Meet The Designers...and the Muses that inspire them....Next Monday, October 12Th, I have been invited to the Kick-Off Party for Downtown Los Angeles Fashion Week. Fashion Group International's "The Designer and the Muse" will honor LA's most "prestigious and respected" fashion designers...and their muses. It will take place on the breathtaking rooftop of Downtown LA's Standard Hotel and is being sponsored by Downtown Los Angeles Fashion Week, BUZZflkr, Flaunt Magazine and of course, The Standard, among others. Hubert de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn Famous designers in the past have had a long-running relationship with their muses. For example, Huberty de Givenchy and Audrey Hepburn and Alexander McQueen and Phillip Treacy and their muse, the late Isabella Blow, to name a few. This party honors this ongoing Designer-Muse relationship.Isabella Blow Over THIRTY designers have confirmed attendance (or so I hear) including Magda Berliner, Project Runway Season 4 Finalist Rami Kashou, Lloyd Klein, and my fuchsia-haired girlfriend, the wonderful Tarina Tarantino. It's going to be LA Fashionsita Heaven--or maybe the designer claws will come out--Who knows! My design partner David Paul and I will be attending with our muse who will be wearing a look from our new Spring 2010 NIKOLAKI Collection!! (any guesses who that might be?) Space is limited and you must buy tickets online at FGILA.org--click HERE for ticket info. Get your tickets and hope to see you there!

FASHION GROUP INTERNATIONAL-Beverly Hills FGI, Fashion Group International Los Angeles, held a very special "Project Runway" panel discussion in the Museum of Televison and Radio in Beverly Hills. Most of the LA-based designers, Kirsten, Raymundo, Daniel Franco, Andrae, and myself were invited to partake in a Q & A discussion moderated by the lovely Alison Nieder, Editor-in-Chief of the California Apparel News. And to our surprise , another Season 2 Designer, Marla, was in the audience! Marla told me that she was in town for a month shopping for fabrics. The discussion and questions were varied : What are each of us doing now? What were our expectations of the show? What did we get out of the show? Why did each of us apply to be in the show? We also discussed the state of Los Angeles designers, what would-be-Project Runway designers could do to prepare, our contracts(as much as we can talk about), as well as "dished" a little bit. I met with Alison Nieder and the publisher of the Apparel News afterwards, and they both felt it was a successful evening; informative, fun and thought-provoking. I, for one, was honored to have been a part of it and I was glad to see so many people from all aspects of the LA fashion industry including academia, stylists, designers, students, public relations, and the media. I say that next time, we have a discussion on the effect MTV's "The Hills" , "My Super Sweet Sixteen" , and the Celebrity tabloid magazines are having on students of Fashion Design and Merchandising. I will be more than happy to give my two cents!