Annie Tavetian is a 2nd year Architect major in the Ceramics club, she’s on the intertube waterpolo team, and she’s the model chair of the Fashion Artistic and Musical Expression (FAME) club. Oh, and did we forget to mention that she’s quite the model herself? Annie was featured in the October issue of Glamour Magazine, posed at Foxfield Races wearing a fantastically preppy outfit of strips and plaid. This California girl knows her fashion and has remained humble even though the world can see her picture inside the glossy covers of Glamour. She’s very design oriented and in the future may be designing buildings or perhaps the next big fashion trend. Either way, Annie’s small taste of the celeb life as a model has got her yearning for more.
What is your involvement with FAME?
My first semester last year was my first time being involved with FAME. When I joined, I was just a model. They taught me how to walk and do photo shots. And at the end of last year, I was voted model chair for this year. I coach other girls on skills I learned last year as model chair. It also involves choreographing the introduction and some publicity. I’ve really enjoyed being more involved. Before, I didn’t know how much went into putting on a fashion show and now I know the main aspects.
Why did you decide join FAME and start modeling?
In middle school, a lot of people at malls would come up to my mom and me and tell me “You should model!” But, I was kind of a tom-boy then so I definitely didn’t want to model. When I came to college I was looking for new club to join. I went to the activities fair and signed up for a bunch of them. Once they started sending out emails, I went to three interest meetings and FAME was the one that caught my attention because they do fashion design. As an architect, I’m really into design and was really impressed by the clothes they could make. I couldn’t make clothes the first semester but hopefully later on I can make a few. I’m a taking a costume tech class next, learning how to sew and put clothes together so hopefully I can do that next semester.
How were you chosen to be in Glamour?
There were a few emails going around saying “Do you want to be in Glamour? If you do, come out Friday for a casting call.” I didn’t know what to expect so I thought I might as well go. I pretty much wore normal clothes. When I got there I had to fill out four questions and then they took a picture of my face. They ask me if I was going to Foxfield, which was the next day, and I told them I was. That night I got a call from Glamour Magazine, telling me to come to a specific plot. I thought, “Oh, they’re probably going to take a picture of me and the dress I’m wearing because it was UVa style.” When I got there, I was pretty much their Barbie doll. There were clothes on racks and they did my full hair and make up.
Was that a strange thing to be doing in the middle of Foxfield?
It was really cool but there were a bunch of confused drunk people walking by asking “is this where you get your hair cut?” We played pranks on them, it was really funny.
What happened after Foxfield?
After that, they didn’t tell us much. They only told us it would be in a back to school fall issue. I didn’t hear from them until the end of July when they emailed me asking how to spell my last name and what year I was in. So I thought, oh wait, maybe I actually will be in it. But, I checked the September issue and it wasn’t in there. I figured they weren’t going to run story. Then, my dad texted me the first weekend of September when we got back to school. He told me to check the latest issue of Glamour because they ran my story!
When happened when your friends and other UVa students saw the picture?
When people starting finding out, it was really exciting. A guy in the A-school told me, “My mom sent me that picture of you and she told me to look out for you” because I’m an architecture school. I guess a lot of people in the A-school got it sent to them. Also, a lot of people took pictures of it and posted it on my Facebook wall as if I didn’t already know [laughs]. People were really interested how I was able to do that. I would mention the email and they were like “Oh yeah I got that and deleted it.”
Would you like to do more things like this in the future?
Yeah, I would love to. Maybe when I get back to LA I can try. I know people who actually pursue modeling as a career but I don’t think I could just do modeling. Maybe I can do fashion design. I could also incorporate fashion into architecture. Even if it’s just little gigs, that’s exciting for me.
What are your post-graduation plans?
Thus far, I don’t exactly know. I don’t want just to be an architect. I’d want to do construction management or maybe something like fashion design.
Who’s your role model?
Heidi Klume because she’s involved with so many volunteer organizations. She gets people interested in fashion in ways that help other with fashion. There’s “Project Runway” obviously which helps to get peoples’ names out there which is hard to do in the fashion world.
What has been your most embarrassing moment at UVa?
The first time I used the woodchop, we got a really long tutorial learning all the tools. Within ten minutes I cut my figure twice and caused a huge scene. They had to get all the first aid stuff for me. It was really embarrassing.
How does your home town influence your fashion?
When I first came, I realized that UVa students have a very different idea of dressed up. Dressing up and going up to class is also a very different thing for me. Since being here, I’ve started to combine my style with UVa style. I still have my Southern California style. In Southern California, the clothes that you are wearing do it. Here, the accessories and hair do it. Also, back home brand names aren’t as important. Barbour jackets and Hunter rain boots are a very new idea for me. I definitely like the mix of preppy but not too put together.