On Sunday, March 18th, I hopped into a car full of fashion designers from Columbia College Chicago (they also happened to be three of my very good friends) to carpool to the North Shore suburbs. No, we weren’t road tripping to an exotic Spring Break trip, but we were traveling to the Mercedes Benz Showroom at Autohaus on Edens for the Launch 2012: Driving Fashion Forward event. As someone who has done my fair share of attending fashion shows in downtown Chicago and in New York, I wasn’t sure what to expect at the end of our journey down the 94.

Launch 2012: Driving Fashion Forward

Upon arrival, I quickly noticed that there were a lot of elements that came together to make this event a huge success. Of course I am going to begin by highlighting the delicious food on hand by newly opened North Shore restaurant, Nieto’s. Knightsbridge Wine Shoppe sponsored cocktails, which included crisp whites, full-bodied reds and refreshing St. Germains. Red Door Mini Spa was on-hand to makeover many sets of nails with complimentary manicures. The North Shore boutiques who were featured in the fashion show set up booths for attendees to indulge in pre-show shopping. How can one not feel luxurious being surrounded by a bevy of Mercedes-Benz automobiles and stylish North Shore ladies and gents?

Guest receiving complimentary manicure from Red Door Nail Spa

The first portion of the fashion show highlighted the season’s hottest new looks from premier North Shore boutiques. Evening wear, sportswear, shoes, handbag and jewelry were all provided by Bett’s, Frances Heffernan, Jolie Femme, Shelle Jewelers, Shirise Shoes, Three Sisters and Walleska Eco-Chic.

Directly following was the student competition portion of the show. Eight Columbia College students were selected to showcase one design from his or her senior thesis collection. Students were judged in four criteria areas with the winner being awarded a $5,000 design scholarship. Student competitors were Sadie Smith, Jessica Atkins, Samm Mackin, Lena Bobysheva, Chloe Flora, Cameron Graey, Agnes Hamerlik and Stephanie Gabrys. Judges for the competition were Adrienne Fawcett, Founder/Editor of Gazebo News; Susan Noyes, Founder/President of Make It Better Magazine; Meg Moore, Senior Editor/Weekly Columnist for “Style Counselor” Pioneer Press; Nikia Jefferson, chitownfashionista.com; and Andrea Rosendgarden. The winner of the $5,000 was Agnes Hamerlik.

Winning design by Agnes Hamerlik

Second place design by Samm Mackin

Third place design by Stephanie Gabrys

Design by Sadie Smith

All in all, I thoroughly enjoyed seeing how fashion is done on the North Shore. It was a welcome change and an overall great event. More than anything, I was beyond proud of my Columbia friends who competed. Their talent and execution blew me out of the water. I loved supporting them and left feeling so honored to have graduated from Columbia College. I am convinced that each student who showcased that night is destined to do amazing things.

Me with designer and dear friend, Sadie Smith

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