The evening was hosted by Pat & JT from our sponsor Q98.5 and had tons of colors, gorgeous gowns and a very happy fairy tale for one of our local designers. The night started off with a collection from Bridget Mahoney's line Bridget Julia from Kansas City. Mahoney, who is a FIM grant recipient, created a collection inspired by Marilyn Monroe called, "I want to be loved by you." The line was full of a sexy but sophisticated elegance that captured the superstar's essence. There were lots of colors, sparkles and fun elements like pieces of boa's and feathers.
The next collection was Spoiled Little Mamma by Berthier de La Cruz. His collection was inspired by Spanish bullfighting and featured lots of fabric and bright colors. Touches of satin on full skirts and lots of pleating. 
Model and designer Lauren Birkentall designs under the label Lauren Nicole. Her collection was inspired by the movie Coraline and Birkentall loved the magical yet sinister element of the movie. There were lots of triangles, patterns and a graphic element to her collection with bright pops of color.
Fella by Fella Vaughn was inspired by the late 1960s and early 1970s for his collection. It featured bright colors and bold patterns and was sophisticated and elegant. There was a disco aspect to some of the designs with tons of oranges and yellows.
Adrienne Anderson for Quite-A-Riot created a line out of mosaics. She hand stitched every piece of the fabric together to create the unique look. It was a very feminine line with elements of the late 1920s and early 1930s.
Elda Doamekpo designed her line Afielda after her native West African routes. She used traditional African fabrics with bright pops of purple and pink and paired them with ornate headdresses to get a really unique line of evening wear.
FIM grant recipient Kate Walz dedicated her line to her idol Jessica Lathem, a local boutique owner who helped Kate get her start in design. Lathem always said, "Practicality is overrated," and Kate used that quote to help inspire her collection. The line was very reminiscent of Old Hollywood with tons of ruffles and satins with a very feminine element and bright pops of color.
At the late show "Phaesporia: Light Bringer" presented by Buf Reynolds, was an inspiring collection of beautiful gowns that showed the metamorphosis from dark to light. The long draped gowns were made with silk and had elements of tapestry and gold leaf. To top off the night, Buf got engaged!
Fella, Bridget Julia and Kate Walz will all compete tonight for the Fashion Cup.