North Carolina Fashion Week brings the latest in local, regional and out of state fashion to downtown Fayetteville

By Faith Hatton, posted May 5, 2023 on BizFayetteville.com

Photo provided by: Metro Faces International

Fashions from local, regional and out of state designers and boutiques will be front and center for the Fayetteville Community for North Carolina Fashion Week 2023.

North Carolina Fashion Week (NCFW) was started in 2009 by local Modeling Representative and President of Metro Faces International Jennifer Baker after she experienced New York Fashion week and wanted to bring it back to the state. Baker, who has 19 years of experience in the fashion industry, decided to start the week-long event to allow North Carolina to have their part in the celebration recognized around the country and shed some light on local artists and models..

“That's what a fashion week is all about. Now, I have noticed in the beginning, each state had their own Fashion Week. Everybody collaborated, everybody just worked together, there was a giant Fashion Week and people came in from all over. But, for some reason, now fashion Week is broken up into so many different parts. We have Brooklyn Fashion Week, New York City Fashion Week, now we have North Carolina Fashion Week,” shared Baker.

NCFW will host its grand finale on Saturday for the annual NCFW Fashion show, but events began with a water based photo challenge posted on Monday, May 1. People in the area were encouraged to snap a picture near water with the #wateryouwearing challenge to celebrate the nicer weather and the spring season.

Tuesday, Metro Faces International hosted a skin care course both in person and over Zoom teaching skin care home remedies for the communities as a part of their “Healthy Skin Camp” campaign.

Thursday featured a fitness walk for models who will be in the NCFW show.

Friday night is a networking opportunity between the public, NCFW models, designers and boutique owners at Metro Faces International’s Sneaker Ball, a formal dress event that features sneakers, tennis shoes or other non-formal footwear.

Flyer for the 2023 NCFW Sneaker Ball. Photo provided by: MFI

The Sneaker Ball is Hosted by MFI at the Fayetteville- Cumberland Arts Council building located at 301 Hay Street in Downtown Fayetteville.

Kicking off at 7:00 p.m., designers and models will have the opportunity to meet and connect with one another before working together during the Fashion Show on Saturday, May 6.

Fifty models will be dressed and styled by 12 featured boutiques showcasing their looks from Fayetteville and across the east coast.

Local boutique owner and designer Latoya Harrington from Sew Fab Designs in Fayetteville will be dressing models in pieces available in her store and designed by herself. Her first time in NCFW, Harrington said she was contacted by Ms. Baker through social media. As a relatively young boutique in the area, she said she is excited to show her work to the community with 10 designs currently planned for the show.

“Most of what I do is more high end but it's definitely different. People come to me when they want to make a statement,” shared Harrington. “We do prom, bridal and we do everyday wear as well, but mostly we just do stuff that's kind of out of the box, you want ‘make a statement’ pieces, that kind of Met Gala style type of stuff. Real bougie, fabulous, chic and things like that.”

Peculiar Princess Owner Stepahnie Johnson- Rice is making the trip from Anderson, South Carolina where her boutique is based to participate in the show.

Originally starting as a model for Metro Faces International after seeing a post on social media, Johnson- Rice has been a part of NCFW for the past two years. She gives Baker credit for her organization of the event every year and now, as a boutique owner, recognizes the opportunities that come along with participating.

“I wasn't a boutique when I first met her. I've been a boutique for less than a year and seeing your garments on that runway, and then getting them with professional photographs to have them on social media opens doors for me. People will see it, people will message me, people that I do not know, that are affiliated with Miss Jennifer or affiliated with the producers of other shows, they will get my information and reach out to me. So it's extremely important to be well represented, for them to take the time to pose at the end of the runway so they can get good photos is extremely important,” said Johnson- Rice.

The fashion show is being co-produced by both Baker and her partner, LA based fashion designer, stylist and casting director and CEO of #CastingPHonetics Paris Harris. After connecting on Twitter, Harris has gone on to help grow opportunities for models in the area through working with NCFW.

“He and I just kind of started collaborating, and the more I talked to him, I found that he was a really prominent fashion guru in Los Angeles. So now he's given some of the models the opportunity from this show to go back and walk in Los Angeles Fashion Week.” shared Baker.

Baker shared that some of the models walking are represented by Metro Faces International, but a majority of the models are scouted from open casting calls in the community. Baker said that the needs and wants of designers are a way to measure the changing demands of the fashion industry.

“You don't necessarily have to already know how to walk when we cast you for the show, but you have to have a flexible enough schedule so that we can get you ready. If we like your look, we're going to train you, we're going to get you ready for the show. And speaking of looks, we're not just looking for 5’9- 5’10 anymore,” shared Baker. “As a matter of fact, some of the designers actually said to me, ‘I want an average size girl, I'm not really looking for double zeros.’ However, there are still some designers, mostly the ones from up north, they're looking for what we call an industry standard. And that is the girl who's five, eight and wears a two or four."

Baker said that now shows are starting to feature at least one plus sized model, which according to industry standards includes anyone who wears over sizes six- eight.

“The fashion industry has come so far. It used to be unless you had blond hair and blue eyes and you were a double zero. Your chances of walking into a fashion show were very limited. But now, you know, you have so many different resources out there and just so many smart people who are excited about fashion, they're starting to realize, there's really no label when it comes to a model in America. We're it doesn't matter what size you are anymore. It's all about attitude now,” concluded baker.

While Fashion Week is coming to an end, tickets are still available for Friday Night’s Sneaker Ball and for the full show on Saturday.

You can learn more about the Sneaker Ball here and The 2023 NCFW Fashion Show here.

You can also learn more about Metro Faces International here.

Find out more about Sew Fab Designs here.

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