If there is one word to describe the finale of CIAA hosted in Charlotte, I would choose GRAND. The main show to catch my eye’s which I knew I needed to attend was the Fête Fashion Show and Brunch on March 1st. The event was held at Good Life Enderly Park. These cocktails were carefully curated by a dope mixologist Yoshi. I ended up with one of her amazing pink cocktail which was topped with a real hibiscus!
Brunch lasted for about 2 hours before the actual fashion show. It actually seemed to go by fast with the entertainment of Dj Superstar Jay. They also had lovely ladies serving attendees with delightful hors d’oeuvres prepared by The Sol Chef Terry Farley. The main brunch menu had options like Remy Martin Glazed Lamb Chops and Wine poached Shrimp Cups to name a couple, which made it so hard to choose. The chef definitely did his thing!
Now it’s time for the fashion show to begin. All the VIP guests have arrived as fashionable as ever, stopping on the red carpet to have photos capture their “slayage”. Hosts Claire Sulmers and Obie the promoter get the show started. They start by briefly introducing themselves and both of them have amazing resumés. Fashion Bomb Daily’s Claire Sulmers arrived fresh off a flight from Paris Fashion Week, so she put the pressure on the Charlotte fashion scene to deliver in which they did. The runway consisted of a variety of designers from local to big names like Lala Anthony. The brand that caught my attention most was Bfyne swimwear. I had heard of them before but seeing them on the runway confirmed how fascinating their swimsuits are and I became a customer soon after leaving the event! The models that were modeling for this brand were also FIERCE and slayed the runway. Celebrity Stylist No IG Jeremy, who also attended Paris Fashion Week, executed styling the models and did an amazing job curating this show.
CIAA will definitely be missed in the Charlotte area but I believe we went out with a bang. Hopefully the area will get something even bigger to replace it so we can continue to showcase black artists, black athletes, black owned businesses, black excellence etc. Overall, the Fête Fashion Show was a good time and I think the venue ‘Good Life at Enderly Park’ was the perfect place for it. I would definitely recommend it to friends if the fashion show comes back to Charlotte for other events. Until then, farewell
