By Sarina Dayal
Ally Fiallo (‘13) may remind you of just another shy girl in the back of your English class; however, she leads almost a double life. Student by day and star fashion designer by night, Fiallo has a bright future ahead, but she can never forget how FVHS has shaped her design career.
Since her sophomore year, Fiallo has been equipping the thespians of FVHS with the most versatile costumes imaginable. Inspired by a senior whose time as a Baron was fading, Fiallo took the reigns with confidence and skill, and slowly weaved the theater department together, costume by costume.
Although Fiallo dedicates time and attention to the costumes for each different performance, she said, “My biggest accomplishment was at the beginning of this year, when I did the costumes for Twelfth Night.”
“I pretty much made every costume by myself,” she said. “I was at school for fourteen hours straight once. I sewed my little heart out.”
Fiallo plans to pursue this passion into college at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles. Majoring in fashion design with an emphasis on business, Fiallo knows her strengths.
“I kind of like telling people what to do, so I think that’s my strong suit,” she said, laughing. “I love fashion, and the more I fall in love with it, the more I’ll go for it.”
Any career in the arts comes with doubts and hesitations, though, and Fiallo’s feelings are no different. Although she is scared of the uncertainty of a future in fashion, she knows how she fits into the bigger picture.
“Getting yourself out there and networking is one of the biggest things. That way you can just fall into certain situations,” she said. “That’s kind of what it takes to make it in such a competitive business.”
Although Fiallo is moving on to bigger and better things, she will always remember her mentors and her peers here at FVHS.
“No matter what happens after high school, I will always recognize myself as a Baron,” she said. “This school has taught me so much about fashion and about myself; I could never forget my experiences here!”
