August 2015 Designer Lineup Announced

Omaha, Neb. April 27, 2015 – The organizers of Omaha Fashion Week presented by SAC Federal Credit Union announced the designers who have been selected to show collections during the next season of OFW, August 17-22. The lineup of 30 designers pitched their collections in front of the OFW Selection Panel last week and were selected from 47 applicants. The lineup includes three newcomers, six student designers, 21 OFW veteran designers and seven designers living outside of Nebraska. They come from South Africa, New York and Iowa. All will compete for nightly cash prizes during designer showcases on August 17-21. The top twelve designers from the week will compete for the SAC Fashion Cup during the Runway Finale on August 22. The top twelve will be announced on August 3. “We absolutely love being able to offer cash prizes to our top designers – this is part of SAC Federal Credit Union’s dedication to supporting small business owners. It makes a big difference for a designer to be recognized in this way,” said OFW Producer Brook Hudson. All selections and awardees will be determined by the OFW Selection Panel.

“The talent coming in now has improved so much – the quality and style we are seeing now is truly amazing.  The whole selection process has become increasingly competitive,” said OFW Designer Coordinator Buf Reynolds. Highlights from interviews:

• Florals are the big trend coming out of this season’s designer pitches.  Many are using floral prints, a few going so far as to design their own custom floral prints.
• Drag queens will be featured in Jenny Pool’s avant garde collection
• Surface design is a big deal, with designers treating denim and using broken glass on garments
• Landscapes – both urban and desert – are a major inspiration for several designers

The OFW Selection Panel includes five industry experts who score designer presentations and act as mentors and advisors to designers as they prepare for shows.  The panel includes: Vanessa Barrett, jewelry designer and fashion/interior stylist; Judy Davis, Fashion Institute Midwest Board Member; Autumn Foland, sales director for Design Parliament; Robyn Kortan, former senior buyer for Dayton Hudson/Marshall Field Department Stores; Meghann Schense, editor of Omaha FASHION Magazine and owner of Esoteric Velvet, a creative firm.

OFW will announce the venue location and the show schedule in May.  Tickets go on sale to the public June 1 at www.omahafashionweek.com and range in price from $40-$85 for weeknight tickets and $1000-$1250 for 10-seat Finale VIP Tables.

Student Designers

• Molly O’Brien for Molly Elizabeth (junior, ready to wear)
• Alison Cloet (graduating senior, evening wear)
• Christopher DiGiorgio (graduating senior, menswear) †
• Sydney Moore (seventh grade, ready to wear)
• Alesha Johnson for alesha.beth  (graduating senior, evening wear)
• Alyssa Koory (graduating senior, ready to wear)

Runway Newcomers

• Triple Thread (ready to wear)
• Isabel Muziva for Kingdom Unlimited (children’s wear)
• Leah Kettelson for Leah Kareen (evening wear, Colorado)

Veterans

• Buf Reynolds (evening wear)
• Dan Richters (avant garde) ‡
• Sabrina Jones for Sabrina Jones Designs (swimwear)
• Jennifer Pool (avant garde)
• Ellene McClay for Brave Nouvelle (avant garde)
• Juantiesha Christian for SuShe by J. Tracey (ready to wear, New York)
• Terri Buckner for Nuevintage (ready to wear)
• Fella Vaughn for Fella (evening wear)
• Denise Ervin for Denise Ervin Designs (evening wear)
• Samone Davis for Legalized Rebellion (ready to wear)
• Tamara Newson for Iconic by Tamu (ready to wear)
• Erica Cardenas and Bryan Frost for Wallflower (ready to wear)
• Alejandra Buenrostro (ready to wear)
• Michelle Dunn for MDFashions Aspen (ready to wear, Colorado)
• Andrea Hurtt for Amaryllis Designs (evening wear) †
• Judy Bales (avant garde, Iowa)
• Jessica Collins for Jessica Lynn (children’s wear)
• Kaitlyn Fitzgerald for KAIT (children’s wear, New York)
• Michaela Cawley for KKINI (swim, South Africa)
• Adrienne Anderson for Quite-A-Riot (bridal)
• Caleb Hanner for LeRoy Designs (bridal, Iowa)

† Indicates SAC Federal Credit Union Prize winner ‡ Indicates Fashion Cup winner

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About Omaha Fashion Week: On the inside, Omaha Fashion Week is a talent incubator that seamlessly connects designers, stylists, photographers, artists and models through nurturing platforms and engaging opportunities. On the outside, Omaha Fashion Week is Midwest’s premier fashion event; spotlighting fashion innovations and celebrating creative excellence. Learn more at www.omahafashionweek.com.

We Love our Selection Panel!

Have you met our wonderful selection panel? This season always presents us with some tough decisions but our panel is top notch. Here is a bit more about them:

Judy Davis is a two year board member of the Fashion Institute Midwest Board and the Fashion Institute Guild.  She currently serves as treasurer of both organizations.

Outside of the “fashion world”, Judy serves the community as Philanthropy/Event Chair on the American Red Cross Board, Board Development Chair on the YMCA Board, Chair of the Iowa West Educational Advisory Committee, a member of the  Iowa Western Community College Black Tie Committee,  and a board member of the Council Bluffs Guild of the Omaha Symphony.

Judy served as Campaign Consultant for the new Charles E. Lakin YMCA in Council Bluffs and is currently serving as Campaign Consultant for the Council Bluffs Athletic Complex. Judy is married to husband Ron, has three children and six grandchildren.

Meghann Schense is creative consultant & grit of EsotericVelvet.com She is a founding, executive board member for the Fashion Institute Guild, a style ambassador for Harper’s Bazaar, and “Au Courant” trend columnist for Inspired Living Magazine.

Meghann’s expertise includes media production, writing, art direction, styling, graphic design, photography, event planning, market research & analytics, e-commerce, branding, public relations, email marketing, and social media.

Vanessa Barrett has a long history with design and fashion. She began as a window dresser, with many experiences along the way including boutique owner, buyer, interior design, editor of The Scout Guide Omaha, and photographer. Vanessa is currently working in jewelry design and as a fashion/interior stylist.

Autumn Foland leads the sales and customer service efforts at Design Parliament. With over 15 years of retail and wholesale experience, Autumn has solidified a reputation for being a key player in the nation’s designer specialty and department stores. She has purchased at wholesale showrooms across the country, as well as such venues as New York Fashion Week, LA Fashion Week, Dallas Market and Style Max Chicago.

Autumn has developed relationships with hundreds of fashion designers and top retail executives through her various buying and selling activities. Autumn is also very involved in her local community, serving as Board Member of the Midwest Fashion Institute Guild, Member of the Board and Chairperson of the Heart Ministry Center Fashion Show and a Team Captain Volunteer for The ICAN Womens Leadership Annual Conference.

Robyn Kortan was a Senior Buyer for Dayton Hudson Department Stores headquartered in Minneapolis, MN.  She was responsible for managing multi million dollar businesses for several departments. In this position, Robyn also had the opportunity to travel for the Associated Merchant Corporation and was involved with design and development of merchandise for private label to be used by Dayton Hudson/Marshall Field and several other major department stores throughout the U.S. Before retiring from retail, Robyn moved to Human Resources and was responsible for the Merchant Trainee Program and conducted professional and personal training for the Executive Merchant Team.

With these folks on the panel, we have no doubt that the August 2015 lineup will be wonderful!

OFW August Season Ticket Packages on Sale Through End of March!

That's right, if you loved what you saw in March...join us again in August!  There's a special offer on right now for our most dedicated OFW fans...Get five weeknight tickets for the price of three!  There are only 30 packages available and this sale only lasts until March 31, so buy yours today!

• VIP Season Tickets (front row, complimentary valet parking + access to VIP Lounge for cocktails and canapes): $240
• Reserved Season Tickets (third row): $120
• VIP SEASON TICKET HOLDERS ONLY: Optional VIP table for Finale (front row, seats 10, gift bag, complimentary valet parking + access to VIP Lounge for drinks and canapes, includes two bottles of wine on table): $840

By purchasing season tickets, you will receive a receipt via email confirming your order.  Your actual tickets will be issued on May 1, 2015. VIP tickets will be in the middle of the front row.  Reserved tickets will be in the middle of the third row. Seating positions will be granted on a first-come, first-served basis. There are a limited number of season ticket packages and VIP tables on special offer available for this sale.

The August season is August 17-23, 2015.  Season tickets are applicable to weeknight shows only.  However, those buying VIP season tickets will have an option of adding a Finale VIP table at a special rate of 30% off.