The fashion retailers L.K.Bennett, who have a store on the High Street, recently brought another fantastic charity fashion show to Guildford on 30 July, this time at Bar des Arts. The contemporary and unique cocktail bar hosts a variety of creative, arts-based events throughout the year, including this which was part of the Guildford Fringe Festival 2014.
Tickets for the evening were £10 each, with all profits going towards Shooting Star Chase- a leading children’s hospice charity caring for babies, children and young people with life-limiting conditions, alongside their families. The charity has two hospices in Hampton and Guildford, but only receives around 10% of its funding from the government of approximately the £10m a year it takes to maintain its high level of care. Therefore, local events like these are critical in their fundraising and the night raised a much needed £650 in total.
Upon arrival, guests were greeted with a warm welcome and a cool glass of Prosecco alongside some tasty canapés and before the show began, everyone was given the opportunity to relax and mingle in the cozy environment that Bar des Arts offers. And once the show began, the beautiful models showcased their outfits down a cleverly planned catwalk throughout the bar.
L.K.Bennett took the opportunity to showcase their 2014 mid-season range which incorporated classical styling mixed with edgy colours, heavy embellishment and bold print choices. Strong reds that make a statement, pop-coloured accessories and slim fitting eveningwear were the highlights, plus there was a particularly big focus on the hand bags. The notoriously difficult three-quarter skirt (or ‘midi’ skirt) proved to be flattering for all shapes and sizes in both plain and print, silky satins and comfortable cottons.
L.K.Bennett opted to use local women as their models, all of whom were radiant and walked with a swagger in their step, with all the fashion showcased classical, as well as being suited to all ages. Each model had a carefully tailored look provided by the beauty team at Toni & Guy that matched high quality hair and make-up with stunning dresses.
After the show, Nick Hopkins, the Ambassador of local charity Shooting Star Chase stood up to congratulate all the organisers of the event; Elaine from L.K.Bennett, Ashley from Azzinga, Jenny from Toni & Guy, Sara and Luissa from Bar des Arts and all of the other staff that contributed to making it such a special evening. Although he only briefly took to the stage, Nick bestowed his heart-felt thanks to those who had come for the evening and made donations to the charity on a highly successful evening.
After his talk, L.K.Bennett very generously offered up some of their beautiful hand bags for the raffle, including one which was 100% leather. This created much excitement throughout the room and ended the fashion show on a high note. A great evening for fashionista’s and some valuable funds raised for a great cause!
Tilly Tasker
Images provided by © Anna Saverimuttu Photography