Mercedes Benz Start-Up Semi-Finals with IMG Fashion

Last night I was invited to attend the Mercedes Benz Start-Up Semi Finals at David Morris Fine Cars. The Mercedes Benz Start-Up is a national program that seeks to discover and mentor young, talented fashion designers across Canada. Produced by IMG Fashion (only the biggest fashion agency in the WORLD!) and the Fashion Design Council of Canada, they put on a high-calibre, top notch event showcasing Western Canada's Top 5 finalists. First up was one of my local faves, Malorie Urbanovitch.

A gorgeous dress (that I want to purchase!) from Malorie's F/W 2012 Collection

For my review on Malorie's complete F/W collection, which I was lucky to catch during Western Canada Fashion Week, click here.

The second designer to showcase their talent was Lauren Bagliore from Calgary

I'm not sure why I never heard of Laura before last night! Her designs are amazing!
 I'll be keeping my eye on her ;).

Here are some beautifully-crafted pieces from Calgary's Rebecca King

I loved this coat!

Nicole Campre, who won the Emerging Designer competition at Western Canada Fashion Week last month and graduated from Marvel College not too long ago has such a bright future ahead of her. She already designs for Loft 82 and Oak + Fort! I love the neutral color palette  and the soft fabrics she chose for her showcase.

Another delicate and heavenly Nicole Campre creation

Last in the line up was Eliza Faulkner from Vancouver Island

I adored her unique, flirty and fun dresses which are perfect for spring and summer!

AND THE WINNER IS.....

Edmontonian Malorie Urbanovitch! Congratulations! Malorie will be heading to Toronto in October to show her line at World Master Card  Fashion Week and compete in the finals! The winner will receive mentorship from industry experts for a year, their own solo show the following season and will have their designs featured in an editorial spread in FASHION magazine. Not bad, not bad at all!

Here are some few snaps from the after-party last night:

clockwise from top left: The Edmonton Journal's Amanda Ash and Vickie Laliotis, Vickie's yummy treats (and her gorgeous YSL ring), photographer Harvey Miedreich and FASHION magazine's Caroline Gault, Kurtis and Alyssa from The Ordinary Peoples.

Me and Janis

Kyla Kaziel and Stacey Boruk, owners of Bamboo Ballroom and The Common, Maggie from Loft 82.

Style Guy Jared, Julianna Damer, Brittany Gora and Vanessa Reis

What a night this was! It was so exciting for everyone involved, including the audience. To have local talent showcased on such a grand scale with IMG and the FDCC's involvement was UNREAL! And I'm so happy for Malorie and what lies ahead for her in the next year! I also want to congratulate all the other designers who made the Top 10 and Top 5, you should all be so proud!

Special thanks to Andrew Serrano from IMG for inviting me to be a part of such an amazing event! Come back soon, please. We loved having you all here!