Fashion in the Fast Lane: Bryant Park West

Calling all Bay Area fashionistas and philanthropists! We are now 10 days away from the 2nd annual Bryant Park West Fashion Show, and it's time to buy your tickets and plan your outfits. I attended this posh event last year and I can attest that it makes for a really fun evening of fashion set in one of Sonoma's most beautiful wineries. This year the theme is "Heels and Wheels" as they have partnered with Infineon Raceway's Historic Motorsports Weekend. Incredible fashions and sublime vino meets vintage automobiles in the dramatic Tuscan ambience of Sonoma Valley's Jacuzzi Winery. Sounds dreamy, right? Featured designers include fashions new darlings Hunter Dixon as well as up-and-coming design ingenue Samantha Sleeper for N PRPA and swimsuit label La Isla Couture. Classic Cars will be displayed outside and there is a silent auction where you can bid on everything from raceway hotlaps and classic car tours to sleek scooters, and of course, fashions right off the runway. Here are some images from their promo photoshoot...

I hope you all can make it! Here are some more official details on the upcoming event:

Producer and Sonoma native Sarah Haggberg of J for Jordan Productions has worked with acclaimed designers in San Francisco, New York and throughout the Bay Area. Last year’s inaugural Bryant Park West experienced great success and featured an exclusive collection by Project Runway’s Rami Kashou. 

“The idea for this event is to take my fashion show experience working with top designers at Olympus Fashion Week in Bryant Park and create a New York-styled show in Sonoma. Guests will be in heaven as they spend a beautiful summer evening in Wine Country, relishing the latest fashion trends and gorgeous vintage wheels, not to mention indulging in fresh artisan cuisine, champagne and Jacuzzi’s exquisite wines," says Haggberg. "Attendees will also have an opportunity to mingle with designers and stylists and even purchase what they see in the show that night."

Hunter Dixon, co-founded three years ago by Southern-born pair Hunter Bell and Jennifer Dixon, continues to dazzle fashionistas nation wide with feminine, flirty and whimsical designs. Their remarkable tops, dresses and jackets have been spotlighted in such publications including ELLE, Harper’s Bazaar, Lucky Magazine, IN STYLE and People Style Watch. Go to www.hunterdixon.com for more details.

With recent stints at Alexander McQueen and Hermes, Samantha Sleeper’s elegant and edgy looks have become highly sought after by the Hollywood and fashion elite, just months following her graduation from the design program at Parsons. Now designing for a new luxury dress line N PRPA, Sleeper’s collection is also featured on the new television show “The Beautiful Life.” For more information, go to www.samanthasleeper.com.

The sexy La Isla Couture was established in Colombia, South America in 2003 and has been recognized around the globe for its hip, chic, and trendy swimwear, described by many as “the perfect fusion between latin style and true American spirit”—owing to the founders’ distinct cultural roots and the fact that all its pieces are designed and manufactured in the U.S.A. Sports Illustrated, Seventeen, Instyle, Zink!, Oxygen, the LA Times, New Canaan and Hispanic Magazine have all featured La Isla in their pages. Go to www.laislacouture.com for more information.

Located in the heart of the Sonoma-Carneros Region, Jacuzzi Family Vineyards is a mere 45 minutes north of San Francisco. The 18,000-square-foot winery is modeled after the Jacuzzi family home in Udine, Italy. Under magnificent pieces of Italian art, Venetian-style glass chandeliers and handmade furnishings, visitors can sample award-winning wines including  Barbera, Chardonnay, Merlot, Pinot Grigio, Pinot Noir, Primitivo and Sangiovese.

Sonoma Valley Teen Services, the beneficiary of the show's proceeds, represents the merger of two critical teen service organizations: Operation Youth and Valley of the Moon Teen Center. Together, they encompass vast array of programs and safe sites for teens: The Shop Limited, now in its tenth year, is a drug-and-alcohol-free music venue run by teens; the No Name Cafe at Sonoma Valley High School provides a multipurpose venue for everything from art programs to work experience and academic tutoring; the new Teen Center in the Springs provides a safe space for classes and enrichment activities; and Teen Safe Ride keeps the roads safe by offering taxi vouchers home to teens in an unsafe situation. Overall, Sonoma Valley Teen Services aims to promote teens well-being and life skills through job readiness, good decision-making practices, safe spaces, academic tutoring, access to the arts, healthy meal 

planning and more.

Ticket prices are as follows: $175 for V.I.P, which includes first-class seats on the runway, sweet swag and a 7 p.m. pre-show cocktail party; $75 general admission. Admission includes complimentary wine and hors d'oeuvres. General admission doors open at 7:45 p.m. and the show begins at 8:30 p.m. Jacuzzi Winery is located in Sonoma at 24724 Arnold Drive/Highway 121.  For ticket and event information, go to www.bryantparkwestsonoma.com. For sponsorship, media and all other questions, contact Sarah Berkley of Belle Creative at 415.572.1501.

Here are a few images from last year's event...