Fashion Industry Forum

If you walked onto the second floor of the Presbytere on Saturday (March 21) at just the right moment, it may have felt that Carnival was still going on. In one area, Lords of Leather's Troy Powell and Tommy Stubblefield unveiled their award-winning costumes, while other rooms showcased the Louisiana State Museum's permanent Carnival exhibition, and two rooms featured a new exhibition, "From the Big Apple to the Big Easy: Two Carnival Artists," which was the reason for an early-evening soiree co-sponsored by Friends of the Cabildo and Fashion Week NOLA.

The exhibition presents the work of two costume designers: Helen Clark Warren, who designed from the 1930s to the 1950s, and John Scheffler, who designed from the 1950s to the '90s. Both lived in New York, but created New Orleans Carnival krewes' royal ensembles, ranging from simple to over-the-top. (Of note: Check out the sketches for the queens and maids prom dresses for the krewes of Aphrodite and Alla). The designers' daughters -- Linda Nelson and Jean Aprans -- attended the opening of this exhibition, on view through December 2016, that was organized by the museum's Wayne Phillips, Curator of Costumes and Textiles/Curator of Carnival Collections.