Studying abroad as a fashion merchandising student was an amazing opportunity for me. I took a visual merchandising class during my time abroad, which is something that I could see myself doing for the rest of my life. My professor was so knowledgeable and really sparked my interest even more about the visual aspects of the fashion industry.

            Hanging the teacups

Our class final project was called “Tell Me a Story.” We had to create a window display that could be displayed in FUA’s fashion boutique, FLY. The winner of the competition would have their display up in the window for a month. We were paired up with random people in our class, so that presented a challenge with trying to come up with ideas for our display.

Putting the window display in the window

Once in our groups, there were so many ideas flowing about how to present a story in the form of a window display. We came to the consensus of “Coffee Date.”  We choose this story because of the importance Italians put on enjoying espresso and a cup of coffee. Two friends meeting for coffee and catching up on their lives with one another seemed like the perfect story to tell. I was studying abroad with my best friend and it just seemed more than relatable to our situation of studying abroad and meeting new friends.

 Incorporating teacups into the     display creatively

When it came time to present our idea to the panel of judges, we won! Our idea had won. I felt extremely proud that we had won and that our window display was going to come alive in an actual Italian boutique in Florence. It was an amazing opportunity that I will be forever proud of.

  Visual display in window of FLY        

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Danielle Moffa
Indiana University of Pennsylvania

“My personal experience abroad was one that I will never forget. I learned more in those 4 months than I could have ever imagined. Everything was so amazing over there and I am so happy I was able to experience it.”