The 2015 Independent Handbag Designer Awards are next week, June 17th, 2015, and will be held at the School of the Visual Arts Theatre in NYC (333 W 23rd Street) at 8 pm. I am ecstatic that I will have the privilege to attend this prestigious ceremony. If anyone would actually like to attend, you can too as well!
Click here to purchase tickets!
Founded in 2007 by Handbag Designer 101, the IHDAs were created to celebrate handbag design and creativity from around the world. The IHDA is the only international design competition of its kind, receiving lots of great press over the years, and and is a platform for putting new designer talent on the map. Now in its ninth year, it is an industry staple responsible for high profile collaborations and hundreds of success stories.
This year, Rebecca Minkoff will be honored with the 2015 ICONOCLAST Award. 40 finalists in 8 categories will be present. Huge prizes are at stake, such as a feature in the September issue of InStyle (Event Sponsor), potential partnerships with Guess, MaryKay Cosmetics, and Trina Turk. Also, the “Best Overall” will receive a feature on the digital e-commerce platform EVINE Live.
Here are the 2015 finalists across the 8 categories — (all pictures in order of listing for each category)
The EVINE Live Best Handbag in Overall Style & Design
The Trina Turk Best Studentmade Handbag
- Laura Sabolich
- Danielle Gumina – GRIP Handbags
- Nathalia Jacques
- Kyungmi Bae – Angie.Bae
- Blake Felty – Timson Rad
Bernina Best Hand-Made Handbag
- Boris Matveev – Kabo Leather
- Gina DeWolfe – deWolfe
- Christina Banjo – Christina Chi
- Kamon Satayaphanitkul Sataya
- WILLaCY by Kamilah Willacy
Klean Kanteen Best Green Handbag
- Sugandh Agrawal – GUNAS
- Jennifer Silbert & Lisa Siedlecki – Rewilder
- Janis Lee New York
- Ian James
- Deneau – Hanna Varner
Fashion 4 Development Most Socially Responsible Handbag
- Dora Izquierdo – DOIZPE
- Lea Forteza – Forteza
- Ana Maria Plata – Leonor
- Gbemisola Johnson – O’Eclat Designs
- Eileen Garcia
Distinctly Denim by Guess Handbags
- Marylai New York
- Carmen Nieto
- Alicia Rojas Valdivia – Paykunapaq
- Claire Patrick
- TESSA SPIELHOFFER
The Standout & Look Great Work Bag by MOO
- Jennifer Hamley, England
- Minjung Kim – Bona M. Kim
- Susanne Breul – BREUL Lefties’ Finest
- Erica Harel
- April Rose LaFave – Hebe Rose
The MARYKAY Most Irresistible Makeup Bag
- Amy Steele & Janine Cooper
- Tika Kuchukhidze – TIKA
- Emilia Arzua & Carla Lopez
- Alyssa Fisherden – ACF
- Monica Frisbie – Mondrina
The 2015 preliminary judges panel is made up of the top industry influencers and bloggers —
- Colin McDonald — NYC PR firm owner
- Nancy Forman — owner & operator of The Accessory Think Tank
- Lolita Alford — Social media marketing whiz
- Emma Grady — personal stylist and award winning fashion writer
- Lois Sakany — Founder & editor of TheSnobette
- Samia Grand Pierre — Editor of TheSnobette
- Celia San Miguel — Bilingual style & beauty expert
- Dawn Del Russo — stylist, on-air fashion expert and tv personality, recently seen on Glamour Magazine show “Dressed to Kill”
- Pamela Pekerman — fashion and lifestyle expert
- Grace Gold — multimedia beauty journalist
- Lidia Z. — founder of StylingOn
- Adriana Marie Quaranto — started a new company called AMCONYC which is the go-to platform for emerging designers, millennials and entrepreneurs
- Carey Reilly — Comedian, TV Host, and Actress
So make sure to tweet or message to any brands you know a congrats for making it as a finalist and send them encouraging words to wish them luck for next week! In the meantime, check out pictures from last year’s ceremony and who the finalists and winners were last year. From Fashion Nexus, GOOD LUCK to all of the designer finalists this year as I am a huge supporter of independent and/or emerging fashion designers!
Remember, click here to purchase tickets!
This year’s sponsors are — InStyle, Guess, Rebecca Minkoff, Trina Turk, Signal Brands, Bernia, EVINE Live, Moo, Mary Kay, Klean Kanteen, Fashion 4 Development, Basic Adhesives Leather, Affinia, Garment District NYC, Pantone, WWD Magic, Hilldun, Leather Suede Skins, Bottomless Closet, Tassen Museum, The Fashion Class, Save the Garment Center, Accessory Think Tank, & Accessories Council.
