Senior Jessica Scherb, Fashion and Textiles student who has taken Fashion and Textiles class as an elective every semester since her first day of school, could make her way over to the Fashion and Textiles classroom blindfolded and backwards. Scherb has even spent time outside of class with her teacher Judy Fisher, who she said she considers a close friend. Now in her eighth semester of designing, cutting and sewing fabric together, she is practically an expert on all things fashion.

“I’ve made pretty much everything except a plain shirt- from vests to dresses to shorts,” Scherb said. “A lot of the pieces I make, I make for others. My style has a big variety to it, so my closet has to reflect that. No matter what I’m wearing, I always try to look presentable, because

you never know who you may meet.”

As the dawn of 2012 breaks, new fashion trends emerge as well. And with fashion constantly evolving, all serious fashionistas, like Scherb, are on the lookout for new trends and ideas. All that hard work means that Scherb has her finger on the pulse of the fashion industry.

Fisher, who has been teaching Fashion and Textiles here for 16 years, said that as fashion choices change among high school students, the projects the students choose to design change as well.

“The first project we make in Fashion (and Textiles) 1 is always a pair of pajama pants with an elastic waistband. However from there on out, students can design and make whatever they choose to. I think it really allows the kids to express their own style and make things they’ll actually want to wear, rather than what I tell them they have to make. I see students designing and creating everything from their own prom dresses to winter coats to jeggings,” Fisher said.

“What I’m noticing now, style-wise, that is popular among our high school students is definitely boots– all kinds of boots. Whether they’re Uggs or ankle boots or little scrunched boots, all tucked in to either skinny jeans or leggings,” Fisher said. “We’re also starting to see lots of blocks of brighter colors on pieces, even more so this year than last year.”

Anita Hawkins, assistant apparel manager for the clothing store Anthropologie, weighed in on what fashion trends to be on the lookout for this coming year as well.

“The start of a new year is always exciting because we can start looking forward to new collections from designers and we can also start predicting trends,” Hawkins said. “Spring is actually really the time that we start to see lots of new concepts that will influence the rest of the year. I think for the tops we’ll be seeing lots of feminine, loose, fine-gage or lacy knits in neutral colors.”

Hawkins, whose job duties include merchandising the floor with new products as well as day-to-day business operations, said the best way to get a feel for new fashion trends is by watching designers’ runway shows and browsing retailers’ websites. She said she also foresees wide-legged, cropped pants, shirt-dresses and bold prints as being popular during this coming year.

While Hawkins has already broken into the fashion business with her career, Scherb is also interested in pursuing a career in fashion, but with slightly higher expectations. Scherb’s main goal? To become famous. She said she believes fashion class here has helped her learn the basics, and she plans to major in apparel design and minor in interior design when she attends college this fall.

“Back in eighth grade I did the walk-through of electives with my dad and was introduced to the fashion program then. Since day one, I’ve been intrigued by designing, building and creating stuff,” Scherb said.

Despite all of the fashion changes that both Fisher and Hawkins predict are ahead for 2012, Hawkins said she believes that some trends from prior years will continue to prevail this year.

“Maxi dresses and longer skirts have become popular in recent years, and I don’t see that going away anytime soon. A classic pair of well-fitting jeans is always in style as well.” Hawkins said. “Styles are always going to be changing but the most important thing is not so much what someone wears, but how they wear it. If you have confidence, I think you can pull off any look.”