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The Battalion Page 3 • Tuesc
Summertime warnings
Certain precautions need to be taken to stay safe in the sun
By Melanie Manville
THE BATTALION
Now that summer is in full swing,
many students spend a lot of time in the
sun, whether walking on campus or sit
ting by the pool. While studies show that
sunlight can improve a person’s mood
by increasing the level of serotonin in
the brain, students must be aware of the
dangers of being in the sun, more specif
ically, tanning.
According to the National Coalition
for Skin Cancer Prevention, 90 percent
of all skin cancers can be attributed to
the sun. In 2003, it is expected that
54,200 new cases of skin cancer will
occur and, of these, 7,600 will be fatal,
according to skincancer.org. One of the
most serious and prevalent forms of skin
cancer is melanoma. If discovered early,
it is almost 99 percent curable, but left
untreated it is deadly. With this in mind,
students need to be aware of the warning
signs and take precautions. Some stu
dents feel that they are still too young to
worry, but health experts encourage tak
ing precautions now to prevent any
future problems.
“I am worried about the dangers of
tanning, but I don’t plan on tanning for
my whole life so it is not a big concern,”
said Megan Adcock, a junior accounting
major.
Although most anti-tanning organi
zations urge people to stop tanning com
pletely, they also give out a few tips to
help reduce the dangers of tanning.
The American Medical Association
says it is best not to plan outdoor activi
ties between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4
p.m., when the sun’s rays are the
strongest. It also suggests wearing sun
glasses that offer 100 percent UV ray
protection to protect your eyes, and most
importantly, to wear sunscreen when
outdoors.
Many Texas A&M students have no
problem with this rule.
“Beer, babes and sunscreen. That is
my motto,” said Jeremy Austin, a junior
civil engineering major.
Jacob Garcia, a junior agricultural
development major and lifeguard for
Bryan Aquatic Center, stresses the
importance of sunscreen.
“Although some people may believe
they need extremely high SPFs, SPF 15
is more than enough to protect them
from the sun’s rays,” he said.
Another popular alternative to laying
by the pool to achieve the perfect tan is
indoor tanning. According to industry
estimates, 28 million Americans are tan
ning indoors annually at about 25,000
tanning salons around the country.
“I tan indoors because it doesn’t take
up a lot of time, and it helps me take a
break from a busy day. I get a chance to
just lie there and think,” said Randi
Wenzel, a sophomore communications
major.
According to TanningTruth.com, a
Web site sponsored by the Smart Tan
Networks, moderate tanning is the
smartest way to maximize the potential
benefits of sun exposure while minimiz
ing the potential risk of either too much,
or too little exposure. They also give the
golden rule of tanning: don’t ever sun
burn.
Everyone is at risk for sunburn. But
according to the American Cancer
Society, people with moles, freckles and
other skin markings, fair skin, or light
hair and those who spend a lot of time
indoors, are more susceptible to burning.
TanningTruth.com adds that a tan is
the skin’s natural protection against sun
burn.
Indoor tanning may seem the better
option because it is regulated by the U.S.
government. Some laws include that
each tan must be 24 hours apart, and a
tanner must wear safety goggles in the
tanning bed to prevent eye damage.
Perhaps the safest way to tan would
be the new UV-free tanning. In this
device, a tanner goes in and is “misted”
with self tanner. According to the pam
phlet on the Mystic Tan UV-free sys
tems, the process only takes about 14 to
18 seconds and provides you with a
streak-free, dark tan that is specifically
tailored to your skin type and complex
ion.
“The spray tan option is great; the
only bad thing is you have to wait a cou
ple hours to shower,” said Sarah Murray,
a sophomore communications major.
So whether a student is planning on
getting a tan this summer or not, certain
GRAPHICS BY IVAN FLORES • THE BATTALION
precautions need to be taken to prevent
future skin problems, even if it’s just
wrinkles.
Designer’s whim leads to serious fashion industry buzz
By Jackie White
KRT CAMPUS
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — “It’s just kismet, a
weird kismet,” Rita Accurso announces, pound
ing the air with her hands.
She is talking about how the whimsical nov
elty tops she created have taken off on a remark
able flight among fashion consumers. She bare
ly gave them a nudge.
Cast members from television’s “NYPD
Blue” recently ordered nine. Several New York
and Hollywood upscale boutiques have respond
ed favorably. A buyer for Jeffrey, the exclusive
fashionistas’ favorite mini-department store in
downtown New York City, was interested but
failed to place an order.
And a Hollywood friend has promised to
pitch them to Los Angeles boutiques. “I just sent
her more. She keeps selling them before she can
get to the stores.”
They are one of a kind, quirky, lovingly
detailed and soft. “There is a kind of innocence
about them,” she says.
It started about a year ago. Accurso, who is
part of a large Italian-American family known
especially in Kansas City for a midtown deli and
restaurant, was working as a bartender. One
night, she was at home and bored. “I just started
messing around,” she says.
Taking a man’s extra-large white T-shirt, she
sewed in seams until it was pared down to a
small, skinny size. She pulled print fabric from
the piles of textiles scrunched into a bookcase.
choosing one of her favorite images, geisha
girls. She cut them out and, slowly and tedious
ly, began to embroider them onto the shirt.
She made one and then another. She used
other fabrics, other images. She sent one to
Hollywood to her best friend, Deanna Madsen,
who is married to actor Michael Madsen. And
the serendipitous process began to evolve.
Deanna Madsen wore it to a party where it
caught the attention of other young women who
wanted the shirts for themselves. Madsen’s
friend, Gay Whittaker, was marketing her own
fragrance with specialty stores. She began, liter
ally, to sell them from the trunk of her car. When
she called on stores to promote her perfume, she
also showed the shirts.
Meanwhile, sportswear buyer Kelly
Schneider of Halls in Kansas City spotted
Accurso wearing one at a party and, after seeing
the collection, wrote an order. “They were so
special. Each one had its own personality. I
think people need a reason to buy something
special right now,” Schneider says.
Casey Simmons, co-owner of Stuff in Kansas
City, says, “Each piece is unique. Each piece is
lovingly created by her. And each piece makes a
statement.” Stuff also carries beaded pillows,
handbags and embellished denims made by
Accurso.
She buys fabrics from Cy Rudnick’s Fabrics,
vintage stores and estate sales. This day, she dis
plays recent finds — stylish 1950s ladies and the
cowgirl prints she purchased from an
Albuquerque, N.M., woman who makes chil
dren’s clothes.
The T-shirts, dyed in a variety of soft colors,
are neatly stacked nearby.
Her label is La Rita Ro, adapted from the
nickname, La Rita Rouge (red-haired Rita), a
French friend assigned to her.
Accurso has sewn as long as she can remem
ber. When she was 3, her mother and grand
mother, a tailor, taught her to pull a needle
through material, and soon she was making
Barbie dresses from the flour sack fabrics her
grandmother brought from Italy.
She has always made her own clothes, com
bining them with vintage pieces in ways that set
her apart. “I love Betsy Johnson, Vivienne
Westwood and Comme des Garcons. I could
never afford their clothes. So I made my own,”
she says.
If she buys an item, she is likely to change the
buttons or deconstruct and restyle it. Never
wanting to look like anyone else, she loves to
wear gloves, hats, high boots and lots of velvet.
When she describes her personal style, she
grins, thinks a moment and says, “Va-va-voom!”
Today, her most formidable challenge is to
make her new labor-intensive venture work
financially. Although she thinks she could sell
the T-shirts for considerably more on the West
Coast, prices start at $100 at Halls.
“I figured up once I’m making $3 an hour.”
On the upside, she is wading into an apparel
project at a time when, as Schneider notes, both
PHOTO BY KRI CAMPUS
Rita Accurso, a young fashion designer, is the creator
of quirky t-shirts.
consumers and retailers are desperately seeking
new, unique styles. Also, hand-crafted looks
such as embroidery and crochet are rising fast in
fashion rannk.
On the downside, it is difficult for upstarts
like Accurso to get notice, much less financial
success, in a faithless, erratic, trend-driven busi
ness. Sustaining the buzz may well be the tough
est part.
But Accurso is not concerned.
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