FashFest 2014: Face of FashFest 2014 officially announced

There has been quite a bit of buzz about who the face of FashFest 2014 would be, and I have to say that from the mere glimpses that the FashFest team were releasing across their social media platforms, I was genuinely intrigued to see who would be the face that launched the event this year.

On Tuesday this week the mystery was cleared up, and Canberra's own Belinda Riding was announced as the face of this year's event.

Credits: Belinda Riding on location at the award-winning Canberra Airport  Designer: Karen Lee of Karen Lee (sold at Assemblage Project) Hair: Wayne Friend, Form Makeup: Karen Mathias, M:Artisty Styling: Fashfest

I think that the best thing about Belinda being the face of FashFest 2014 (and there are a lot of good things about this decision), is that she is a Canberran native. Not only was she discovered here, but after cutting her teeth internationally and working with an impressive slew of international Fahion houses (Azzedine Alaia, Sonja Rykiel, Miissoni), Riding returned to Canberra with her husband and children! I think that it is so important to have this local connection in our events, especially for something home-grown and produced like FashFest, and I really congratulate the team for choosing Riding as the face of 2014.

Today Riding works here in Canberra as the Manager and Co-Director of Alan White Anthology—an online enterprise she started with her husband in 2008. The Anthology supplies hairdressers, salons and the public with premium imported hair products from around the world, and I have just discovered that they sell my current obsession, Uppercut Deluxe.

So, clearly, you know, she has amazing taste.

On top of being amazingly talented, and a stunner.

Sidenote- Can we talk about the amazing Karen Lee dress in this image? I am dying! I want a menswear top made out of that material...

I'll leave you with Riding's own words about being announced as the Face of 2014, and my final statement that i cannot wait to see her in action at FashFest later this year.

‘It’s an honour to participate in Fashfest,’ says Belinda. ‘Designers and models need a serious and professional platform like this to showcase their work, gain experience and flourish in the industry. That’s why it’s fantastic that Canberra now has Fashfest. It’s the biggest fashion event held here—our own version of Sydney Fashion Week, Melbourne Fashion Festival and Brisbane Fashion Festival.’

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