Only time will tell if Stephanie Ohnmacht will score a Frock Out three-peat. For now, the Denver designer who won the grand prize in 2007 is busting her buttons because she sewed it up again in 2012.
Ohnmacht was in fact a dual winner this time around. Not only did judges Mondo Guerra, Fallene Wells, Sew Heidi and Caroline Corey award her the grand prize at this benefit for the Denver Public Library’s programming, the general public voted her the People’s Choice winner by ballots cast in an online poll.
“The hardest part was getting the dresses made on time. I pushed it,” Ohnmacht confessed. “But I can sleep now.” Each of the 12 participants in this independent designers challenge had roughly three months to create five items: one for each season and another reflecting a personal vision.
Second prize went to Denise Chaudhari and Katie Wells placed third. Other contenders were Gabriela Martinez, Vicky Krabill, Pearl Hanbei Long, Cleo Ortiz, Julianne Hazelhurst, Jacquelyn Bartels, Rachel Hurst, Crystal Sharp and James Silvrants.
Frock Out is held every other year (“It takes us that long to recover and regroup,” confided organizer Brandi Shigley of Fashion Denver) and one can’t help but think how nice it would be if Ohnmacht could enjoy the same good fortune as Guerra, whom she had beat in Frock Out’s 2007 debut. He was first runner-up in Season 8 of television’s fashion reality show “Project Runway,” and recently won the “Project Runway All Stars.”
Guerra was at Frock Out. Gone was his trademark pompadour and in its place was a look that included shaved sides and what appeared to be a combed-down Mohawk running from crown to forehead.
Frock Out’s grand finale was an April 19 runway show that was held at Denver’s Central Library and attended by 400-plus folks who rocked looks ranging from steampunk to “Mad Men.”
“It’s not the usual library-benefit crowd,” admitted City Librarian Shirley Amore, “and that’s great. The point of Fresh City Life is to draw in the nontraditional, the lifelong learners … and it would be nice to see a lot more of these fresh, new faces at future DPL functions.”
Frock Out 2012 was dedicated to memories of the Titanic. A video that traced the ship from its construction in Belfast, Ireland, to its final resting place at the bottom of the North Atlantic flickered on screens at the head of the runway; the Free Range String Quartet ended its pre-show performance with “Nearer My God to Thee,” which the Titanic’s orchestra is said to have played as the vessel sank; and while the judges were making their final tallies, Kenneth Parks, accompanied by Eric Woods on guitar, sang the powerful Leadbelly ballad “Titanic.”
Guests included library commissioners Kevin O’Connor and Gloria Rubio-Cortes; Elizabeth Anderman, president of the Denver Public Library Friends foundation; Lisa Benson; Lidia Ortiz, Katherine Salzgeber and Michelann Sweeney-Cordero.
Joanne Davidson: 303-809-1314 or jdavidson @denverpost.com; also, blogs.denverpost.com/style and @GetItWrite on Twitter.
Also:
Actress Kathy Najimy is the special guest at the Human Rights Campaign Mile High Gala: • Joanne Davidson blogs about it blogs.denverpost.com/style. • See photos from the event denverpost.com/seengallery.
