Style Saves Fashion Show at Soho Beach House on Thursday, July 19, 2012.  The beautiful fashions that were showcased on the runway were designed by Trina Turk, Atrium, Papi swimwear for men & iShine365 swimwear for women.  The models wore floral halos by Madonna Girl styled by Rik Rak Salon.  Also,  eyewear by Tortoise & Blonde and vintage jewelry and accessories by C. Madeleine’s .

Miami Beach, FL – On Thursday, July 19th, 2012, Style Saves kicked off Miami Swim Week with a splash! To celebrate Style Saves’ 1 Year Anniversary, co-chairs Rachael Russell and Ashley Spitz produced Style Saves’ summer fashion show fundraiser. The dual effort fittingly coalesced Russell’s creativity and fashion styling talents with Spitz’s background in non-profit fundraising and event planning.

Over 400 of Miami’s most recognized, influential and fashionable faces gathered at the ultra-chic Soho Beach House to support Style Saves’ mission to “build confidence through clothes and give a fresh start through fashion” to local underprivileged students in South Florida. The event raised nearly $40,000 for Style Saves, doubling last year’s efforts.

The exclusive Style Saves fashion show was held in conjunction with Miami Swim Week and was unique due to its charitable component, given the organization’s affiliation with The Miami Foundation. Coupling philanthropy with fashion, Haute Living magazine aptly named the event Mercedes-Benz Swim Week’s “Best Show for a Cause.”

“We were thrilled to host the ‘Best Show for a Cause,’ and lend our support to Style Saves,” says Soho Beach House General Manager Laurent Fraticelli. “We think the work that they do is so important to the heart of Miami, and the approach that they take by tapping into the fashion world fits very well with our deep support of Miami’s creative communities.”

The show featured runway looks by Trina Turk and Papi swimwear, and showcased fashions from Atrium and iShine365. Each look was personally styled by celebrity fashion stylist and Style Saves’ founder, Rachael Russell who ambitiously put forth a display of almost 80 different looks.

“Collaboration is key,” says Rachael Russell who recognizes that a show like this can have a profound and positive impact on smaller brands. In turn, Russell encouraged the runway debut of Tortoise & Blonde eyewear, That Madonna Girl floral halos and C. Madeleine’s vintage jewelry whose accessories completed each look. Gorgeous fishtail braids and glowing faces beautified the models by stylists from Rik Rak Salon.

DJ Brett Sylvia set the mood with the perfect mix of tunes, while partygoers sipped on cocktails sponsored by Grey Goose, Moët Chandon, Peroni and Vita Coco, and indulged in cupcakes by Stella’s Sweet Shoppe. The event was highly digitized, featuring a plasma screen at the end of the runway for designer branding and a projected live Twitter feed updated by LGD Communications.

Keeping with interactive technology, guests were able to view the online auction hosted by Charitybuzz on iPads thcoughout the space and capture memories in the Capture Pod photo booth sponsored by Atrium. The auction will be live on Charitybuzz.com/StyleSaves until August 2nd and features a Soho Beach House weekend stay, Saks Fifth Avenue Bal Harbour $1,000 shopping spree, Balenciaga clutch and much more!

Notable guests included film director Michael Bay, celebrity chef Travis London, Gilt Groupe founder Alexandra Wilkis Wilson and “Real Housewives of Miami” cast members Joanna Krupa, Marysol Patton and Alexia Echevarria. To cap off the night, Mynt Lounge hosted an after-party to celebrate the event’s success.

Amongst a handful of local organizations, Style Saves has partnered with Miami Children’s Hospital Foundation to benefit the children of the Michael Fux Family Center at Miami Children’s Hospital.

“Our hope is to make the children who don’t feel good, look good,” says Ashley Spitz who has a professional tie to the Foundation. “In a sense, we will be giving a healthy dose of confidence to the kids and helping their families at the same time,” she adds.

Last year, Style Saves partnered with Big Brothers, Big Sisters for the back-to-school event, which featured a field day of activities that included arts and crafts, games and of course styling. With plans to do so again, Style Saves is focused on targeting other deserving groups as well to target students most in need.

“Going forward, we really want to pull all of our fashion industry resources together and reach a greater number of organizations,” explains Russell whose plans include partnering with Tracy Mourning’s Honey Shine Mentoring Program.

“It’s all about the little details when making a difference,” she adds. Russell has each student fill out surveys to assess their personal style.

Russell is spearheading the Style Saves back-to-school event scheduled to take place on Sunday, August 26th. The event will incorporate more than just clothing aspect by offering haircuts by Privé Salon, plus make-up lessons for the teenage girls, since as stylist Russell is eager to create an entire look from head-to-toe.

With the help of the Style Saves Board, Russell explains, “We are motivated to do whatever we can to make our students feel their best, with the true hope that they will have the confidence to then do well.”

Want to get involved? If you are interested in participating in the back-to-school event as a designer, business or volunteer, please e-mail Rachael Russell, rachael@stylerr.com.

To learn more about Style Saves visit, www.stylesaves.org

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