My friend Joshua Bingaman (on right) from Austin’s own HELM handmade said it best, “There’s New York, there’s LA, there’s Paris…and then there’s Austin.”  Yes, you can giggle a little.

I admit it might sound a bit funny to think of Austin as a fashion community, but overall they have done a great job breaking into the fashion scene with a very well done Fashion Week.  We were thrilled that Raven + Lily was chosen as one of the week’s showcased designers.

I took on the challenge to make sure I wore something that represented our commitment to ethical fashion.  The first night I wore a lovely silk dress purchased at MOSS, a local high end consignment shop close to my home.  

The second night, I wore a vintage hot pink dress from FILIN...very daring for me since I almost always stay neutral!  My husband looked mighty handsome that night.

Our participation launched with a showcase and sale of our new Fall 2012 Collection at the historic Driskill Hotel.

The night was filled with several runway shows, featuring many great Texas designers.

The next night was the Austin Fashion awards at the Austin Music Hall.  It was an evening of awards for Austin’s “Rising Stars” and “Trailblazers” in the fashion realm as well as many top runway events, including a live version of all the “mash-up team” photos entries.  We were thrilled to have our team’s photo chosen as one of the top 5 for the Timothy White Award.

I was totally humbled to receive the “Rising Star” award (pictured here with Lori Fox, our lead designer, also wearing vintage).  We’re still figuring out where to put the “golden boot” in our Raven + Lily studio.  

After party fun included Lori Fox getting in trouble for dancing in one of the art instillation.  You can always count on Lori to add entertainment to any event.

And just in case you’d like to hear my acceptance speech (intro by Joshua from HELM), I’ve include a short clip taken on my husband’s phone.  I dedicated the award to all the true “rising stars”…the women in all our partnerships!  I’m so proud of them and it truly was an honor to accept such an award on their behalf. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQdO1dkHmIg

Thank you Austin for being so supportive of Raven + Lily!  We love being part of this community and hope to see many more local talents and ethical fashion brands emerge in the years to come!