Answering a flier posted on campus recently led one SF State student to a place on stage with the elites of San Francisco’s fashion world.

Shadi Mirzai, 23, who earned her Bachelor's degree in Apparel Design and Manufacturing at SF State in 2005, showed designs from her own label, Shadi Clothing, at the recent San Francisco Fashion Week.

The week-long event, held at the Palace of Fine Arts, included previews of next year’s spring collection from over 20 designers, like Fashion Week veterans Colleen Quen and Christina Hurvis. There was also on-site shopping, after parties, and debuts from emerging designers like Mirzai.

"What motivates me to do fashion in general is the creativity and fun of it all,” Mirzai said. “I can’t really see myself doing anything else."

Mirzai was one of 15 new designers who showed off collections during the show’s opening on August 24. After spotting a poster calling for students to enter their work for slots in the “Emerging Stars” student show, Mirzai submitted her portfolio and made it through two cuts after creating an “inspiration board” (a collection of fabric swatches and magazine cut-outs) and a press kit to share her vision with the judges.

But this isn’t the first fashion show for Mirzai. The designer has been in four other shows: SF State’s "Kaleidoscope" in 2004, "Glamour", "Love Bizarre," and most recently, “Unearthed,” for SOMA Magazine, all in 2005.

Mirzai said she owes a lot of her success to her education at SF state.

"My fashion education at SF State helped to prepare me for this event by showing me exactly what steps … to take in order to be a successful designer,” she said. “From considering a garment’s wearability to knowing exactly who your target customer is, (my classes) helped to set up the framework.”

And Mirzai knows who she’s selling to.

"My ideal target customer is a young lady in her 20s to 30s who lives in a metropolitan area,” she added. “Think San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Milan, Tokyo, Paris.

“She likes to buy clothing from fresh, up-and-coming designers because she does not want to look like any other girl walking down the street. She is willing to pay more for clothing that is unique and hand-made. In addition to being fashionable, she wants to be comfortable too."

As an up-and-coming designer herself, Mirzai has her own unique and comfortable designs to offer to the savvy shopper.

She has made several different collections thus far, including "Touch Me Numb," her first collection, consisting of casual dresses, shown at the 2004 SF State "Kaleidoscope" show. Her new collection, revealed during the Fashion Week show, is called "City Pop."

"It is a line of women’s casual skirts, tops and dresses made from cozy knit fabrics," Mirzai said. "The color scheme is reminiscent of sorbet (or) ice cream - peach, teal, cream, baby yellow, heather grey and dusty rose.

"’City Pop’ is aimed toward the feminine city girl who wants to be comfortable and stylish all at the same time. The design philosophy is ‘beauty in simplicity.’ Start with a simple silhouette and make it beautiful with unique details that make the wearer stand out from all the rest."

Katie Somera, 27, a hairstylist who worked at one of Shadi's shows, said she admires Shadi's work.

"I love Shadi Clothing because she makes casual feel girly and cute, her shapes are very flattering and the colors she uses are so fresh and fun,” Somera said. “She takes her designs right up to the edge of current trends but still stays away from trendy."

Mirzai’s design inspirations include Marc Jacobs, Minnie Wilde, Built by Wendy, X-Girl and Gentle Fawn, she said, Her true muses, though, are her friends, since she likes to t"create real-life clothes for real-life people."

With her first San Francisco Fashion Week showing under her belt, Mirzai is now set to garner much more attention and many more customers.

For more information on Shadi Clothing, visit www.shadiclothing.com. For more information on San Francisco Fashion Week, including a full roster of designers and photos of various designs, visit Mystery Girl Productions,