ReadysetDC Makes Adams Morgan Fashionable; 'Local' Designers & Stores Take The Spotlight!

Be sure to check out all 150 of our photographs from this event HERE and tell us what you were wearing that night!

NORTHWEST -- With their celebrity clientele and generous advertising budgets, luxury brands and posh specialty retailers seem to dominate D.C.'s runway shows. They deliver dazzling productions that border on entertainment for guests (remember, fashion shows were originally intended to serve a business purpose) and are truly exciting 'occasions' to attend.

Emerging designers and local boutiques rarely have the marketing muscle or deep pockets to throw comparable shows, which require enormous amounts of time and resources to plan, advertise, and produce. So when we heard that ReadysetDC had assembled an all-star lineup of some of the city's best new fashion talent and locally-minded stores for their second runway show, we were the first to buy our tickets!

True to form, Thursday night's 'fashion:district' event brought out D.C.'s creative community in full force. Walking the runway last night were outfits from DeNada Design, Artistic Aya, Mercedes Bien Vintage, Toucan Boutique, Rue 14, Treasury, DURKL, and Derringer Friday.

While some of the boys and girls on the catwalk were indeed professional models, most were simply loyal friends, supporters, and, of course, customers of the participating designers and retailers.

And with the historic L'Aiglon Building (now home to the STROGA studio) as the backdrop, guests were free to indulge in an entire floor full of pop-up shops from the featured brands both before and after the show.

Art installations by Brandon Hill and Annie Kielman were also on display and the ReadysetDC team had even brought in some of the city's latest culinary talent, to help satiate the appetites of attendees.

Arguably, the fashion on display is suppose to be the focal point of any runway show. However, the show's accompanying musical collaboration last night between BLUEBRAIN and Matthew Hemerlein truly commanded equal recognition, enthralling and guiding the audience -- all without distracting from the models.

Local fashion at its finest. Nicely done ReadysetDC!

Be sure to check out all 150 of our photographs from this event HERE and tell us what you were wearing that night!