Rejuvenating the old and refreshing the original was no problem this year for Jennifer Woodruff, who bent steel bars for a human-sized bird cage skirt on one of her Elizabethan-inspired costume creations.

Nor was it for Elizabeth McFadden, who ordered 700 peacock feathers to update her lush velvet, vintage-inspired fashion collection with a touch of wild elegance.

McFadden and Woodruff, along with many other designers, have spent much of this semester — and some of the last — preparing for “RE:NEW,” the 22nd annual textiles and clothing fashion show, which will be held at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday in Fisher Theater. The show’s awards ceremony will take place at the end of Saturday’s performance.

The show is organized and run solely by students in the textiles and clothing department and will feature fashion designs ranging from rich and refined evening wear to relatively raunchy urban wear.

“The designs have gotten more complex; some of the stuff I’ve seen has been absolutely beautiful,” says McFadden, senior in apparel merchandising, design and production. “People are taking this year’s show in a completely different direction than last year.”

Thomas Brown, co-producer of the fashion show and junior in apparel merchandising, design and production, says this year’s show will feature a live onstage DJ, along with special lighting effects.

“It’s going to look like a storm,” he says. “We’ve got dry ice, lightning, the works.”

The Creation

When McFadden started working on the three-piece collection she wanted to enter into the fashion show, she knew she wanted to work with velvet.

“I wanted to do something different and over-the-top, because that’s my style,” she says.

So when her boyfriend found peacock feathers for sale online, McFadden says she knew exactly what she wanted to do.

“No peacocks were harmed in the creation of my designs, though. Peacocks naturally shed their feathers during climate changes,” she says. “I’ve done my research.”

Love of the theater arts led Woodruff, senior in apparel merchandising, design and production, to submit a three-piece collection based on three characters from Ben Jonson’s 16th-century play “Valpone.”

“The characters are reflective of animals, so I kind of based my costuming ideas on that,” she says.

The most outstanding piece of the collection, she says, has been dubbed the “cage dress” by her fellow designers. The dress is encased from the waist down by a removable steel cage with a heart-shaped design. Woodruff says a friend in the theater department welded the cage for her.

“In the play, this woman’s husband was a jealous man, so he would lock her away in the house,” she says. “This is just my interpretation of how this character felt.”

Both McFadden and Woodruff spent more than $1,000 on making the designs they entered into the show.

“I spent more on my fabric and materials than I did on my car, even though it’s not a nice car,” McFadden says.

The Competition

Brown says a majority of the collections and pieces strutted down the catwalk are made by students in their senior design class. The students’ grades are mostly dependent upon whether their collection makes it into the show.

“Only the top 80 percent of the 31 entries this year will make it in,” Brown says before judging night.

That made McFadden nervous, even though her collection made it into the show.

“I [was] scared to death,” she says. “To put so much time and effort and money into this and not make it [would have been] devastating.”

Woodruff says the competition helps students see what it’s like working in the fashion industry. If students have their own unique style, they’re more likely to be recognized, she says.

“I’m not in it for all the awards like some people think,” she says. “I just want to get a hold on my style and attach my name to it, so when I go out on the job market, people will make that connection.”

Last year, Woodruff entered her dragon costume, “Chiel Covando Drago,” which won first place in the experimental category. A few of her other entries in the show this year include a dress made of fishing poles and a men’s suede urban wear outfit she slashed with a utility knife.

“Even though my style sticks out, I don’t mean to,” she says. “I’m not trying to sabotage the show, you know.”

The Consummation

The models have been rehearsing their hip swings and perfecting their stage walks for the show since early in the semester, says Emily Kammeyer, model for the show and freshman in apparel merchandising, design and production. She says she is modeling for eight or nine designers during the show.

Brent Perz, senior in environmental engineering, says he can’t wear any visible undergarments while modeling Woodruff’s slashed-up outfit.

“I’m gonna need to go tanning, like, a lot,” he says. “It might be embarrassing [if people see my butt], but it’s fashion, so it might be a little more normal.”

McFadden says she’s been thankful for the models’ patience and accommodation of the designers’ needs.

“If it were me, I’d be a little scared to be standing around in my underwear,” she says.

She doesn’t think behind the scenes at the fashion show will be any different, either.

“I’m sure it’s just going to be limbs flying everywhere,” she says.

What: “RE:NEW” 22nd Annual Textiles and Clothing Fashion Show

Where: Fisher Theater

When: 7:30 p.m., Friday-Saturday

Cost: $10.50 Friday, $12.50 Saturday