Recap: Austin Fashion Awards And After Party

August 27th, 2012

Austin Fashion Week culminated in a lavish awards show at Austin Music Hall followed by a boozy (and rainy) after party at the corner of San Antonio and Cesar Chavez. The show was hosted by Sandy Mcllre of Mix 94.7′s JB & Sandy Morning Show, and the night’s coveted “Golden Boot” awards were presented by a colorful array of characters from Austin’s dynamic fashions scene.

Christian Ramirez at Austin Fashion Awards

Christian Ramirez accepts Golden Boot Award (Photo Credit: Natalie Meyersick)

My award for “Most Colorful Presenter” goes to Stephen Moser, Austin Chronicle’s longstanding fashion columnist and eccentric style guru. Stephen painted a picture of his earliest run-ins with Black Mail owner Gail Chovan that sent the crowd erupting into laughter over a series of fax machine related tales. The “Most Moving Acceptance Speech” award belongs to bubbly blond Kirsten Dickson of Raven and Lily, who said that her teams of female workers in Ethiopia, Cambodia and India “feel famous” because people in the states are wearing their designs. The runway sprung to life when hip-hop violinist Josh Vietti hit the stage and fired off songs like “Single Ladies” while the leggy 20-something’s strutted down the catwalk with their slender physiques illuminated by beams of colored light. Runway presentations featured designs by Austin it-girl Kendra Scott, Margarita Saplala, Ross Bennett and Jessica Ciarla.

After a trek through the rain-soaked streets of downtown, we made it to the after party to model-watch over a BBQ stuffed potato (or eight) from the fantastic Chefs at Mansion at Judges Hill. That’s the thing about Austin, no matter how chic it continues to become, there’s always going to be great BBQ involved.