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#KCFW F/W’19 Saturday Night Runway Show

~ bellalightner ~ Leave a comment

The final night of the F/W’18 season of Kansas City Fashion Week was spectacular, as it always is. I am so happy to have completed my 11th season of KCFW and am pretty sad to say it will be my last; for a while anyways. I am moving to Italy for school and will be unable to attend next season but I think I left on a good note.

My Outfit

I always try to make my final night’s outfit the best out of them all. For this look, I am wearing a long red off the shoulder gown paired with a fur shawl; both by Lucia’s Sarto. I think that it’s important and shows support to wear a designer who is showing that evening. I wanted to keep the look elegant and clean so I slicked my hair back and paired it with simple, minimal gold hoops and that is all.

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Designers

Lucia’s Sarto

Nataliya Meyer is an incredibly talented fashion designer with an eye for beautiful tailoring. She is the designer of the dress I wore this evening and is amazing at what she does. Her collection was gorgeous. It was so feminine and flowy with the most beautiful luxurious hues. Her gowns are always like something from a movie.

Ethel & Dean

Ethel & Dean is a children’s line for the edgy kid. I love how punk and out there these pieces are- and for kids! The color palette is wearable and light mixed with edgy decals. I love the fantasy-like details (wings, masks, hoods, etc.).

My Heirloom Bridal Design

I love looking at bridal dresses and I am obsessed that this collection was not all white! The designer incorporated blacks and beiges to adorn the white which I thought was so interesting and different.

TRBrown

THIS was probably my favorite from the evening. I want to purchase every look from this collection. This line was made for the working woman who still wants to look stylish and fashionable in the office. The designer portrayed this quite literally by having models hold coffee cup, hold briefcases, and wear pencils behind their ears. It was such a realistic fashion line and such perfect, necessary concept. My favorite piece was the metallic blue jumpsuit. To this day, I can not get my mind off of it.

Sara Kahrs

Sara Kahrs’ collection just screams fall. The colors and shapes make me honestly just want to skip summer (my least favorite season anyways) and go straight to fall. All the colors were pretty dark and then every now and then there was a pop of bright yellow to stir things up and keep it interesting. By looking closely, the garments were put together so well. I can see this being put up in a storefront window display immediately.

Her by Georgina Herrera

What an extravagant way to end fashion week. Everything (like seriously everything) about this collection was insane! The Versace-like choreography, sleek hair and bold make-up, and of course- the jewelry! Georgina is such a talented and creative designer and each piece she creates is so exclusive to anything I have ever seen. Her finale piece was a dress made from all metals and I was so blown away by it.

#KCFW F/W’19 Wednesday Night Runway Show

~ bellalightner ~ 1 Comment

I can not believe how much I have slacked off with blogging. I am usually one to post event coverage hours after it happens but sometimes life gets in the way. My sophomore year of college has ended and I am about to start the summer hustle before I study abroad in Florence, Italy but, before I get super busy, I figured I should write up my 2 month late Kansas City Fashion Week Recaps.

This season, KCFW was held at the Grand Hall at Power & Light (one of my favorite venues) for the F/W’19 collections. I am thankful that I got to attend these events as media for my third season.

My Outfit :

This season of fashion week I stepped out of my comfort zone and incorporated bright colors! I am usually one to stick with all black or neutrals but wanted to try something new. I found this hot pink coat at Topshop and I knew it was the right piece to kick of KCFW!

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coat : Topshop (similar) | shirt : Karl Lagerfeld | skirt : Missguided (similar) | boots : Rebecca Minkoff (similar)

photographer – Jason Atherton (Facebook)

DESIGNERS :

 Fey Chavez

The very first collection to be shown at Kansas City Fashion Week was one of my favorites of the whole season. If you know me, you know I love menswear a LOT. These pieces were so well tailored to the models and look as if they are 100% ready to be sold in a retail setting. My favorite piece was the knitted boatneck sweater. Texture is so important to me so this really stood out but stayed true to the collections aesthetic with similar colors.

 

Cierra Marie McMichael

This collection, so I was told, was inspired by superheros which is so badass! Only a few colors were used, as you can see below, but each piece was so different. The leather and silver combination was extremely powerful and the movement on each garment was amazing.

 

Sew Unrelaxed

Red has been my favorite color for a while now and I got so excited about this collection. My favorite piece was the red velvet cape. Very powerful vibes here.

 

Schyline

I met the designer of this collection, Schyler Slaven, a few years ago when we runway modeled together. I am so happy and proud to see how far she has come since then. I want every single piece from her line. I almost want to call it “elegant loungewear”. The colors and fabrics were sheer and simple and I fell in love with everything about it! Keep it up girl, you’re killing it!

 

Candace Callahan Wolf

Candace Callahan Wolf’s collection was so diversely chic. There were gowns, pants, dresses, and jackets- so much variety; and all in white! The pearl detailing on some of the pieces was such an elegant surprise. My favorite piece from this line was the button up bomber jacket, so cool.

 

Em’s Trends

Em’s Trends’ line somehow brought me back to my childhood. As a kid, I was a princess and fairytale fanatic. Between the floral headpieces and embellished gowns it was like a dream come true. I wish the models could walk down the runway hundreds of times because I really wanted a close look at the detail. Really, really beautiful.

 

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Sewrissarenee

This collection was to show that a modest and conservative woman can still be fashionable and chic. It was an entire denim collection and the tailoring was incredible. Denim will always have a special place in my heart and I have a love for the reconstruction of it. I can see myself wearing a lot of this collection.

 

 

with colorsofcostarica.com

Again, I feel so terrible for how delayed this post is but as I said before, life gets crazy and it’s healthy to relax and sometimes not worry about anything at all. The next three nights of KCFW will be posted within the next three days in chronological order so stay tuned.

xx Bella

***all runway images taken by me, feel free to repost them as you will but remember to give me credit**

#KCFW Cruise 2017 – Day 1 : MIAMI

~ bellalightner ~ 1 Comment

I am so excited to announce that I am attending Kansas City Fashion Week’s first every cruise! I am here as a blogger and model with an amazing team of some of the best people I know. This trip is something I have been waiting on for what feels like forever and it’s finally here! I am so happy to be hear and to share my experience as well as some amazing photos! Be sure to check back this week for more daily coverage.

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sweatshirt : AFRM (similar) | jacket : Forever 21 | sunglasses : Diff Eyewear

Today I flew into Miami to meet up with the whole team. We grabbed some lunch and then went to shoot on the beach. We board the cruise ship tomorrow morning after our sunrise shoot.

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pictured : photographer – Layne Haley Whitehouse, models (left to right) – Aezia Jardin, Audrey White, Eliza Williams

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swimsuit : vintage (similar) | shorts : American Eagle (similar) | sunglasses  : Diff Eyewear

with Audrey White (left)
with Audrey White (left)

xx Bella

#KCFW S/S’18 Saturday Night Runway Show

~ bellalightner ~ Leave a comment

Hello hello! Again, this post is super delayed but I now am free (finally) to share it! This final night of fashion week was my favorite. I got the opportunity to style 12 looks to hit the runway on side of Randall Schneck. We pulled clothing from Dillard’s at the Oak Park Mall, one of Kansas City Fashion Week’s main sponsors, to create 12 Fall looks. I have never gotten to do anything like this before so this was a new experience for me and I loved every second of it. Watching those outfits go down the runway was such an incredible feeling.

STYLING

BELLA LIGHTNER & RANDALL SCHNECK

***all runway photos are by Jason Atherton (Facebook) ***

Each season of Kansas City Fashion Week gets better and better. I know everyone says this but it is really true. I have grown up within the KCFW community and I feel as if they’re a second family to me. Looking back throughout the past 11 seasons, I have seen myself not only grow as a model and blogger, but as a person. This season was my favorite as I got to expand my horizons by trying new things.

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With Brooke Richardson brookelaryn.com (left) and Kylie Rifkin barelybyathread.com (middle)

MY OUTFIT :

The amount of times I’ve worn this dress is kind of crazy but I just love it so much- it HAD to make an appearance at Fashion Week. I wore this a lot in the summer but I thought it would be different to make it more Fall-ish by pairing it with a black hat and OTK boots!

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dress : For Love and Lemons | hat : H&M (similar) | boots : Calvin Klein (similar)

Unfortunately I did not have my professional camera for this night of Fashion Week and my phone took such low quality photos they’re not even worth sharing on here. Be sure to check out my other posts from this seasons fashion week, Tuesday night here and Thursday Night here.

#KCFW S/S’18 Tuesday Night Kansas City Chiefs Style Lounge

~ bellalightner ~ 1 Comment

Hello readers! I feel like I haven’t written up an official blog post in forever. I have been crazy busy with my sophomore year of school and as of now that is my top priority. However, this past week I attended Kansas City Fashion Week to cover my second season of media. For any new readers who don’t know my backstory, I modeled in nine consecutive seasons of KCFW and then realized that my passion was not walking the runway but instead watching from the crowd. Last season was my first time covering fashion week as a blogger and I am so thankful to have done my second one.

Photo by Chris Ruckle
Photo by Chris Ruckle
Photo by Chris Ruckle

This season, I got to do something that I’ve never done before. I got the opportunity to style outfits to go down the runway! This night I styled five looks, all pulled from Dillards at the Oak Park Mall (KCFW’s sponsor) to be worn by the NFL Kansas City Chiefs cheerleaders. All of my pulled looks are below : photos by Jason Atherton of Atherton Photography.  (Facebook Page)

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MY OUTFIT :

Since this night was KC Chiefs themed, I thought I would break out my team spirit and wear the team’s colors; red and yellow. I found this amazing biker moto jacket from Missguided and paired it with a lace top and some yellow striped track pants. At first this concept seemed strange but I think once it was all put together, I did it right.

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jacket : Missguided | pants : WhoWhatWear X Target (similar) | top : Dillards (similar) | shoes : Jeffery Campbell (similar)

***Stay tuned for the other two nights I attended. Blog posts will be up within the week.***

Elephant in the Room

~ bellalightner ~ 1 Comment

As many of you know, I love to collaborate with brands and desginers on blog posts! I had the honor of collaborating with Christie Nelson of AnnMann Designs. Her pieces are full of detail so I chose to keep this look simple to focus on that.

These pieces are from her S/S’17 collection that was shown at Kansas City Fashion Week last fall. Her collection was inspired by endangered species and each model represented a different animal. Below are some photos shot by Sara Clance and I am wearing the elephant inspired pieces from that collection.

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jewelry : AnnMann Designs (Facebook)| top : Zara (similar) | jeans : Zara (similar)

stylist / creative director / model – Bella Lightner

photographer – Sara Clance (Facebook) 

#KCFW F/W’17 Friday Night Runway Show

~ bellalightner ~ Leave a comment

I had such a great time at the Friday night runway showing of Kansas City Fashion Week. It was a sold out show which is so awesome! The designs last night were all so unique and I loved how different each collection was. I’m really looking forward to seeing the last night of designers this evening!

with Ashley Nickolaison

Make it all the way through this post to see my full look!

xx Bella

P.S. – if you haven’t already, be sure to check out my Wednesday night recap along with my Thursday night recap.

DESIGNERS :

Joshua Christensen

All the way from Los Angeles, California, Joshua Christensen came to Kansas City to show his collection. He was on season nine of Project Runway! Joshua’s collection was so unique. He used many different colors and patterns but keeping the aesthetic consistent. I will always automatically love a collection that features both womens and menswear.

Ethel and Dean

This children’s collection made my heart melt. The models were not only adorable, but looked awesome in these clothes! Military style vibes were definitely given off.

Julia Fischer

This collection surprised me a lot. I never knew a holographic pattern would pair well with such muted, warm tones. I liked each look individually but wasn’t sure about how cohesive everything would be when put together as a whole until the finale walk came out. I was so shocked at how well each look vibed together. It was so different than anything I have seen.

Nasheli Juliana

OKAY. The whole time that this collection was walking down the runway, I had major goosebumps. A Catholic, Pope, Holy, etc. inspired fashion line?! I am obsessed. This was something I have seriously never seen before and I am so blown away by it. The clothing was minimal and extremely structured but the details made this so beautiful and personal. Each model came down carrying a rosary and their fingers were painted gold. As a big religious art fan, you could say obsessed with this collection is an understatement.

Lauren Bander

Lauren Bander is a Kansas City Fashion Week star. She’s shown in so many! This collection, you could tell, had a lot of emotion. It started out with all black pieces and they looks gradually had more white in them, to full white looks, to a LIGHT UP DRESS. The second to last look was leaving the runway and the lights went off and model Kiera Nordike strutted out in a white gown with lights on it. So beautiful and a crowd favorite.

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Andrea Marie Long Designs

Andrea Long is an amazing designer, talented human, and sweetheart. I love this woman. Her collection was stunning. You can never go wrong with velvet- and velvet jewel tones?! Yes. This lady never fails to amaze me.

TRBrown

I was so happy after watching this collection. Tiffany Brown was inspired by old New York and I definitely felt like these clothes totally encompassed that. I am so glad that these styles are coming back for it was such a beautiful, and elegant time for fashion.

Queens Rocket

Menswear!! If you know me, you will know that I LOVE menswear and pull a lot of my own outfit inspiration from it. This collection was a good mix of pieces. I mainly shot the more rugged looks because that’s what caught my eye the most. All of the different textures mixed together was seriously so cool.

MY OUTFIT :

This look is kind of a combination of all of my favorite pieces that I own. I was iffy about combining such a bohemian top with these edgy culottes but I think that my double breasted belt made the two pieces flow together nicely. These photos, yet again, were taken by the amazing Sara Clance in the most beautiful area. I am so excited about the mix between this outfit and the location.

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top : Dillard’s (similar) | pants : Bloomingdales (similar) | bralette : Free People | shoes : Rebecca Minkoff | earrings : It’s A Beautiful Day

stylist / creative director / model – Bella Lightner

photographer – Sara Clance (Facebook)

#KCFW F/W’17 Wednesday Night Runway Show

~ bellalightner ~ 1 Comment

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The Kansas City Fashion Week F/W’17 runway shows have finally begun! I have never gotten to experience KCFW from the audience, because for the past nine seasons I have been on the runway. This season, KCFW is being held at the historic Grand Hall at Power and Light. Last night was an absolute dream. It was amazing to see the show from a whole new perspective. There were so many talented designers showcasing their collections and I am so glad that I got to watch. I am really looking forward to these next few days.

KCFW Merch
Lee Jeans (sponsor)

This is probably THE longest blog post I have ever posted and it took me HOURS! Make sure to read all three sections of it; designer recap, street style, my outfit + be ready for three more similar posts covering the next few days of KCFW.

photo – Ryan Schwartzlander
with Adriele of styleassisted.com | photo – Ryan Schwartzlander

xx Bella

DESIGNERS :

Designs by Miranda Hanson

Ok, so this designer is extremely talented and “trend-educated” (if that’s a thing). Each piece that came down the runway was unique and all of the looks went together. Floral embroidery and stripes were what I saw the most of and those two things are HUGE right now! (you’ll have to believe me on this one…of course the first designer of KCFW and my camera malfunctions so I only have one photo and it isn’t even very good…ugh!).

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Oliviet by Tobie Marie

This collection is a youth girls collection and it was inspired by the one and only, Jackie Kennedy. Stephens College junior, Tobie Roberts, literally brought a smile to my face. The entire production of her collection made me genuinely happy. From the beautiful 1960’s inspired garments, to the adorable models, to the old music – I was in love.

Hannah Kristina Designs

Hannah Kristina Designs’ collection was inspired from waterfalls and how the water “falls” at different levels. She took this quite literally by making the hems of the garments fall at different lengths. Her collection was a colorful palette of beauty.

Model : Stephanie Rohr

Kelly Callaway Designs

I am so in love with this girl. Kelly Callaway, of Kelly Callaway Designs, is 11-YEARS-OLD!!! I got to meet her at the Bubbly and Bowties event this past Tuesday evening and although she is so young, she carries herself like a mature woman. Her collection was absolutely stunning and well-tailored and put-together. There was mixing of geometric patterns and structure. I can’t wait to see where this talented lady goes.

Coco and Ilia

More Stephens women! These two women had a unique collection that almost gave me Fenty X Rihanna vibes. These clothes were inspired by video games and are definitely for the “badass, edgy woman”. Each piece added something different to the collection but was still cohesive as a whole. This was a very street style line which made me so SO happy! (for those of you who don’t know – street style is kinda my thing – keep reading this blog post to see what I mean). I love even their smallest details such as using their brand name as waist and hem lines; very Calvin Klein-esque.

model – Vanessa Akhlaghi
model – Elise Hardenburger

Keliah Jadlow

That’s so 70’s! Keliah Jadlow is a student at Johnson County Community College and her collection was inspired by the 1970’s. Lots of warm tones, ruffles and layering. Flare jeans have been back for a while but I’m hoping that the rest of the 70’s trends make a big comeback here soon. This collection was not only gorgeous, but wearable!

model – Rian Stallbaumer

Sheraz Pompey

This collection was stunningly inspired by the future. These pieces included lots of sequins and were most definitely more haute couture. The floral embroidery made an appearance for the second time this evening but this time in an edgier style. This line included both women’s and menswear.

model – Nina Monzon

J. Manning Apparel

The focus in this line was outerwear. The most amazing jackets walked down the runway. There was lots of velvet and Jacquard fabrics. Overall, every piece in this collection was very dark but with cool tones and I loved everything about it – very “gothic-chic”. This line also featured women’s and menswear and each look went together perfectly.

STREET STYLE : 

If you know me, or have been following my blog for a bit, you will know that I live for street style. Back in February I went down to Bentonville, Arkansas for NWA Fashion Week and covered street style. I met some super neat people doing this and had a blast. That post, here, got so much positive feedback that I thought I would do the same for Kansas City Fashion Week!

Street style is a huge deal in all of the major fashion capitals like New York, Paris and Milan, so why not Kansas City? There are so many creative and stylish people in this city and I think that they need to be recognized. Street style is so important and should be appreciated because it is the place where designers pull their inspiration from. Last night I got to shoot some unique outfits and I met some awesome people while doing so! I plan on shooting street style the next three nights of KCFW as well.

*click the images to enlarge*
Megan Wombolt of http://www.rideordieundereye.com
Ja Prasertsoot
Molly Heise of http://www.modcircus.com
Victoria Gevorkov
Annie Austen of theaustenadventures.com
Adriele Dixon of styleassisted.com
Etinosa Ogbevoen of http://www.enhancetheindividual.com

**also – if you see yourself and are not credited, feel free to shoot me an email at isabellalightner@gmail.com and I would be more than happy to edit in your name and info along with your photo!

MY OUTFIT :

Since this was only the first runway show of KCFW, I kept my outfit pretty minimal. I went for an all black look to be chic and threw on a printed skinny scarf for a unique touch. This is an outfit that would be suitable for everyday. Not to mention, I was so comfortable the whole evening.

Check back tomorrow morning to see what I am wearing tonight to the Thursday runway show!

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shirt : Forever 21 (similar) | jeans : Zara (similar) | scarf : Free People (similar)| boots : Rebecca Minkoff

stylist / creative director / model – Bella Lightner

photographer – Sara Clance (Facebook)