DALLAS — Stan Herman, president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America, had reasons to be proud at the 30th annual Dallas Fashion Award gala here Saturday night.
Along with picking up the Fashion Excellence Award and receiving accolades from friend Marylou Luther, editor of the International Fashion Syndicate and creative director for the Fashion Group International, Herman got a congratulatory phone call from his 101-year-old father.
“My father thanks you for honoring his son with this very special award,” said Herman, who recalled his design beginnings at the Mr. Mort collection and his trips to Texas to show the line to stores such as Neiman Marcus and the now-closed Sakowitz and Frost Bros.
Derek Lam received DFA’s Rising Star Award and recalled his trips to Dallas.
“I’m still impressed by your city’s graciousness, beauty, warmth and generosity of spirit, especially my friends at Forty Five Ten,” said Lam, citing the luxury store here that carries his collection. Lam also presented a runway showing of his spring 2006 collection that featured romantic ruffled, tiered and cutout dresses in white, black and taupe.
The black-tie party featured the presentation of DFA winners in 10 categories, including: Michael Simon for Accessories, Chetta B for After 5, Alberto Makali for Bridge/Designer, Le Top for Children’s Wear, BCBG Max Azria for Contemporary, True Religion for Denim, Barse for Jewelry and Bentley A for ModernWear.
In addition, Brothers & Sisters received the Best of Scene Award, which highlights a distinguished exhibitor in the edited temporary show SCENE. Nat Nast received the Best of Men’s Award.
Julian Gold, a four-unit specialty chain based in San Antonio, got the Retail Excellence Award, which was established to acknowledge leading retailers in the fashion industry that set a high performance standard.
“This year’s honorees join a special group of industry leaders and legends that we have honored over the past 30 years,” said Bill Winsor, president and chief executive officer of the Dallas Market Center, parent of FashionCenterDallas.
The fete included a runway presentation of Arizona Jean Co. denim jackets donated by J.C. Penney Co. that were decorated by DFA finalists. The jackets will be auctioned in the spring as part of the annual Design Industries Foundation Fighting AIDS’ design collection fund-raiser.