St. Paul, MN: On Sunday, May 5 the University of Wisconsin-Stout rolled out the red carpet of fashion for their annual Spring WEAR Fashion Show which featured collections created by Apparel Design and Development majors. One of this year’s big winners was Anna Schmidtke from Forest Lake, MN a 20-year old sophomore, who won the Best Sophomore Award. “I was so excited to show off my work. The award was a surprise, but I am very proud of my design and it means a lot to have it recognized at this event,” said Schmidtke. Schmidtke’s dress was one of about 100 pieces modeled at this year’s fashion show.

Schmidtke’s award winning dress was made from Safe Reflection’s Eclipse™ 1231 Reflective Material, a full-width, high-brightness, eco-friendly reflective material exclusively produced by Safe Reflections. “We are very proud of Anna and so impressed with the dress she created using our unique fabric, Anna did an incredible job of demonstrating how reflective can be fashionable, proving that it is not just for safety gear and activewear anymore.”

Schmidtke was introduced to the reflective material while working for Safe Reflections during the summer of 2018. This is what inspired her to use it for her entry into the fashion show.  

With a couple of years left in completing her Bachelor of Science in Apparel Design and Development, Schmidtke is still undecided as to what direction she will pursue in the industry, but is interested in more of the technical side of the industry, possibly R&D.

To help designers better use reflective material, Safe Reflections has a course called “How to Design with Reflective” and will offer it to both student and professional designers who are interested in learning more about the different types of reflective material, and how and why to incorporate it into their designs. Those interested in hosting this course at their school or place of work can contact media@safereflections.com. 

About Safe Reflections, Inc. 

Safe Reflections Inc. is a global technology leader in providing reflective solutions to the occupational safety, military training and consumer activewear apparel markets. Founded in 1993, Safe Reflections converts purchased reflective material for the world’s leading manufacturers of uniforms, safety clothing, and athletic apparel to enhance the wearer’s visibility during outdoor work or play. With a globally patented line of unique Brilliant® colorized reflective transfers, trims and fabrics, Safe Reflections gives clothing designers new options to integrate safety, visibility and fashion. Safe Reflections operates a manufacturing and technical research facility in Minnesota, a second stand-alone manufacturing facility in Taiwan, and a sales office in Germany.