This design by Margarita Alvarez (RISD ’08, Apparel Design) and Sabrina Walker (RISD ’08, Textiles) was also part of the show.

How often does a college fashion student get to turn high-end cutting-edge fabrics into clothes that are shown off in Manhattan?

It’s happening at The Rhode Island School of Design, where the Italian Trade Commission has enabled students from the apparel design and textile divisions to design and construct outfits out of expensive materials they normally don’t have access to, explained Liz Collins, an assistant professor of textiles at RISD.

Models showed off the designs on RISD Museum runways last week. A private show at the Bergdorf Goodman store in New York City, hosted by actress Isabella Rossellini, is coming up Tuesday. The fashions will be displayed at Bergdorf’s through Friday.

This is the first time students from the apparel design department have teamed with students in the textile department on a semester-long project such as this, said Jaime Marland, a spokeswoman for the school.

The Italian Trade Commission donated fabric from 22 fabric and yarn mills in Italy to expose students to the variety of innovative materials, Collins said. These included “technical” fabrics like the woven mesh found on some sneakers and “an incredible range of yarns including cashmere, silk and linen.” The apparel students designed a coat and at least two companion pieces, Marland said. The textile students were studying how to design and create fabrics for apparel, while gaining exposure in the fashion field.