Fashionable Fundraising

The second annual Heels2Heal fashion show fundraiser was held Saturday at the home of Tom and Amy Wagner in La Jolla. The event was attended by over 200 guests and all of the proceeds will go toward helping the Angels Foster Family Network, a non-profit foster family agency that places abused and neglected infants and toddlers in loving homes throughout San Diego County.

The six young founding board members who started Heels2Heals two years ago, are dedicated philanthropists and fashionistas. The event offered food, a hosted bar (donated by numerous catering companies and restaurants), a live fashion show by celebrity clothing designer Alejandro Carlin and both silent and live auction items such as Double Happiness Jewelry and a week stay in a villa in Dubrovnik, Croatia,

“Heels2Heal started with myself and five of my friends. We’ve all done different charity work, but as young women we wanted to do something fun and fashion related in La Jolla. We’re all passionate about children and women. We researched and narrowed our non-profits to three. Eventually we all agreed on funding the Angels Foster Family Network. We decided to raise enough money to help provide them with a salary to hire another much- needed social worker.  We raised almost $40,000 last year, and we’re hoping to increase it this year,” says H2H founding board member Angela Davies.

Featured jewelry designer Stephanie Wells grew up in La Jolla. Her Double Happiness jewelry has been successfully selling at Anthropology for the last 10 years.

Wells became involved with Heels2Heal because it’s an event that she says is close to her heart.

“We’ve donated many of our Double Happiness pieces for the silent auction and we’re selling at our wholesale prices. We love being apart of H2H because so much of what we do is about women. We work with Becky’s House and make jewelry with the women there," Wells says.

Clothing designer Alejandro Carlin flew himself into San Diego from Mexico City to be apart of last night’s event. He says he believes in what H2H is trying to do, and he’s a close friend with board member Nahieli Caldwell—the two met in his hometown of Monterrey, Mexico where Carlin owns a boutique. He also owns a boutique in Mexico City.

Last night Carlin presented his Fall/Winter 2011 collection called Fleurs D’hiver (winter flowers). Carlin describes the new line as a sexy, sophisticated, and glamorous collection. He says the line "defies society, is both nostalgic and melancholic, and represents their love story and the power of women".

The dresses were mostly in shades of grays, creams, and blacks, with the occasional pops of pale pink. Since waistlines were dropped and many were backless, the silhouette had a very 1920’s feel.  

As the evening came to an end and DJ Shine packed up his turntables, the all under 40 and sexy board women of Heels2Heal, learned the event had raised more than $60,000 for Angels Foster Family Network.

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