02 13 2014 Idaho Statesman

IDAHO STATESMAN February 13, 2014 Morning Circulation 46,054 Saturday Circulation 48,970 Sunday Circulation 68,899 "Boise-raised designer hits the N.Y. runway" Fall 2014 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Show http://www.idahostatesman.com/2014/02/13/3024973/boise-raiseddesignerhits-the.html

Arijana Kajdic, 28, showed her designs as part of an elite group of master's students of San Francisco's Academy of Art University School of Fashion.

The school sent eight collections by 13 designers to be shown on the runway Friday at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Lincoln Center in New York City.

"Oh, my God, it's like a dream. I'm still asking someone to pinch me. I'm still buzzing," Kajdic said the next day from New York City.

Kajdic (pronounced ki-dich) discovered her love of fashion in Boise, where her family settled as refugees in 1997. Kajdic was born in Bosnia. When she was 6 the war forced her family to flee to Germany. About 7 years later they came to Boise.

The Kajdics took root here. Her mother, Besima, helped found the Mladi Behar Bosnian folk dance group, and Arijana and her sister, Adnana, flourished in school.

"It's not easy to settle in another country, but Boise opened its heart to us. I consider it my home," she said.

Kajdic studied communications at Boise State University, and though fashion was an interest, she never imagined she could do it as a profession until she was accepted in the Academy of Art University’s fashion program.

"I didn't really realize what I was getting into at the time, but I knew I would have to be really serious about it," she said. "It was a totally transformative journey."

Kajdic drew inspiration from her Bosnian heritage and from her grandmother.

"This is a tribute to the strong, ambitious women who nurtured me and helped shape who I am, especially my grandma, Hasibe," she said. "Her work was never done, but she remained soft all of her life. It is important for me to pay homage to the women of Bosnia."

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She raised the funds for her trip and supplies with a successful Kickstarter campaign that provided $11,163, a little more than the $10,000 she asked for.

Her designs were well-received.

"People in the audience were taking phone photos and they were very enthusiastic," she said.

The experience was a great way to finish her graduate work, Kajdic said. Now, she's on to St. John, a high-end clothing line with company offices in Southern California, as part of its design assistant program.