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Chris Taylor, a senior fashion merchandising major in Western Illinois University’s Department of Dietetics, Fashion Merchandising and Hospitality, is bringing his creativity and love of design to the viewers of KHQA-TV every Friday morning through this August.
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WIU Student Lands "Style & Saving" Segment on Local TV Station

July 2, 2012

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MACOMB, IL – If you missed Western Illinois University student Chris Taylor's ongoing "saving on style" tips on KHQA-TV last Friday morning, no worries… He'll be back on the station's morning news show this week, too.

According to Taylor, who is majoring in fashion merchandising, a class project—as well as his love of, and thrifty approach to, fashion and design—recently helped him land an ongoing segment on the Quincy (IL)-based station's 5-7 a.m. show Friday mornings through this August.

"In my visual merchandising class, we were put into groups to construct displays created out of recycled material. Because of a back injury, I could not be in class the week of creating the project, so I volunteered to work from home and create our outfit and left everyone else to create the background display," Taylor explained. "After putting our components together, I shared a photo with KHQA on Facebook. About a month later, a newscaster emailed me and asked to talk with the creator of the dress. She also wanted to see any other projects that I had made. After my first appearance, I was asked to come back again."

In his segments, which began in May, he provides tips and ideas for "reconsuming" used or vintage materials to make them usable and stylish again. Taylor, 26—who lives in Quincy and is a senior in WIU's Department of Dietetics, Fashion Merchandising and Hospitality (DFMH)—said his designs are frequently based on using reconsumed, common household items, and/or vintage materials. He also noted that saving money plays a large part of his drive to reuse items and materials.

"My inspiration comes from everywhere, but most of it comes from being cheap! I have always loved thrifting because it's unpredictable; you never know what you are going to find. I refuse to pay full price for anything, and that has driven me to be creative in all aspects of interior furnishings and apparel," Taylor noted.

Read more about Taylor's talents and background, as well as access links to KHQA's YouTube videos of Taylor's saving on style segments, on Western's Beyond the Bell Tower Blog at wiurelations.wordpress.com/2012/06/28/taylor-tv/. You can see some of Taylor's projects on his Facebook page, "Reconsumed4U," at www.facebook.com/ReConsumed4U.

Learn more about the Western Illinois University Department of Dietetics, Fashion Merchandising and Hospitality at www.wiu.edu/dfmh.

Posted By: Teresa Koltzenburg (WIUNews@wiu.edu)
Office of University Communications & Marketing