On October 12, the International Interior Design Association – Mid America Chapter hosted its ninth annual Color + Couture event at Starlight Theatre. Architecture and interior design firms from all over Kansas City designed and created outfits inspired by the Pantone Color of the Year, Radiant Orchid.

Since mid-September, a corner of BNIM’s Kansas City office has looked more like a fashion design studio than an architecture firm. Sketches of elaborate garments donned the walls of a cubicle where a sewing machine was tucked into the corner. Thread and scraps of fabric littered the floor, while scissors and measuring tape were within an arm’s reach on the desk. A handful of BNIMers spent countless lunches and some late night hours in this space, sketching, pinning and sewing in preparation for the big runway show.

About 30 teams competed in this year’s event. Each team received a box that contained assorted materials from a participating manufacturer, such as fabric, tile, or veneer, and one of the box’s contents was in Radiant Orchid. The objective was to make an haute couture outfit that featured the Radiant Orchid color and was mostly constructed from the materials in the box. BNIM’s box contained fabric and walnut wood veneer from DesignTex and its parent company, Steelcase.

“We were the twentieth team to get our name drawn, so we thought we were going to be last and get the worst box,” said Ashley Lawrence, who co-led BNIM’s Color + Couture team. “As we were sitting there, thinking about all of the horrible things that could’ve happened when our name was drawn, we were both like, ‘What if we get veneer? That would be so cool. They should have a box of veneer.’ And then we get the box of veneer!”

“We had a moment of ESP and we just knew somehow we would get veneer,” added Emily Kruse, who also led the team. “Some boxes only had tile. No fabric, no dress base – just tile, and 70 percent of the outfit had to be made from what was in the box.”

In addition to Ashley and Emily, Barb Cugno, Jan Duffendack, Vanessa Douthat, Lauren Garrott, Janelle Kimsey, Carly Pumphrey and Kyle Rogler also worked on the garment.

As with any design, the look of the dress changed multiple times throughout several weeks. At some of their first meetings, BNIM’s Color + Couture team resolved to make a dress that embodied the Radiant Orchid theme – maybe a little too much.

“We were convinced we would make this dress look like an orchid,” Emily said.

However, after several variations that included a giant hoop made of veneer, the team finally settled on a design. Lauren, a former BNIM intern, modeled the final product: a sleek, fringe sheath dress in Radiant Orchid that exploded with vivid color whenever she twirled down the runway. A geometric piece made out of the walnut veneer was accented with small pops of vibrant purple hues and rested on Lauren’s shoulders.

Contestants’ could win trophies in multiple categories, including People’s Choice, Judge’s Choice, and Most Innovative Use of Material. BNIM did not take home any trophies that night, but that hasn’t stopped the team from looking ahead to next year.

“I think the people that won are ones that used technology to manipulate their designs, and they were really well-made,” Emily said.

Adds Ashley, “For next year, I think we’ll just continue to think outside the box.”

The culmination of the team’s hard work was at the Color + Couture fashion show, where they were finally able to see the dress come to life. After some technical difficulty at rehearsal, the team was anxious to see how their vision would play out on the runway.

“It didn’t really come together until she was walking down the runway at the show,” Emily said. “At rehearsal, our music wasn’t right, and she barely had one time to practice, so we had to talk it out. I just told her to spin.”

“I think she heard us say, ‘just spin’ a thousand times,” Ashley said.

“But it was perfect when she walked the runway. She spun in time to the music – it was perfect,” Emily said.

“For me, the moment when I got really excited was backstage after we took the photographs,” Ashley said. “[Our model, Lauren, stood against] a white backdrop, and we were taking videos of her just spinning with our iPhones, watching it in slow-motion. Seeing her with everything—her hair, her makeup, the dress—was just amazing once I saw all of that together.”