Neon jeans are blazing their way out of summer and bold prints continue to walk the runways.  The leaves are turning, and massive amounts of layers are falling into the wardrobe scene. Boots with tall socks and color blocking tops are also a trending topics for lead designers.

Fall trends for 2011 have sparked attention in the fashion industry. Autumn styles started strong when Target sold iconic fashion pieces by Italian designer Missoni. The line sold everything from menswear to household items. Missoni’s bold knits are now being auctioned on Ebay, and similar prints can be found in other retail stores.

But if loud patterns and colors are not your thing, there are many classic trends for fall months.

Outerwear is one category with a new, yet definitive, look. Items such as casual blazers for men and women are a relaxed way of dressing up your wardrobe.

A new trend in outerwear is the swacket. Yes, we all made fun of the jort (jean/short) trend, as well as the forever-popular jeggings (jean/leggings), but just like the other infamous hybrids, swackets (sweater/jacket) are being sold in leading retail stores (Nordstrom, Gap and Urban Outfitters).

Although temperatures were a bit high this week, it is about time to put the flip-flops away for the year. Chilly fall weather is an excuse to buy new boots. The latest trends in footwear: booties for the ladies and oxfords for the guys.

It is probably not time to bring out the Uggs quite yet; there are a lot of shorter, leather boots (booties) in style now. You can wear these with summery clothes, but still have an outfit that looks fall-appropriate.

The narrower the toe, the more slimming the shoe tends to look for the leg. In a recent review of Fashion Week, Harper’s Bazaar Editor Lisa Armstrong, said, “Round-toe pumps do almost as much for your legs as Photoshop.” Boots with a small wedge are also in style right now. If you want to check out some of these styles at decent prices, try DSW, Kohl’s and Zappos.com.

Sperry Topsiders are one trend in guy’s shoes that never seem to go out of style. This year a lot of men’s leading clothing lines are advertising more of the rugged and cukka styled boots. (Check out J.Crew.) Most of these styles are worn with cuffed jeans or cords.  You can also find sharp styles at Fossil, including casual sneakers and oxfords.

This month we hit the streets … er, sidewalks, looking for students sporting trends like these. Here are our trend spotters for the month of October.

There was a couple to my right standing perplexed, 20 feet from the ice cream dispensers. Clearly they were new to the frozen yogurt scene, while I felt like a VIP. Well, sort of.

This was my third time in two weeks visiting the new frozen yogurt parlor in Marion, JuJuBerry, and I was on borderline addiction.

No more driving to Gas City or Upland for Payne’s and Ivanhoes, instead I have scrumptious ice cream place that’s cheaper, closer and healthier (even if I serve myself far more than I probably should).

At a typical ice cream parlor, people probably expect to wait at a counter to give an order, ponder upon their selection and wonder if the waiter is going to give them the right amount of hot fudge. Going to JuJuBerry is much more of a hands-on experience. If you are not familiar with the new self-serve frozen yogurt trend (aka “froyo”), you are truly missing out on the ice cream of the gods.

Owners Matt and Mary Stinson opened JuJuBerry in July and are already overwhelmed at the success of their family-owned parlor. Previously, they served as missionaries in Brazil, and now Matt Stinson pastors at Heritage Bible Fellowship in Marion.

“My wife and I needed something to supplement our income,” Stinson said. “We were also looking for ways to evangelize and reach out to Marion.”

JuJuBerry got its name from Stinson’s granddaughter, Julia. “It was her nickname and it just stuck out when we were trying to name the place,” Stinson said proudly.

Stinson’s love for home and family is already evident in the atmosphere of JuJuBerry. The first time I went inside, the newly opened parlor made my eyes bulge. With vibrant hot pink walls and checkered red floors, the ambiance is as sweet as the sugary treats it offers customers.

Tori Rambadt (sr) is one of many Indiana Wesleyan University students who has relished the froyo trend.

“I had never really been to a frozen yogurt place until this summer when I went to Yogurt Land in Florida,” Rambadt said. “When I found out there was a frozen yogurt place in Marion, I was beyond excited.”

Some other leading names in the frozen yogurt business are Pinkberry and Red Mango USA. These self-serve styles can be confusing for froyo virgins. Instead of ordering at a counter, customers grab a bowl and choose the amount from the soft-serve machine. After choosing the frozen yogurt flavor, customers are offered a smorgasbord of toppings. I prefer cheesecake bites, blackberries and mango juju berries. (For those unfamiliar with juju berries, they are small, round balls that are full of flavored juices, quite similar to bubbles in bubble tea.)

“We currently offer close to 70 toppings and compete with surrounding cities to keep prices low,” said Stinson.

Once customers are done loading their ice cream with syrups, fruits and candy, they weigh its bowl and are charged 40 cents per ounce. Some people like to strategize with lighter toppings for a cheaper prize … I somehow balance out at roughly $4 every time.

“Our most popular flavors are Cake Batter, Dulce de Leche and Classic Vanilla,” Stinson said.

Some frozen yogurt flavors contain Activia and have more of a tart taste, while others like Red Velvet have more of the sweetness of soft serve ice cream. I have found that fuller flavors come out in mixing tart yogurts with sweet toppings and vice versa. JuJuBerry continually rotates their flavors and even offers healthier options like fresh fruit for topping to make sure every customer creates exactly what’s wanted.

JuJuBerry is open six days a week, 12 p.m.- 10 p.m., and it is located off the bypass at 2020 S. Western Ave.

Allie Dimiele (fr) wanted one role for as long as she could remember. She knew Shakespeare’s renowned tragedy, “Romeo and Juliet,” backwards and forwards; the role of Juliet was her dream — but more than her love for the drama would cast her as the lead.

“Othello” was the first choice for the play that Indiana Wesleyan University’s Theatre Guild would put on during the fall semester of 2010. But when the play’s star and codirector, Javon Washington (sr) was shot Aug. 28, the theater program was forced to decide on a new show.

After much deliberation, “Romeo and Juliet” was chosen, leaving room for the dreams of Dimiele to be realized.

“Gunshots may have ruined our first choice in plays,” said Dr. Kurt Edwards, theater professor, “but our affection of this play, and the lessons it has taught us, has enabled us to find a new love.”

“A greater power than we can contradict hath thwarted our intents.” – “Romeo and Juliet,” V.iii

“I told Dr. Edwards that I would take any role that he saw fit,” said Dimiele. She said she wasn’t going to set herself up just to be let down, so she tried out for any part that she could get. Dimiele started acting her sophomore year of high school and was not completely sold on the idea of trying out at IWU, until her peers convinced her that she would be great for the play.

“I remember being extremely nervous as I walked up to the cast list that was posted after our tryouts,” said Dimiele.

Her only theater experiences thus far were small roles in high school plays; never did she expect to see her name printed at the top of the cast list that day.

“I followed my name across the sheet and saw ‘Juliet.’ One of the girls coming up behind me asked me what role I received. Through tears I told her I got Juliet. I was so incredibly happy,” said Dimiele.

“These violent delights have violent ends. …” – “Romeo and Juliet,” ii.iii

Javon Washington was a junior at IWU last year when he decided to perform in the upcoming fall semester play as his senior project. He was never a big fan of Shakespeare, but “Othello” was one tragedy he loved, and he had always wanted to play the lead.

“It [“Othello”] just shows the raw human emotion of society,” said Washington. “We think we are in control of what we are going to do and what’s going to happen with our lives. When in reality, much of what we think is not what we thought before and many circumstances are out of our control.”

Washington spent the summer researching “Othello,” memorizing his lines and planning his cast. He even traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio, to watch the play performed.

One week before the fall semester began, Washington went to a sports bar and grill with a friend. While the two men were talking, an acquaintance walked into the bar, belligerent and intoxicated.

“He was angry, and not with it, so I just ignored him and kept talking to the friend beside me,” said Washington, “until [a woman] started screaming.”

The woman next to Washington had been shot. He was next.

“Wisely and slow; they stumble that run fast.” – “Romeo and Juliet,” ii.iii

“The guy was 3 feet away from me, and I had not realized that I had been shot. He shot me once in each thigh, and I didn’t even know it. But then he shot me in the knee and I collapsed on the floor,” said Washington.

“When I fell on the floor, I was dragging myself away and I asked God, ‘Please, don’t let him be there when I look up because then he will just kill me while I lie here on the floor.’ I turned over and saw him run out the door … and I thanked God.” Washington proceeded to tell the people in the restaurant to call an ambulance because he had been shot.

“And I promise you, everyone there looked at me, lying on the floor, as if nothing had happened. … I had to reach in my pocket for my phone and call the ambulance myself,” Washington said. Eventually, a few of the people gathered around helped apply pressure to the wound. No one realized Washington had been shot multiple times until they cut his pant leg up to his thigh and saw a bullet-torn hole through one side of his leg to the other.

Washington was unable to walk for the first month and wasn’t sure how he would finish school.

“If it weren’t for Dr. Kurt, I would not have done any schooling this semester. I probably wouldn’t have come back to IWU. He told me I will miss my chances of graduating if I don’t keep trying now,” said Washington.

Edwards drove to Washington’s house every week to give his own private “Theater History” class and eventually drove him to classes when he could walk.

“I owe Dr. Edwards a debt of gratitude,” said Washington.

“This but begins the woe others must end …” – “Romeo and Juliet,” iii.i

Dimiele would not have starred in this tale had the play not changed, and the play would not have changed had Washington not been shot late that August night.

Like that of a Shakespearean tragedy, their story is one of bittersweet relevance in a world of hate and love alike.

“Shakespeare presents a brutal, passionate love that propels the young lovers into new territory for themselves, their family and their society,” Edwards said.

IWU’s production of “Romeo and Juliet” will commence this evening at The Black Box Theatre. To experience the tragedy for yourself, attend a show Nov. 11-13 or the following weekend, Nov. 18-20.

“Our hope is that you glean a new understanding of love from an old tale of hate for yourself, your relations and your world,“ said Edwards.

If You Go:

Performances in the Black Box Theater:

• Nov. 11-13, 18-20 at 7:30 pm.
• Nov. 13 and 20 at 2 p.m.

Tickets are available in the Box Office:

• $10 general admission
• $8 IWU faculty
• $6 for students