5 for change – the night that was

photo

Shoes – Zoom, dress – YDE, headband – Woolies, cuff – Lovelee in Kloof st, clutch – Accessorize

Wow, Saturday eve I partied like I was still twenty two-oo-o-oooo (sorry, but that damn song is so freakin’ catchy)… then I woke up the next morning, reality hit, and felt like I was 100 and bloody 50. ;)

But hey, nobody said partying for a great cause was going to be easy on the body.  All I can say is that I loved every minute, and therefore the pain afterwards was totally worth it.

5 for change pulled off another amazingly successful event & I now get why everyone was raving about last year’s bash for ages after.  This will definitely be something I make sure I have on my calendar for next year.

I’ve been a little swamped of late, which meant I had to do a very last minute scramble to sort out my Great Gatsby look (I heard there was going to be a prize for best dressed, and my competitve side was all “yeah, bring it”).  Thankfully a little shiny number from YDE caught my eye on Friday eve, followed by a cute little feather & diamante headband from Woolies.  Then the rest just kinda fell into place from my wardrobe.

To complete the look however, I needed my Mr Gatsby, right?  Unfortunately the boyfriend was working, but his friend, actor & general great guy Francis Chouler graciously stood in as his stunt double for the evening:

SAM_1229

Thanks again Francis! Lookin’ very dapper indeed.

The event took place at our very elegant Cape Town City Hall.  This was in fact my very first time inside this historic landmark and I was totally blown away by how incredible it is.  Let me give you a quick tour:DSC07973

DSC07983

DSC07987

Upon arrival we were treated to a Patron & Appletiser cocktail, followed by some really yummy capanes (of which I have no photos because they jumped into my mouth to quickly – apologies).  My poison of choice for the rest of the evening was a not-so-bright mix of Graham Beck bubbly and coffee Patron shots.  (now you’re starting to understand why I felt like total death the following day)

5forchange1

Besties Leigh & Clouds were also rocking their best Daisy flapper looks.  Together we kinda looked like we could’ve been a sultry singing trio from the 20s (but you certainly don’t want to here me sing – we would’ve needed some serious Milli Vanilli magic, that’s for sure):

5forchange2

Clouds was lucky enough to be wearing a gorgeous creation by Cape Town based designer, Jacques Lagrange.

But of course, the evening was all about the 5 amazing initiatives we were there to support.  We got to chat to the inspiring people behind them and learn more about what they do and what they need.

I briefly discussed them in my pre-party post last week.  But let’s recap:

DSC07996Waves for Change:  They use surfing as a tool to create an alternative learning environment for children and young adults who are identified by their schools and communities as ‘at-risk’.  You’ll see from the pic here above that they say 80% of the surfers in the programme have dropped out of gangs since joining.  It’s truly amazing that something so simple can have such a big impact on someone’s life…

DSC07998

Ilizwi Photo Club:  A youth development initiative that works with young people in under-resourced communities by encouraging creative self expression through photography and multimedia.  A slightly different variant to the Waves for Change initiative, but with similar goals.  Giving people a creative outlet, a sence of belonging, as well as a support structure… 

DSC08003

Iyeza Express:  An affordable delivery service for prescription medication to residents of Khayelitsha.  Iyeza Express was founded by Khayelitsha community member Sizwe Nzima in 2011.  He started out by doing deliveries for 3 family members, and it’s grown in leaps and bounds since then.  I was really impressed by Sizwe’s energy & passion.  They’re achieving so much with very little resources.  This is certainly a guy to watch…DSC08000

See-Saw-Do:   They focus on the physical transformation of the spaces in which children develop, as well as on the production and distribution of mother-tongue reading material to these facilities.  We had the opportunity to write little messages to some of the kids from the schools they are involved in, which really made you stop & reflect.  Kids need love & support and a safe learning environment, which makes what See-Saw-Do are doing so important… 

DSC07993

Trashback:  An incentivised recycling project where participants bring in recyclable materials and are rewarded with vouchers for their efforts, which can then be exchanged at local community stores.  They are currently only based in Hout Bay, but have plans to move into the city.  Oh and anybody’s welcome to bring their recycling in, as you can also opt to donate your vouchers to someone in need…

I loved this little bin they had on display which shows you how many recycling items had been collected:

DSC08005

That’s a good start, let’s keep ‘em coming!

Other opportunities to show some support was a raffle at R50 a ticket where you could win anything from designer wear to holidays and such.  As well as a big auction where they had some extra special items, like a signed rugby jersey & some custom jewels.

DSC08010

DSC08014

It was great to see everyone whip out those wallets and get involved, after which we were treated to some great live performances by The Rudimentals & GoldfishDSC08019

DSC08031

I missed the best dressed announcement.  All I know is it wasn’t me.  (What?? I demand a recount??) And somehow, Leigh & I lost our dates towards the end of the evening…

But we partied like rock stars till the very end, then still continued on to have some crazy adventures over in Long St (which I’m not going to elaborate on), before finally settling in at my 2nd home – the Steers at the 24hr Woolies/Engen in Gardens. #bliss

SAM_1312

I don’t even remember us taking this pic… oi…

A big thanks to Kirsten Hopwood from Prestige Communications for a really great event.  And to the guys at 5 for change and everyone involved with the initiatives above, thanks for doing the incredible work you are doing.

xxx

Rock the runway

Canal Walk shopping centre hosted a 4 day “Rock the Runway” celebration from 7 – 11 Sep.

The idea was to get young talent from five of Cape Town’s schools to each produce a fashion show at Canal Walk to raise school funds.  Then the main event would be a showcase of couture collections by top Cape Town Designers presented by Elegance Fabrics, Cape Town Designer Paul van Zyl and Canal Walk.

I went to go check out this Couture Summer 2011 Collection show on Saturday eve.  You could buy tickets to the seated area, but the really cool thing was that it was also open to the public, you just had to be willing to stand – but there was plenty of space with a good view of the action.  That’s what we opted for.

The show took place in Canal Walk’s main exhibition area, close to the food court:

A view from above… Pretty impressive, isn’t it?

I’m actually one of those people who usually rushes through Canal Walk – totally focused on my “to do” list.  I never take a slow stroll to take it all in.  Hell I barely ever lift my head…  if I did, I think I would have noticed all the cool detail high above the store fronts:

Seriously, has that stuff been there all along?

The show opened with a special segment where all the featured designers got to present some designs to show off the latest summer fabrics available from Elegance Fabrics.   I didn’t catch all of it, was fiddling with my camera  (sorry, it’s new OK… and I haven’t read the manual yet! haha) – but some of the Hip Hop ideas were pretty interesting:

Apologies for some of the shaky images to come.  It was pretty hard taking decent shots because those models move to bloody fast…

The real couture show kicked off with a collection by Hendrik Vermeulen:

Must say, not sure where the hell that white poofy thing would be appropriate. You wouldn’t even be able to have a drink all night! ;)

Next up was Stefania Morland:

Loved the fun & flirty details to her range – it was very pretty.  Then we had Robyn Roberts:

I thought most of her stuff would be too “old” for me.  But I did love that short, shimmery number.  It had a super low back which made it very sexy.  And then I also thought that last wedding dress was also quite pretty.

Next up was Hip Hop – but this time with their couture stuff:

I didn’t really love anything in that range…  not my style at all.  Then it was time for Cindy Bam:

Some very dramatic gowns in that collection.  But where do people still wear dresses like those these days?  Even if the event invite says “black tie” – Cape Town girls simply rock out a short coctail dress.  Hmmmm.

Next up was Rosenwerth:

Beautiful gowns.  But loved the cute feather head pieces even more!  Then we had Jacques Lagrange Couture:

His stuff was a bit OTT for me personally, but at least it was creative.  That red glitter dress however was a total mess – doesn’t it remind you of a bad Christmas party outfit? ;)

Next we had Umbra:

Loved the bright colours and also how every dress seemed like it had been perfectly molded to the model’s body.  I love a perfect fit.

Then we had Kobus Dippenaar:

Loved the crazy hats! Also his attention to detail was impeccable.  From a creativity perspective, I enjoyed his range the best.

Next up was Paul van Zyl:

I’ve always been a HUGE fan of Paul van Zyl.  But I must admit, this collection did not blow me away.  I wouldn’t really want to wear any of those pieces.

Then we saw the all-in-black collection of Francois Rall:

Now I love black just as much as the next girl.  And there were some really nice pieces in that collection.  But I couldn’t help feeling that there was nothing new or exciting about it.  A bit blah unfortunately.

Lastly we had Jenni Button:

The only thing I really loved in that collection was that short, partly sheer, sequenced dress.  Unfortunately it didn’t photograph too well.  Trust me, it looked much better in person.  Would only be able to rock that if I had a killer tan though…

So there you go boys & girls – now you’ve seen what some of the best Cape Town designers had up their sleeves.   I actually really enjoyed the show.  Was far more extravagant than I had expected.  To be totally honest – my expectations were super low… like as low as you could imagine… I wasn’t feeling too great (had a cold) and therefore I didn’t really feel like doing anything too hectic, so this just sounded like the perfect alternative to simply vegetating on my couch.

I’m glad I did manage to drag myself off of my couch in the end.  The show has now inspired me to jazz up my summer party wardrobe quite a bit.

xxx