Stay in the loop with Omaha Fashion year round!Join Us March 4th - 9th 2014 for our Spring Fashion Week @ The Omar Bakery Building
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OFW Announces Fresh Designer Line Up and New Venue for March 2014 Season
Omaha, Neb. October 28, 2013 – Omaha Fashion Week organizers announced the designers who have been selected to show Fall/Winter 2014 collections during the next season of OFW March 4-9 in 2014. The lineup of 15 designers includes six newcomers, two high school students and all are from Nebraska or Iowa. Organizers have also selected a new venue for the fashion shows.
“This was a very entrepreneurial group of applicants. Several are looking at manufacturing and one has a storefront,” said OFW Producer Brook Hudson. “It’s so exciting to see how far we’ve come as a fashion community in the seven years since OFW began.” Highlights from interviews:
- Hollie Hanash, the designer behind the children’s wear label, Ruffled Runway, is rolling out a line of avant garde pieces for adults.
- Wallflower, a label by OFW newcomers Bryan Frost and Erica Cardenas, has a storefront that will be opening on Nov. 2 at 1402 South 13th Street.
- Children’s wear designer Aubrey Sookram of MarkoosModernDesign is getting ready to sell 500 dresses on Zullily.com. She made all 500 dresses herself in her basement studio.
The applicant pool included 30 designers who were narrowed down to the 15 who were selected. Designers applied and pitched their ideas to a panel of industry experts brought together by the Fashion Institute Midwest last week. The experts scored each designer and provided feedback that OFW organizers used to make final selections.
OFW also has a new venue. The Omar Bakery Building, located at 4383 Nicholas Street, will be the new home of OFW next spring. “The space is beautiful with exposed brick walls, polished concrete floors and great facilities. There is plenty of room for expansion,” Hudson said. The 16,000 square-foot event space at the Omar is under construction and will be open for events starting in December. “We feel very fortunate to be one of the first to book the space.”
A complete schedule of events for Mar. 4-9 will be announced in late November, with tickets going on sale Jan. 15, 2014. Below is a list of designer bios:
High Schoolers
Elda Doamekpo is a high school student with a brand called Élle Inspired. Her evening wear collection is inspired 1940’s Dior. Elda is also a runway newcomer.
Kate Walz designs vintage inspired gowns with feminine details and timeless silhouettes. Her Fall 2014 collection is inspired by the Beatles album 'Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' (1967)
Veterans
Angela Balderston creates avant garde pieces made from plaster and non-traditional materials under the label Get Plastered!
Terri Buckner is the designer of Nuevintage Apparel + Accessories. Her passion is recycling vintage clothing into new one-of-a-kind designs by reconstruction of the original garments and accessories.
Hollie Hanash is the designer of Ruffled Runway, an upscale children’s brand made for the unique kid that wants to stand out. This season Hanash will create a second line of adult avant garde pieces.
Hannah Olson is an 18-year-old designer who loves to make custom garments for all sizes under her label, Hannah Caroline. She is dedicated to improving the selection of plus-sized apparel and helping women feel beautiful in their own skin.
Buf Reynolds has been creating garments for seventeen years. She is self-taught and loves the creative outlet fashion gives her.
Stacey Sipp is a multi-media artist and who specializes in out-of-the-ordinary pieces and specialty dresses for the tweens. She hopes her collection can be a vehicle for young girls to express themselves instead of blending into the crowd.
Aubrey Sookram studied Fashion design and Marketing at the UNL. She designs children's clothing and accessories under the name MarkoosModernDesign.
Fella Vaughn received his degree in Fashion Textiles Clothing and Design at UNL. This will be his fifth year participating in Omaha Fashion Week.
Runway Newcomers
Jessica Collins is a children’s wear designer of modern party dresses who will feature layers of chiffon and lace in purples and pinks with accents of gold and ivory.
Bryan Frost and Erica Cardenas, designers behind Wallflower, will present a collection of ready-to-wear looks inspired by theater, titled “Evening at the Orpheum”.
Crystal Hobson is a UNL graduate with a goal to become a costume designer, either for theater or film. She will show an avant garde collection detailed with quilted elements paired with clear vinyl and sheer chiffon.
Katie Thomspon is a senior at Iowa State University whose designs range from evening wear and menswear, to outerwear and toddler and baby clothing. Her ready-to-wear collection is inspired by Jackie O.
Margie Trembley, Omaha designer of fascinator hats and bridal memory scarves, has exhibited her fiber art at the Chicago Botanic Garden and at her gallery, Springfield Artworks.
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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.
About Fashion Institute Midwest: The Fashion Institute Midwest is a non-profit that nurtures aspiring fashion designer talent by supporting and developing the Midwest fashion ecosystem through programming that provides creative inspiration, training opportunities, resources and business incubation to unlock the creative entrepreneurial potential in our young people. Support the Institute at www.fashioninstitutemidwest.org.
The Fashion Institute Guild and OFW Producer Brook Hudson cordially invite you to join them for the Trendevous Fashion & Beauty event at Younker's on Saturday, September 21 at 10 a.m.
10 a.m. Private shopping for shoes and better sportswear
11 a.m. Fashion show featuring 50 head-to-toe looks for fall, presented by OFW Producer Brook Hudson
Attendees will receive free makeovers and an exclusive shopping booklet with 25% off all items featured in the show. Register to win a free shopping spree...plus 10% of proceeds benefit the Fashion Institute Midwest!
RSVP at (402) 397-3800, ext. 3203 by Sept. 18 to make your $10 reservation and receive a $10 Younkers gift card. Seating is limited, so don’t delay!
This just came out in a press release this morning!! FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
OFW Announces Fresh Designer Line Up For August Shows
Omaha, Neb. April 22, 2013 – Omaha Fashion Week organizers announced the designers who have been selected to show during the spring/summer 2014 collections this Aug. 19-24. The lineup of 30 designers includes five newcomers, seven from outside of Nebraska and three high school students.
“We were blown away by how well prepared all the designers were this year and the quality of the applications,” said OFW Producer, Brook Hudson. “The talent and creativity continues to get better each season.” The show schedule and location will be announced at the end of the month. Tickets go on sale to the public on June 1.
The applicant pool included 45 designers who were narrowed down to 30 for the upcoming season. Designers applied online with a limited number selected to pitch their ideas for their upcoming collection to a panel of industry experts brought together by the Fashion Institute Midwest. The experts scored each designer and provided feedback that OFW organizers used to make final selections.
The Fashion Institute Midwest provides designers with four months of mentoring and support leading up to their shows each season. The designers will also participate in a series of workshops and programs to help them prepare. Special feature designers will be announced throughout the summer. Below is a list of designer bios:
High Schoolers
Elda Doamekpo is a high school student with a brand called Élle Inspired. Her evening wear collection is inspired by the movement of water.
Hannah Olson is a 17-year-old designer that loves to make custom garments for all sizes under her label Hannah Caroline. She is dedicated to improving the selection of plus-sized apparel and helping women feel beautiful in their own skin.
Kate Walz designs vintage inspired gowns with feminine details and timeless silhouettes. Her spring 2014 collection is inspired by some of the great ballerinas in the 1960s and will feature structured bodices paired with flowering details.
Outside Nebraska
Michaela Cawley is a swimwear designer under the label KKINI. She aims to provide women with luxury swimwear including bikinis, deck suits, and cover-ups. Her line has been seen in several fashion shows and in Sports Illustrated.
Juantiesha Christian, designer of SuShe by Jtracey is a women's wear label, featuring both eclectic and vintage-inspired day and evening wear. Juantiesha Christian is a Bellevue native residing in NYC. SuShe has designed for clients throughout the United States, Canada and England.
Brittany Davidson designer of BMDesigns finds inspiration from her European heritage and the time she spent time studying abroad. In 2009 she started designing women and men’s wear.
Hope Reiners designer of Culture Swimwear launched its first collection in the 2012 summer season. For a style which evokes the strong free spirit and beauty of all women, each piece makes a bold statement with colorful designs, solid cover-ups as well as tribal prints.
Christian Shuster is the designer of christianMICHEAL based out of Kansas City. Tailored for the modern, style-conscious American man, the christianMICHEAL label provides cutting edge design with top-notch quality.
Maximillian Suiter focuses on inspiring women to feel and look beautiful inside and out. Suiter is presently at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri studying at The Sam Fox School of Art and Design and the Olin School of Business.
Caine Westergard is the designer behind Caine. She studies at Iowa State and has also studied at the Paris American Academy in Paris. She creates evening wear, women’s wear, children’s wear and even infant onesies under her Cuddles by Caine line!
Veterans
Angela Balderston creates avant garde pieces made from plaster and non-traditional materials under the label Get Plastered!
Terri Buckner is the designer of Nuevintage Apparel + Accessories. Her passion is recycling vintage clothing into new one-of-a-kind designs by reconstruction of the original garments and/or accessories.
Leah Casper is the designer of Casper Couture. She has been designing from a young age, creating edgy, decadent, opulent pieces. Wearing any of her pieces will bring out your inner diva while looking polished and timeless.
Yolanda Diaz has a degree in Fashion design from Juarez University School of Art in Durango, as well as Industrial Paterns at CECATI in Monterey Mexico. She has been designing children clothing for over 20 years under the label Little Miss Fashion.
Jillian Fellers is an independent designer specializing in wedding gowns and party dresses. Her design aesthetic has a modern appeal with vintage-inspired detailing in high-end luxury fabrics. Jillian is a UNL graduate with a degree in Textile and Apparel Design.
Hollie Hanash is the designer of Ruffled Runway, an upscale children’s brand made for the unique kid that wants to stand out. Her clothes are best characterized by the use of bright colors, ease of wear, and attention to detail.
Tiffany Headley studied fashion at UNL for a short time before branching off to do things her own way. She now owns the label Haus of Donna Faye and designs women’s wear with an avant garde twist.
Sabrina Jones received her BS and MA at UNL, where she studied Textile and Clothing Design with a minor in costume design.
Joi Katskee received her BFA in Fashion Design at the International Academy of Design and Technology in Chicago. She uses mostly recycled materials and up-cycled items and applies rock-n-roll inspired elements to create her designs.
Susan Ludlow has been designing children’s clothing for over three decades. She specializes in crochet designs for children ages six months to thirteen. Her brand is called designsbysuey.
Jennifer Pool is a costume and fashion designer. Her work has been seen on various theatrical stages around Omaha. She holds a BA in Theater from UNO, and a MFA in Theatrical Design from the University of Georgia.
Buf Reynolds has been creating garments for seventeen years. She is self-taught and loves the creative outlet fashion gives her.
Dan Richters was born and raised in Mission Viejo, CA. He moved to Omaha during high school, and has lived here over 20 years. Art has been a central part of his life. Fashion has been a recent form of artistic expression.
Aubrey Sookram studied Fashion design and Marketing at the UNL. She designs children's clothing and accessories under the name MarkoosModernDesign.
Fella Vaughn received his degree in Fashion Textiles Clothing and Design at UNL. This will be his fourth year participating in Omaha Fashion Week.
Newcomers
Jessica Collins is a children’s wear designer who will feature ruffles and twirl skirts for girls and simple, fun and sophisticated looks for boys.
Sara Gadeken is an evening wear designer who specializes in custom made garments. Her collection is called Sara Marie.
Stacey Sipp is a multi-media artist and who specializes in out-of-the-ordinary pieces and specialty dresses for the tweens. She hopes her collection can be a vehicle for young girls to express themselves instead of blending into the crowd.
Margie Trembley, Omaha designer of fascinator hats and bridal memory scarves, has exhibited her fiber art at the Chicago Botanic Garden and at her gallery, Springfield Artworks.
Kristen Vanhessche received her BA in Textile Design and Apparel from UNL. She creates wearable art with a focus on surface design.
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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.
About Fashion Institute Midwest: The Fashion Institute Midwest is a non-profit that nurtures aspiring fashion designer talent by supporting and developing the Midwest fashion ecosystem through programming that provides creative inspiration, training opportunities, resources and business incubation to unlock the creative entrepreneurial potential in our young people. Support the Institute at www.fashioninstitutemidwest.org.
Are you one of those people who believe that Fashion is not a relevant source in Omaha? Well, to be quite frank, you obviously have not attended one of the premiere events put on by Omaha Fashion Week. In anticipation of the upcoming Fall/Winter 2013 showcase running February 26-March 2, it must be noted that Omaha Fashion Week is going on its fifth year of providing “oohs and aahs” from audiences of all demographics. The public has a chance to see the event twice a year but interns, volunteers, designers, models, photographers, etc. are taken under the wing of the dynamic producer duo, Nick and Brook Hudson, year-round to create the stage where ideas on paper come to life right before your eyes. “Omaha Fashion Week is about making the dreams of creative people come true…” Look at our pictures all over the web from previous events, our OmahaFashionWeek.com will keep you in the know and our Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter and Facebook pages will validate what the hype is all about. Tickets are on sale now! Grab your family, friends or that cute girl from apartment 5B that you have been eyeing and prepare to be blown away. Check out the lineup of what the 5 day extravaganza has in store at http://omahafashionweek.com/schedule/
Last week, we announced the accessories designers who will participate in our first ever Hair, Makeup & Accessories Show on Feb. 27. The next step is to announce our styling teams! We received many great submissions, but could only accept seven. Here they are:
Welcome to the Dojo: Leslie Wilson, Yai Stovall, Rosha Taylor, Venus Watson
Kontempo.: Amy Todd, Kirby Keomysay, Lindsay Bideaux, Tasha Baughman, Julian Constantino, Aynsley Wernick, Kristen Rozmiarek
Fringes Artistic Design Team: Omar Rodriguez, Tiffany Welch, Samantha Strickland, Romina Meyer, Jordan Palmer
Salon Aura: Nicki DuRee, Nichole Allner, Tera Sitts, Megan Hamilton
Garbos: Stacey Tarr, Melissa Contreras, Jen Warta
One Drake Place: Eddiy Hilliard, Megan Morales, Brittany Vala, Sherry Rosa
Salon Fusion: Bettia Williamson & team
All of these teams will be partnered with an accessories designer and will compete for a $2,000 prize package, trophy and bragging rights on Feb. 27. We are excited to partner with Develop Model Management, Mood Designer Fabrics and The Fabric Concierge on this new event at Omaha Fashion Week.
Tickets are on sale at www.omahafashionweek.com. Hope you'll join us! Good luck to all of our teams - stay tuned for details on judges and criteria soon.
Omaha Fashion Week organizers are thrilled to announce the accessories designers who will participate in the first ever Hair, Make Up & Accessories Show at Omaha Fashion Week. "The HMA Show is going to really spotlight the creativity of our Omaha hairstylists and make up artists, while finally giving accessories designers a platform to showcase their work," said OFW Producer Brook Hudson. "We've received so many inquiries from accessories designers over the years - this type of show is long overdue." The show is sponsored by Develop Model Management and New York-based fabric retailer, Mood Designer Fabrics, made famous through the hit reality TV series "Project Runway". Below are the eight designers who will participate in the show: Inez Gill - high quality bridal accessories
Ruffled Runway - high end children's accessories
Crafty Hands - heavily textured knitted pieces
NTrinsic - leather cuffs, collars and zipper wear
Re-Creations from the Edge - handmade hats and bags
Little Miss Fashion - unique accessories for kids and tweens
Fin by T. Justine Reilly - theatrical beaded pieces
The show is scheduled for Feb. 27 with doors at 6 p.m. and runway show at 8 p.m. Designers and styling teams will be paired up in a random drawing during the Cancer Survivor Show on Feb. 26. "Teams will have 24 hours to create and execute their concept," said Hudson. Models will be dressed in hand selected fabrics from Mood that will be accessorized by designers' original creations. A panel of judges will select which team will win a $2,000 prize package.
The pre-party from 6-8 p.m. will feature a pop-up swatch shop from Mood with over 1,000 fabric swatches. "Fashion designers, stylists, artists and any creative person who uses fabric as a medium should come to this show. Mood is providing a new way for designers to source high quality fabrics locally," said Hudson.
Omaha Fashion Week is scheduled for Feb. 26-Mar. 2 at KANEKO on 1111 Jones St. To see the full show line-up and buy tickets, visit www.omahafashionweek.com.
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We’ve gotten lots of great questions about how we are running the competition and pairing up designers with stylists…here they are + answers: Where can I apply for my team to participate in this contest? Accessories Designers have already been selected. However we are accepting applications for styling teams until Feb. 5. You can apply here: http://omahafashionweek.com/calling-all-stylists-and-make-up-artists/
How are accessories designers paired up with hair/makeup teams? Accessories designers will be paired with styling teams on 2/26 during the Cancer Survivor Show (tickets will be provided to contest participants). We’ll have styling teams draw names from a bowl on the runway during the show. They’ll have 24 hours to develop & execute their concept with their accessories designer.
How many people can be on each styling team? We recommend four - a team leader, hair stylist, make up artist + stylist to put it all together.
How many models can be in each collection? There will be 10 looks in each collection.
Is there a minimum or maximum number of accessories per model? Nope! Load ‘em up. We want this to be a visual explosion!
What is the black outfit the models will be wearing? (Leggings & tank top? Button down & dress slacks?) Good question. We don’t quite have the answer to this. It will involve fabric
Will the designers be choosing their own models or are they assigned? Models will be assigned by Develop Model Management.
Can designers choose number of male and female models? Yes, accessories designers can choose the number of males vs. female models. Details on how to do this will be provided to designers who are selected.
What are the judging categories and who will be doing the judging? Broad themes will be creativity & visual impact. Judges will be announced on the OFW Blog soon.
Email us at info@omahafashionweek.com if you have other questions to add to this list. Thanks!!
OFW Team
We've rounded up an amazing group of accessories designers...now we need to bring on the glam with hair and make up for our first-ever Hair, Make Up and Accessories Show on Feb. 27. We are looking for five teams of hair stylists & make up artists who want to compete for a $2,000 prize package from Omaha Fashion Week. The package includes $1,000 in cash and a VIP table at the August 2013 Finale valued at $1,000.
If you want to enter this contest, complete this form: