Jamesetta | Fashion in Virginia Beach; Pharrell honored

Virginia Beach is setting the stage for global fashion.

The International Promenade of World Fashion and Arts will take place at 6 p.m. April 18 at the Sheraton Oceanfront Ballroom. The fundraiser is the first for the newly formed Sister Cities Association of Virginia Beach.

The cities are: Miyazaki, Japan; Moss, Norway; Olongapo, Philippines; and North Down Borough, Northern Ireland. Also, San Juan del Sur, Nicaragua, is a "friendship city," meaning it is has not completed all of the qualifications to become a full sister city.

Virginia Beach cannot hold fundraisers, so a tax-exempt entity in support of the sister cities program needed to be created, said City Clerk Ruth Hodges Fraser, president of the SCAVB.

The extravaganza includes dinner, a silent auction and a fashion show. Each of the members will present six cultural-specific looks.

Dan Ryan's for Men and Dillard's will provide apparel for the American fashion segment.

The event is billed as formal, which I question based on recent experiences in which I've followed the stipulation yet wound up overdressed.

Semi-formal is acceptable, Fraser said. Formal was only stated because "everybody in the show is going to be dressed formal in their native attire, so we thought it would be nice for others to be as well," she said.

Seeing as how this is in Virginia Beach, perhaps tuxedo shorts, a la Pharrell Williams, are good enough.

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Speaking of Pharrell...

Pharrell Williams can add another feather to his hat. The Council of Fashion Designers of America has selected the music artist to receive its Fashion Icon Award.

Williams has made as much of a name for himself in fashion as he has in music. He has two clothing lines - Billionaire Boys and ICE CREAM. He debuted a collaborative collection, Raw for the Oceans, with the G-Star Raw brand in September during New York Fashion Week. The collection features denim made from plastic reclaimed from the ocean. Williams, a Beach native, touted his connection with the ocean when the collection was released.

CFDA has made the right choice in selecting Williams.

Hard to argue 2014 wasn't the "Year of Fashion According to Pharrell." He made waves with his now-signature oversized mountain hat, first wearing it for charity to the Grammys. A few weeks later, he sported another one, paired with tuxedo shorts, to the Oscars. He now regularly wears a park-ranger-style topper in his role as a judge on NBC's "The Voice."

The honor will be presented to Williams at New York's Lincoln Center on June 1.