From highway to runway

From highway to runway It was safety first at "Project Beltway," a AAA-sponsored fashion show and contest that paired high school students with designers to make outfits out of seat belts. We spoke to aspiring designer and winner Josh Homic, 14, of White Bear Lake about the evening gown he created. His winning design was modeled by his best friend, Enny Kong.

Q How did you get involved?

A Last summer, I did a couple of classes at the Textile Center that helped with sewing and one for drafting patterns.

Q What's the idea behind your design?

A It's very inspired by old Hollywood. It was really fun working with a new material. It was so thick. It was insane. Every 3 minutes I broke a needle.

Q What's the message behind the dress?

A You can do anything in the world and make anything out of anything. Nothing is set in this industry. The way I used seat belts shows how protective they are. You could go into war and have no marks.

A By age 21, I will be having my own brand name, Joshua B. Homic, have fashion in shows in Paris, New York and Milan, and make tons of money.

Q Do you want to be on "Project Runway"?

A I've thought about that question, I don't think I'd personally want to do that. Doing this in two days was unimaginably hard.

Sales & events Apparently Charlie Sheen's market value has dropped since divorcing Denise Richards. That's OK with Über Baby (6021 Lyndale Av. S., Mpls, 612-869-0930, www.myuberbaby .com), because they're currently the only retailer for Sheen's line of kids' clothes -- Sheen Kidz. You'll find the line at discounted prices ranging from $11 to $69, marked down from $59 for tops and $120 for track suits. Also look for the line at the Über Baby kiosks at some Kowalski's locations.

Spotted at: Chambers Hotel