In July this year, Siminetti were honoured to be approached by Eric Huling, LEED Green Associate of Daltile (USA), asking for our support with the IIDA Cosmo Couture charity event. In-conjunction with WDG Architecture (Washington) we would go on to create an award winning design team collaboration.
Both Daltile and WDG Architecture are leaders in their field, with WDG Architecture recently emerging as a leader in sustainability and green building practices. With each brand boasting unique, high quality identities; years of experience and pioneering design solutions, we definitely had a winning design team collaboration.
The Cosmo Couture show focusses on creating garments that, each year, reflect different themes. This year’s theme was based around Environment, the concept presented on a much larger scale from showcasing the natural world as a whole, to a single focus on a particular geographical location.
2017 marked Cosmo Couture’s 8th Annual show, held at the Howard Theatre in Washington DC. Featuring direct collaborations between 24 teams of local Architects and Interior Design firms, along with their manufacturing partners within the Washington DC area. The Cosmo Couture Beneficiary donates the proceeds raised from the 800 attendees to various charities within the US.
This year’s proceeds were donated to the Rebuilding Together of Washington, DC (RTDC) a charity who makes free home repairs for low-income DC homeowners who are veterans, elderly, disabled or caring for young children in seriously deteriorating conditions. RTDC also helps to rebuild community facilities in the nation’s capital.Since the IIDA started Cosmo Couture back in 2009, over $100,000 has been donated to various charities across the US.
Having loved Siminetti’s range of mosaics, WDG Architecture and Daltile set about producing a dress and train, themed around Canyon, that would set the show alight.
Weeks of painstakingly intricate work, saw our design team fitting the individual mother-of-pearl mosaics to a Schluter-Systems membrane. Adorned with a breathtaking selection of Siminetti’s finest mosaics, taken from across our range of 19 different Freshwater and Saltwater colours, our collaboration was ready to hit the catwalk and face the judges.
Prior to hitting the catwalk, the nerve-wracking pre-judging took place backstage. This pre-judging offered each design team the chance to present their garment and concept. The panel of judges had the opportunity, at this stage, to see each teams design up close; touch the materials; check the craftsmanship and to ask team members any questions they may have.
The design entries were expertly judged by an elite panel of judges made up of, Michael McCarthy, Editor-in-Chief, DC Modern Luxury; Kim Ellen, Chief Washington Reporter and columnist for the Boston Herald, with her own bespoke label fashion design business; Fashion & Interior Stylist Stara Pezeshkian whose design vision features in countless local and international magazines. Also on the judging panel Janice Wallace, Editor-in-Chief of Façon Magazine,a digital fashion magazine and blog committed to sustainable and ethical practices; Matthew Hyatt, AIA, IIDA, LEED BD+C, Principal at Boston-based Bergmeyer, Matt’s professional work is focused on creating branded environments for college and university clients.
Audience Favourite (People’s Choice) Award
Awards were given to design teams across various categories such as: Best Performance, Best Performance, Best Use of Materials, Best Interpretation of Theme, Best Red Carpet Look and the coveted Audience Favourite (People’s Choice).
The finished result from our design team’s collaboration was spectacular and wowed the audience, Siminetti’s colour palette really bought the Canyon Environment theme alive. Taking home the Audience Favourite (People’s Choice) Award, it was a well deserved and fantastic result for our design team.
For more information on our design teams please visit their respective websites at www.wdgarch.com and www.daltile.com
WDG provides architecture, master planning and interior design from our offices in Washington, DC and Dallas, TX. Our award-winning work can be found in major metropolitan areas around the United States as well as overseas. We have a staff of more than 150 and have produced more than 500 major buildings, including commercial office, multifamily residential, higher education, institutional, hospitality, and mixed-use projects since our inception in 1938.
Daltile stands for beautiful design in every way possible. Because we believe the best design includes consideration for the environment, we believe in Greenworks™, our philosophy and commitment to helping create beautiful designs in ways that may also reduce environmental impact.
Further information about Siminetti can be found here – for further information on Siminetti products, please call our Worldwide Head Office on +44 (0)1386 897866 or email us on [email protected].
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