The results are in! Here, the winners of the 25th Annual CFDA Awards! (Check your CFDA score card to see if you guessed correctly!). In a surprising twist, Oscar de la Renta and Proenza Schouler’s Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough tied for Womenswear Designer of the Year! (Extra-special congradts go to the lovely Jessie Randall of Loeffler Randall who at nearly 8 months pregnant (with twins!!) was on hand to accept the award.)

Now, as reports and photos of the evening flood the web, start to trickle out into next week’s tabloid glossies, and finally, months later, turn up in your trusty fashion magazines, you might wonder Fashion awards? Who—and what—gives? Such wondering is understandable as while the style set has a bad rap at being competitive, they aren’t prone to competitions per se. But the CFDA Awards serve a valuable purpose for several reasons. Here are the top 3 that I can think of:

Kate Bosworth (center) and Proenza Schouler’s Jack & Lazaro

1) They remind us that the American designers can play ball in the fashion Olympics.

For years, American designers had to fight for legitimacy in the international fashion scene, as the storied French and Italian houses set a standard few thought could be reproduced by those on the other side of the pond. But after ’40s designer Claire McCardell and her peers pioneered sportswear–those stretchy, comfy-yet-chic essentials we all know and love—the importance of American design has rarely been called into question. (Rarely might be an overstatement, but for the sake of this argument I’m going to pretend to be short-sighted.) Anyhow, the CFDA Awards are a place where we can celebrate our own, without the fussy French or talkative Italians trying to steal the spotlight. Three cheers for Proenza, Ralph, and Oscar!

Michael Kors and his angels: Heidi Klum, Liya Kebede, and Debra Messing

2) They remind us that designers are just like us—or at least how we were in high school. And that’s kinda cute.
Much like your high school year book’s Best Dressed-esque superlative honors (and not unlike the Screen Actors Guild Awards in Hollywood) the CFDA Fashion Designer Awards nominations are submitted and voted on by a select group of fashion designers and editors. So in a way, it’s a merit-meets-popularity contest, but in this case, I think it’s OK. Those that pay their dues in the garment district for years then graduate onto their own store, advertising campaign, and full-on fashion house, totally deserve some props. (And those that slave away fetching samples or chained to a desk for decades, have earned the right to flex their style expertise in another forum.) Continuing this comparison, the awards banquet & bash is a good excuse to get all dudded up and party, Senior Prom style. Just look at Michael Kors and his 3 delectable dates; you can’t tell me that you and your high school chums didn’t vamp for the cameras a la Charlie’s Angels too!

Karen Elson & a well-rested Zac Posen

3) They remind us what designers really look like.
So often the only time we have a chance to get a good look at the person behind our favorite bag/shoe/skirt/entire wardrobe is when they waltz out on the runway after their fashion show. But after a show—ie after a week+ of running on 1 hour’s sleep, too much caffeine, and the gut-wrenching stress that the samples might not be finished on tim—isn’t always the most flattering moment for a close-up. But for the CFDA awards, which falls in between the spring and fall seasons, designers have plenty of time to relax and prettify themselves. And you know what? In addition to being ridiculously talented, they’re all really good looking and glamorous. It’s kind of unnerving, but then again, we’ve come to expect nothing less of the good ole American fashion crew. x S.C.

The Olsens

CFDA President Diane Von Furstenberg & CFDA Honoree Ralph Lauren

WOMENSWEAR DESIGNER OF THE YEAR:
Tie: Oscar de la Renta and
Lazaro Hernandez and Jack McCollough for Proenza Schouler

MENSWEAR DESIGNER OF THE YEAR:
Ralph Lauren

ACCESSORY DESIGNER OF THE YEAR:

Derek Lam

Derek Lam

SWAROVSKI AWARD FOR WOMENSWEAR:
Phillip Lim

SWAROVSKI AWARD FOR MENSWEAR:
David Neville and Marcus Wainwright for Rag & Bone

SWAROVSKI AWARD FOR ACCESSORY DESIGN:
Jessie Randall for Loeffler Randall

EUGENIA SHEPPARD AWARD:
Robin Givhan, The Washington Post

INTERNATIONAL AWARD:
Pierre Cardin

GEOFFREY BEENE LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD:
Robert Lee Morris

ELEANOR LAMBERT AWARD:
Patrick Demarchelier

CFDA BOARD OF DIRECTORS’ SPECIAL TRIBUTE:
Bono and Ali Hewson

AMERICAN FASHION LEGEND AWARD:
Ralph Lauren

Love This Story? Buzz It Up Here!

Stumble It! Save to del.icio.us Digg Email Facebook