Mel Cooke, Freelance Writer
Models present designs from Jade Lee's 'Walk in the Park' at the Singer Company's 'Fashion After Dark in Emancipation Park' and awards presentation, held at Emancipation Park, Park Boulevard, New Kingston, on Sunday, July 24. - Winston Sill/Freelance Photographer
WESTERN BUREAU:
LILIETH WRIGHT'S simply elegant 'little black dress' with two tight, slanted bands of red, green and gold, earned the cheers of the huge audience and the nod of the judges on Sunday night.
She topped the 2005 Singer Sew-Off Competition at the Emancipation Park, New Kingston, making it three in a row for St. Elizabeth in the national contest.
While the competition was the focal point of Singer's 'Fashion After Dark in Emancipation Park', there was a triple treat from the night's guests on the catwalk, which extended deep into the audience.
LIVE PERSONAL TRAINER
Cheryl Robinson of Polka Dots presented 'Fitness In the Park', complete with a real-life and live personal trainer. Jade Lee of Bottoms Up went for whites in a 'Walk In The Park', while Bill Edwards presented resort beach wear, men's casual and not so casual wear.
Edwards gave of his fashion and received his kudos on Sunday night, as he accepted the Singer Award for Excellence from the company's general manager, Sharon Spence.
Fashion in the Park After Dark began in a dazzle of multi-coloured lights and a haze of faux smoke to the thump of up tempo music and ended with yellow balloons floating into the night sky and the glitter of the tiara of the National Festival Queen 2005, Miss Kingston and St. Andrew Sashane McDonald.
The headgear did not outshine Lilieth Wright?s smile though, as winning designer and model strode down the catwalk in a creation that the designer, like all the other 12 entrants in ?Fit For a Queen?, had made in a hurry.
The evening?s excellent compere, Paula-Ann Porter, explained that Singer had held five workshops across the island and, coming out of workshops, the contestants had been required to select a mock-up at random and then make a real dress for a model at hand within four hours.
Garfield Cousins of St. Thomas was second, Lucille Mayers of Kingston and St. Andrew, third, Sandra Gordon of Hanover, fourth and Clarendon?s Clavon Wright the second male among the top finishers at fifth.
In addition to the competition pieces, the designers had a free hand in a casual wear presentation.
There was style of a different sort from the Dancers United for Singer, choreographed by Shelly-Ann Maxwell, two of whom had the audience in a frenzy as they fused and did a continuous on-the-spot somersault, looking like a human bicycle chain.
The ladies got some rippling muscle to drool over in Mr. Heavyweight Jamaica Mark McDonald, while Miss CAC Fitness 2003 Valerie Bennett strutted her stuff.
