ma Jolie Tuesday morning, Kelly Farrelly and Lorrie Kim were looking to make a wish come true -- selling enough of their designer quilts to fund a trip to Las Vegas. Farrelly, who works at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, and Kim, a freelance journalist, answered the call for Ma Jolie's open auditions to be showcased in the store's new department, 360 Degrees. Around 20 hopefuls showed their work to the owners of the Ma Jolie chain Tuesday morning, later undergoing interviews. Sisters Nickie, Desie and Mariann Boston own and run the business, which consists of two stores, one located at 4340 Main Street in Manayunk and one at 3661 Walnut Street in University City. "We want our customers to be able to purchase innovative clothing designs, decorative jewelry and fashion accessories by undiscovered designers," the Boston sisters said in a statement Tuesday. "We are committed to Department 360 and we encourage designers to show us new items monthly." Tuesday's open call audition was the second in a series of what Nickie Boston hopes to be "a freshness that we're eager to get into the department." The first open call was held on March 15. The nervous prospects were each given a 15-minute interview, during which they displayed their products and were asked various questions regarding their designs and production capabilities. "I was not expecting to be as blown away as I was by what I saw," Nickie Boston said. Through a warm and friendly demeanor, the Boston sisters helped ease the anxiety of many of the rookie designers, demonstrating the skills that have made their business survive the past several years. "I was a little nervous because I had never done an open call," said jewelry designer Jill Tuft, who has previously sold her work only through word of mouth. "But my nerves went down because the ladies were so nice. It was relaxed and I felt comfortable." And young designers like Kallie Mihalos' a graduate student at Rosemont College and an aspiring fashion designer, got the opportunity to "see how people would react to my designs, if they're interested and to see if I am going in the right direction." Rifling through Mihalo's clothes, which included a handmade alligator skin bustier and a brown faux-fur coat, the Boston sisters offered encouraging words and lots of positive feedback. Yet Mihalos will not find out until later today if she is to join the nine others who were picked from the last open call to join the ranks of Ma Jolie. The sisters haven't specified how many new talents they wish to bring in with Tuesday's second open call. They plan on holding several more open calls in the coming months. And Penn College senior Vincent Connors successfully made it through the first open call. An English and Fine Arts double major, Connors was chosen to be showcased in "360" for his one-of-a-kind women's evening wear. Connors has taken fashion design classes at Drexel University and attended a summer program in Milan, Italy last year. The showcase at Ma Jolie has given him just the kind of opportunity the Boston sisters were hoping to provide. "This is my first time ever doing anything -- I have never had anything shown before," Connors said.

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