Last Saturday, March 31, the 10th annual Love Your Mother Eco Fashion Show was held at Marsh Landing Country Club in Ponte Vedra Beach. Produced by the Cultural Center at Ponte Vedra Beach, the fundraiser was a celebration of “Mother Earth,” featuring fantastical outfits fashioned from various recycled objects and materials.
“We gather here today to celebrate creativity as we fulfill our mission for the Cultural Center,” said Donna Guzzo, executive director of the Cultural Center. “And our mission for the Cultural Center is to bring the arts into the lives of the community in three categories: art education, exhibits … and, very close to my heart, the outreach program that we do—music therapy for children with special needs.”
Held in St. Augustine in previous years, this year marked the show’s Ponte Vedra Beach debut. Twelve designers and design groups participated in the event, including opening show designer Lucero Gleaton, 9-year-old Ayla Gray of Ayla's Industrials, the Douglas Anderson School of the Arts, Jennifer McManaway, Donna McCarthy, Halle Elizabeth, Laura O'Neal, Robin Hottinger, Erin Healy Designs, St. Augustine Fashion Week Founder Brittany Alphonso, Ejo Fox, Colleen Loughlin, Susan Cafiso and Juliana Koutouzakis. Materials used included aluminum cans, plastic bags, newspapers, bubble wrap, dryer lint, unlucky lottery tickets and more. The show concluded with the Cultural Center’s custom line, “The Painter,” designed by Koutouzakis and artist Mario Della Penta using painted canvases.
Professional photographs of the show’s outfits are currently on display at the Cultural Center for visitors to view and purchase and will remain on exhibit through April 21. For more information about the Cultural Center at Ponte Vedra Beach, visit www.ccpvb.org.
