Fashion Trust U.S. Heralds Emerging Talent
The second annual Fashion Trust Awards were held at a private residence Tuesday, April 9th in Los Angeles by Fashion Trust U.S., and it proved to be nothing less than a star-studded event. Last year’s inaugural ceremony was held at Goya Studios in Los Angeles, in which 15 designer finalists were the honorees and received the organization’s six awards. The momentum only intensified this year and proved the ceremonial event to be a cornerstone in the future of the industry.
Hosted by actress Zooey Deschanel, the event drew some of Hollywood’s and fashion’s biggest names who took part in heralding the contributions of the industry’s future trailblazers. Guests included Sophia Bush, Cynthia Erivo, Paris Hilton, and Janelle Monae. Must-see looks of the evening were seen on supermodel Heidi Klum, academy award winner Da’Vine Randolph, and country singer Kelsea Ballerini. But perhaps the most common dress among attendees was the amount of sheerness in the looks, which coincides with many trend forecasts. Selma Blair turned heads as she attended the ceremony while walking the red carpet without her cane, amid her battle with multiple sclerosis.
Fashion Trust U.S. is a nonprofit initiative aimed at supporting, mentoring, and funding emerging designers and young innovators with the objective of assisting them in developing their brand and navigating the industry. Award recipients are given financial grants and mentorships which delves in budget, strategy, digital, merchandising, and business support. Advisory board members consist of U.S. industry giants in the fashion, business, and technology fields who actively support Fashion Trust U.S. and play an integral role in choosing the winning designers. Notable members this year included Gabriella Karefa-Johnson, Law Roach, and Nina Garcia of ELLE.
The award ceremony consists of four categories of designers who were finalists, specifically the Ready to Wear Award, Jewelry Award, Accessories Award, and Graduate Award. All of the finalists who were considered had to be U.S. based in business for at least two to seven years, as well as recent graduates who were encouraged to apply for consideration by the Fashion Trust. The winners were Aisling Camps for the Ready-to-Wear Award, L’Enchanteur for the Jewelry Award, Papa Oppong for the Graduate Award. Carly Mark of “Puppets and Puppets” received the Creativity Award, Papa Oppong won the Graduate Award, and Elena Velez got the Sustainability Award.
Featured Image Courtesy of Fashion Trust U.S. Instagram