The 2014 Kansas City Fashion Week kicked off with a bang! (Logo property of KCFW)
By; Jacob Elyachar, jakes-take.com
Union Station buzzed last night as hundreds of fashion aficionados and lovers congregated to see the hottest spring/summer collections from the Midwest’s favorite designers.
As they posed for the mini red carpet and took photos at the Photo Booth, some of the ladies received make-up tips and hair do-overs from Ulta Beauty. While heading to their seats, guests found themselves under the trance of DJ Goodzilla, Kansas City Fashion Week’s official DJ.
41 Action News anchor Jadiann Thompson emceed the evening! She kicked off the night by acknowledging some of Kansas City Fashion Week’s brightest stars and special guests…several designers from Project Runway, who will present tonight!
The first designers to showcase their work was local husband-and-wife team John and Christina Moncke! Their line is Architexture, made its return to the Kansas City Fashion Week catwalk as their models presented the brand’s designs to the fashion elite. The models wore their hair in tail beehive-like edges and wore bold color outfits that used uncanny combinations (a canary yellow top with a long silver dress). Their best design of the night was the long silver dress that one guest commented, “Tin Man does high fashion.”
Nataliya Meyer represented Kansas City-based business Lucia’s Sarto and showcased their futuristic spring/summer designs. Their collection was a definite highlight of the first half as their both male and female models commanded the catwalk. A definite highpoint of the event was a nocturnal black gown sprinkled with silver glitter. Some of the ticket holders agreed that the suit should be sent to the Once Upon A Time costuming department for Lana Parrilla to wear in a future episode.
In both 2009 and 2010, KC Magazine readers named Laura McGrew-Kansas City’s Best Designer. For this year’s spring-summer showcase, McGrew decided to go retro and took guests back in time for a tribute to the decades. McGrew’s designs from the Tomboy Design Studio paid homage to everything from 60s Mod to 80s New wave. She also resurrected polka dots, as they were seen in a majority of her outfits.
Before the show took a short intermission, Independence Center, the 2014 Kansas City Fashion Week main sponsor, showcased a diverse group of designers from some of their anchor stores. Macy’s, New York & Co., Bohme, Buckle and Dillard’s represented the runway and targeted the 20-40 demographic.
Kate Walz stole the audience’s hearts with her powerful spring and summer collection. (Photo property of Kansas City Fashion Week & Melissa Sigler Photography)
Bennington, Nebraska native and the show’s youngest designer, Kate Walz, made her triumphant return to the Kansas City Fashion Week catwalk. The youngest designer showcased that she could be a future headliner for the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. Walz highlighted three colors: blue, orange and red that made jaws dropped. One of the highlights of her presentation was the combination of a turquoise hoodie and a metallic blue dress, which was very mermaid-esque. As Ms. Walz walked the runway with her models, she caught the approval of several of the Project Runway designers (Casanova, Joshua McKinley and Michael Drummond.
If there were a theme associated with Michelle Kleineweber’s Little Shell Designs, it would have been “Storybook Princesses Meet Hippies.” Each model had a flower in her hand and a tattooed Roman numeral on their left cheek. While the designs looked a little more fall-friendly, there was nothing that wowed the crowd.
Alicia Janesko’s brilliant designs sent the crowd into a frenzy! (Photo property of Kansas City Fashion Week & Melissa Sigler Photography)
While some of the attendees might have fallen asleep, Leawood designer Alicia Janesko woke the crowd up with her brilliantly outrageous outfits! Before the designers made their appearance, a male violinist played for a couple of bars before collaborating with a hypnotic EDM beat that DJ Goodzilla provided for him. While the outfits were delightful to look at, the main stars of the night were the over-the-top funky headdresses and a sequin Disco-themed pantsuit.
The final designer of the night was the Kansas City-based Heidi Herrman! Her outfits that she presented looked like wearable quilts and there were some interesting combinations to say the least (a marigold top paired with an ocean blue skirt). However, when she hit the gray tones, many members of the audience lost interest.
Tonight, several “Project Runway” stylists take over the 2014 Kansas City Fashion Week catwalk!
