Carlynne Morrison Holtzinger graduated with a degree in Clothing & Textiles and Business Marketing from Seattle Pacific University in 2010. She currently lives in Seattle, WA working as an event producer, fashion stylist, designer, and model. Recipient of the International Textile & Apparel Association’s national “Apparel Design Study Abroad Scholarship” and Rotary’s “Unsung Hero Award”, Carlynne has found her passion in fashion and drive in serving others. She aims to find beauty in the unexpected with a hope to inspire others in her creative pursuits.
The journey into her vocation accelerated during her senior year in high school, where she began a self-coordinated project called “Beautify”. Its purpose was to bring light and beauty to the homeless, through the redecoration of Yakima Valley’s Union Gospel Mission. In order to fund the project, a fashion show titled “Runway of Light” was coordinated. Held at the Yakima Valley Museum, the show attracted more than 250 people and raised more than $6,000.
During her sophomore year at SPU, Carlynne launched another project in her hometown of Yakima, WA, called “Shine”. This make-over day gave four women of the YWCA a day of pampering and encouragement that included a facial, massage, new outfit, and haircut/color from an elite group of personal-care professionals.
The summer of 2008 Carlynne was moved once again to hold a fashion show fundraiser. This event combined the goals of bringing a community together while raising money for the homeless youth of both Seattle and Yakima. “Season to Change” raised more than $6,500 for New Horizons Ministries of Seattle and For a Better Tomorrow of Yakima and attracted more than 200 people to the streets of downtown Yakima. Now entitled “Fashion Front”, the event has become an annual production.
Carlynne has honed her unique grasp on fashion through internships with Luly Yang Couture and CRAVE company. In 2008 she was awarded Rotary’s “Unsung Hero Award” in Yakima, WA—an honor bestowed to her based upon “service over self”. In 2009 she was asked to participate in Seattle’s top student designer competition Project Red Dress. Later that year Carlynne received a competitive fashion design scholarship to study in London through ITAA & AIU—an opportunity in which her passions for travel, styling, writing and design were multiplied.
Her leadership involvement in Seattle Pacific University’s Fashion Group in coordinating the 2nd annual fashion show and 1st annual photo shoot awarded her Club of the Year in 2010. She was also featured in SPU’s Alumni News as a 2010 Outstanding Graduate.
Upon concluding her studies at SPU, Carlynne spent the summer of 2010 on Martha’s Vineyard as a hippie that found true appreciation for life’s simple blessings to then explore the fast pace of New York City’s Fashion Week. Inspired, she was drawn back to Seattle to stir the NW’s fashion scene.
The summer of 2011 she produced another fashion show fundraiser entitled “aLIVE”–a fusion of the arts to benefit Dress for Success & World Relief. Her involvement with the YWCA of King County gave her the opportunity to coordinate the fashion shows for the YWCA’s 9th Annual Closet Treasure Sale—for which she was featured on King 5’s New Day Northwest. She was then asked to hold the position of “Style Lead” for their 2012 event–one which raised over $40,000.
Carlynne’s latest work includes a partnership with the Pacific Northwest Market Center for their 2012 Spring Trend Show and the Kirkland Arts Center‘s annual Locavore event, where she unified art with fashion. She can also be found collaborating with Seattle’s downtown Gene Juarez Salon along with other local photographers, designers, and musicians to style, design for, and/or model in photo shoots.
For inquiries regarding event production and fashion styling services or custom apparel design work, contact Carlynne here.
Artist Statement: There is more to fashion than meets the eye. CMORthreads: seeking to find beauty in the unexpected. Let’s make a different, something beautiful together.