As of late, I’ve been dying to get out on the town and experience some good old-fashioned Texas fabulosity. That opportunity arrived when I discovered the International Academy of Design and Technology (IADT) would be hosting its 2011 Imagine Art and Runway Show. IADT has been around for about five years here in San Antonio, but this was my first time attending one of their shows for graduating students. The venue at the Grand Hyatt downtown was perfect, and the lighting on stage was phenomenal. In fact, it was almost too good for my poor little Flip camera to capture the details of the show! Check out the preview to the collections that appeared on Great Day SA below!
The show’s host was Shirin Askari from Season 6 of Project Runway, and I have to say I was a little disappointed in her emcee abilities. I don’t know if it was the organization of the show itself, or her reading skills, but it seemed she was a little frazzled. And on top of that, she drew attention to herself and her stint on the show one too many times. But hey, she’s a reality show celebrity, so I shouldn’t expect too much.
On to the designs, which started on a high note, suffered a stretch of dismal in the middle, and then ended with my favorite collection of the evening. That being said, I’m not here to crush anyone’s soul because they sent a few misshapen pieces down the runway. I can’t sew a stitch, so I will focus on the positive and applaud each designer for their courage, no matter the final result. Brilliance did abound, thank goodness, and three specific designers sent really fantastic stuff out into the universe last night. In order of appearance, my top three shows were:
1. Kim Winton
Jewel tones were the name of the game in this sophisticated and chic collection. And that second dress with the edgy sheer top? To die for. The best part was, Ms. Winton was able to achieve party girl outfits without looking trashy. The patterns were perfect, and the fabric was well-made. I literally wanted to buy up the entire thing as soon as the show was over.
2. Valerie Perez
This girl gets how a dress should fit on a woman. Her work was well put-together, thoughtful, and flattered the models perfectly. Rather than trying to work with overly complicated materials, Ms. Perez chose breezy materials that flowed perfectly. The fourth look, a backless cocktail dress with draping across the front was perfection. I really, really wish you could have experienced the last look first hand. It was a gorgeous cream colored piece with interesting knotting across the straps and back. Love. It.
3. Amanda Marie Couture
Couture was definitely necessary in the title of this collection, but certainly as a compliment. Personally, my favorite show, not because it was my style, but because she took chances. She worked with fur and ruching, for goodness sakes, something few, if any of the other designers ventured into. The shapes were interesting and her collection actually had audience members buzzing amongst themselves. And at the end of the day, isn’t that what fashion is all about? Generating conversation, likes, dislikes, and feeling passionate about something as simple as a jacket or pair of boots? Her work is featured with a page on Facebook, feel free to “like” them…we did!
We’ll post video of our top three shows later today, but here is the finale as captured by my iPhone (so excuse the quality). Can you pick out which outfits were from our favorite collections?
Congratulations to all the designers in last night’s show. May it be a stepping stone to even bigger and better things!
XO,
A
