The Art of Curves at Studio 450 NYC

Hey family!

I had been eagerly anticipating "The Art of Curves" fashion event for several weeks....I checked out last year's show, which despite the many technical glitches, turned out to be a very entertaining show. I was very curious to see what the ladies were going to do this year.

The Art of Curves bills itself as a movement, a company dedicated to showcasing the works of up and coming designers as well as the development of aspiring models in the plus size fashion industry. The AOC looks to change the perception of plus sized women in the industry mainstream. It is the brainchild of photographer/publicist Blacque Southerland of HSS&A Inc. The company's mission statement reads "The measure of one's beauty does not ride on the measurement of a waistband."

The show was scheduled to begin at 8pm sharp and unfortunately, I was in a meeting in Brooklyn and arrived after the show had begun. My girl Mia Amber was also with me and we heard the music from the lobby as we rode the elevator up to the 12th floor. We also happened to be on the elevator with the sister who was the representative of the drink sponsor for the evening (if she was on the elevator with us, home girl was REAL late!). After getting checked in quickly (thanks Blacque!) we made our way over to some available seats. The first person I saw was IPM Models owner, Fallon Sinclair sitting near the front of the photographer's bank. We found some seats directly behind her and after greeting several people that I knew...I immediately took my camera out and began to look for a spot where I could get some good shots.

I made my way around the room and the first thing I noticed was that the room was smaller than last year's venue but it was still packed. I found a good spot near a pillar just as designer (and my friend) Robert E. Knight's collection was being shown...

I missed the first few pieces but I was absolutely TAKEN with a yellow evening gown that came down the runway....(yeah Robert...I MUST have that dress!!!).

After Robert's segment, the emcee for the evening informed the audience that we'd be taking a short "pause for the cause" before the next segment and encouraged everyone to take advantage of the bar.

Hmmmm.....I thought that was a little odd to break up the show like that and I made a mental note to ask what this was about later on.

I made my way over to the bar in a vintage hand painted denim blouse by Mad Couture! and the VERY handsome bartender with the locks quickly fixed me a cocktail (my cocktail for the evening was a Malibu with cranberry & OJ with a twist of lime). At the bar area I ran into my season 1 MFC homie

Alicia "Poundcake" Mitchell who was sporting a new hair color and looking beautiful! Alicia was on hand to do makeup for the show.

Me & Tanisha Malone (Miss FAT 2006)

I also saw Tanisha Malone (Miss FAT 2006) who just returned from the West Coast, she brought her sister along to check out the show. Also in the house, Tonya Jeter, Tonya Giddens, photographer D-Lo Brown & DSE TV hostesses Lakia Tribie & Suzette Bonzo (thanks for the lift home mama!).

I took a moment to holla at my BFF Gwen "Diva" DeVoe (CEO of DeVoe Signature Events) who was on hand with her DSE TV crew filming the event.

AOC CEO Blacque Southerland & Gwen DeVoe

We were all so busy chatting and taking photos that few of us heard the announcement that the show was resuming and there was mad rush back to our seats just as the Douglas Says collection hit the runway. I won't wax poetic about this collection because I have blogged about this line many times and you all ALREADY know it's one of my faves! (Douglas...I still need that color block dress in my life!!!) and then there was another break.....

This time I took the opportunity to sample a new cognac by drink sponsor Pour Moi.

Pour Moi (http://www.mypourmoi.com/) bills itself as a cognac that was created by women for women. Now I am not a big fan of cognacs at all (way too smoky and manly for me...plus it burns terribly going down.) but I was pleasantly surprised by this experience, the first thought that came to mind was that it was "soft and pretty", a very smooth flavor with little to no burn going down. DEFINITELY a drink created for a woman. I could actually sip on this all night. And apparently it's great in a mixed drink as well....check out their recipe for a "Cosmo Pour Moi":

1 Part Pour Moi

1 Part Cointreau

1 Part Cranberry Juice

A Splash of Lime Juice (fresh of course!)

Fill a shaker with Ice Cubes, Shake and strain into a chilled martini glass

Sounds yummy eh? Big mistake though. for the sponsor NOT to have this cocktail available at the event to sample.

Anyway, I returned to the main room for the final collection of designer Veronica Lipscomb,

Designer Veronica Lipscomb and her beautiful daughter

whose collection was a vibrant mix of colors, textures and fabrics.

The finale piece that Jeannie Ferguson wore stood out the most for me (a bright yellow coat with a body suit underneath), although I would have personally skipped the body suit part....the coat was TOTALLY me!!! (yeah, Veronica....I want that too..lol!)

As the show wrapped, folks began to mingle and the models began trickling out after packing up their stuff. Fallon and I decided to go upstairs and check out the second level....what I found up there was nothing short of amazing. The space is beautiful and the outdoor patio has awesome views....it's really too bad that they couldn't utilize that outdoor space fully (it was a little chilly on this particular night). We hung out upstairs talking for while and then I got really cold and decided to make my way back downstairs into the main room.

I talked to some of the plus models in the show on their way out:

Kalyea Moss,

Jeannie Ferguson,

Jada Vegas (who totally rocked this red pouf dress),

Yvonne Forbes (Miss Full Figured NY 2008), Plus Models Tiffany B, Braxton & Emily (sigh...can't remember her last name) and the current reigning Miss NYC Plus 2008. Great job ladies.

I found out later on why there were so many breaks in between each designer, unfortunately, the bulk of the designers pulled out at the last minute and there were only 4 designers left to be in the show. It's unfortunate, but it does happen, particularly with the newer productions. They also told me they got a bit of negative press from some of the forums onlne and thought that it may have scared off supporters (I disagreed with this thought). Forums only have as much power as you are willing to give them and many of them are filled with disgruntled aspiring models who unfortunately had no luck in their careers and have decided to become critics...lol. I suggested that the producers to use this as a learning experience and to go back to the drawing board - list what worked, what didn't and why and then go forward using the results of the list to put on a much better show next year. On my way out Blacque gave me a wonderful goodie bag (ya'll know how much I love me some gifts...lol) to take home and I suggested that they (the group) give me a call so we could talk about what took place at this show and how to make it better going forward.

I said my goodbyes as Fallon, Suzette & I headed for the exits for the long rides home. Once again, despite the obvious glitches in the show....I still managed to enjoy myself thoroughly. I encourage you ladies to weather the storm and press on - I do understand and admire what you are trying to do....and I'd like to help.

I will await your call. And today I leave you TWO pieces of wisdom filled quotes below.

Photos courtesy of: BklynGurl Productions Inc. & RDE, Inc.

"Those who can -- do. Those who can't -- criticize. "

"There is one way to handle the ignorant and malicious critic. Ignore him."