We issued a challenge to five local fashion designers: Take an old bridesmaid or mother-of-the-bride dress and turn it into something fashionable and wearable for a specific body type. It didn't matter if the finished garment was lingerie or a cocktail dress, but the design had to consist of at least 75 percent of the original garment.

(Yes, we're all addicted to Bravo's "Project Runway, " a contest for burgeoning young designers that we shamelessly ripped off to conduct this challenge.)

 

Now we're asking YOU to help us judge the results, choosing from the concoctions on the following pages.

 

Here's how the challenge went down. We assembled a collection of vintage, or simply outdated, bridesmaid and mother-of-the-bride dresses and let our contestants take turns making a selection from the pile. Each designer was assigned a specific body type to dress. Only one got a professional model. The rest were assigned ordinary, real-live women with petite, athletic and average builds - body types that are not the usual starting point for most designs.

 

The dresses were at least a decade old. So the biggest challenge was to create something contemporary and fresh. Our designers are all local independent types including a 2008 Washington University graduate, a mother of two working on getting her Spring 2009 line into boutiques and a late-blooming designer who left a civil engineering career. The designers took charge of crafting the look for their model with the help of a team of stylists from Salon Rouge at 2017 Chouteau Avenue.

 

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Ai Nguyen

22, St. Louis

 

Background • Works as an assistant technical designer for Soft Surroundings. Design grad of Washington University (2008).

 

Her style • Fitted contemporary. "I want my designs to show off women's curves. I don't like the focus on the stick anorexic model. So if someone doesn't have curves, I want to give them curves."

 

Design challenge • A dusty pink "great-grandma's dress" with a front split of chiffon down the chest, shoulder pads and pearl embroidery that "was all very hard to look at."

 

Finished design • "I totally remade this look about three times and started on this final look. I looked at all that pink and I knew I wanted to mix it with some natural browns and green. I had sleeves on my previous look, but it made it look kind of ballerina because of the pink, so I wanted to match her age and still be trendy and cute. I like to work with curves and my model was so fit and athletic that she doesn't have curves so I knew I'd make a dress. I designed the flower detail on the hem of the fabric by making six or seven flower sketches and then tracing it using broad brush strokes to make it painterly."

 

Why readers should vote for you • "If they really like my style - and not because they know me or they are my friend - and can truly look at the before and after and think, 'How in the world did she do that?' "

 

Model • Laurie Miller, 44, Clayton

 

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Miriam Coffey

24, St. Louis

 

Background • Designs for her own line, Miriam Coffey, www.miriamcoffey.com. Design graduate of Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore (2006)

 

Her style • Fantastically comfortable. "To be comfortable you don't have to look like it."

 

Challenge dress • A bright pink '80s polyester bridesmaid dress that was very "Pretty in Pink" (think prom with "Like a Virgin" blasting in an auditorium).

 

Finished design • "I wanted to make a party dress but still have that '80s feel. But even with the new empire-waist shape and the bright pink, it looked like a bridesmaid dress so I had to dye it. I used India ink to dye the top layer and at first it made me very nervous because it wasn't working. I don't normally work with polyester. I make a point of using organics and natural fibers, so this was a big challenge. Eventually, I dyed the panels in the front, and the petticoat (which you can't see) is ink-splattered for contrast. There's black tulle underneath for volume."

 

Why readers should vote for you • "I kick ass. No, really. I think I have definitely transformed this into something completely different. I found something the model wanted to wear, something that's different and something that's awesome. It's totally different than my usual style. I don't really do poofy."

 

Model • Latoshia Hope Morrow, 22, St. Louis

 

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Amy Johnson

38, Central West End

 

Background • Designs for her own label, KayOss Designs. Design graduate of Fashion Design Lab in Florence (1996); also holds a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from the University of Illinois.

 

Her style • Classy and fun. "I like things to look good on the person and then I want them to have a little extra fun and movement. I love skirts. It's all about being noticed and showing who you are."

 

Challenge dress • Fitted gunmetal satin wrap vest top and tent skirt of "prom" chiffon.

 

Finished design • "I wanted to create a slimming look because Ivy has a great shape, and I wanted to show that off. I cut down the skirt into pieces and hand-dyed the edges to create a downward "V" to create that dimension of length to draw the eye down the body. On top, I created a jersey top and put a fun, classy look around the collar. I also love hats, so I put a wide-brimmed elegant hat on her. I'm used to designing for my body (which is tall, lean and straight) so this was a real challenge to handle curves."

 

Why readers should vote for you • "It's about designing for women; if they love it, they should vote for it. In fashion a lot of things are made that are over-the-top and fun to see on the runway for the second, but no one would ever wear it. I try to create something dramatic but that people would still wear."

 

Model • Ivy Hartman, 32, Kirkwood

 

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Carmella "Mel" Simpson

39, University City

 

Background • Designer and owner of OD-diction Clothing Design Collective boutique, 214 North 18th Street. Design graduate of International Academy of Design in Chicago (2003).

 

Her style • Historically hip. "I like to take a historic time period and spin it into something wearable now, today."

 

Challenge garment • Deep blue mother-of-the-bride dress with shoulder pads and a boxy lace tunic.

 

Finished design • "I sat with the dress on a mannequin for a few days thinking, 'What am I gonna do with this?' Then I decided I was going for a 1940s 'Lady Sings the Blues' look. I wanted something that was really wearable for an adult. Then all these Joan Crawford films kept coming on TV and I knew that I needed opera gloves. It's a very adult, sophisticated cocktail dress."

 

Why readers should vote for you • "I created a great concept and an intricate design with lots of handwork."

 

Model • Renata Walsh, 27, Maplewood, Talent Plus/Centro talent and modeling agency

 

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Suzanne Lay

30, St. Peters

 

Background • Designs for her own label Suzanne Lay, www.suzannelay.com. Design graduate of Lindenwood University.

 

Her style • Purity versus temptation. "I like things comfortable but edgy. I don't really do everyday wear, even when I try, it ends up being dressier and a little more formal."

 

Challenge dress • Strapless wine silk chiffon bridesmaid dress with floor-length tiered skirt.

 

Finished design • "The hardest part was to do something that didn't just create a shorter version of what already existed. After I took it apart there really wasn't a lot of material. I worked to create something with ruffles that would be flattering on a petite model. I used the original bodice and then added layer after layer after layer of ruffle. You have to be very careful where things stop so that they don't make someone look shorter. It's hard to make ruffles that also elongate. I'm always known for my dresses, and I don't want to be a one-trick pony. So I thought it would be cool to create a top and pants." (The pants are made from a different material although she used lining from the dress to line the pockets and other make details.)

 

Why readers should vote for you • "I take my designing seriously, it's a passion. I've sewn since I was 8, and it's all I know and it's all I've ever wanted to do.

 

Model • Sarah Junk, 30, St. Charles

 

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Hair and Makeup styling for models and designers by Beth Gajda, Steven Huber and Kiamesha Lewis of Salon Rouge, 2017 Chouteau Avenue, St. Louis.

 

Location: Bogen Lofts, 1209 Washington Avenue, St. Louis