Kentucky Derby celebrated by rising-star designer with glittering fashion on 'Runway for the Roses'
Fashion designer Mel Stern of Massachusetts has stitched together a glittering niche at the glamorous nexus of sports and pop culture.
She counts Brittany Mahomes, wife of NFL star Patrick Mahomes, and TV personality Countess Luann from "The Real Housewives of New York" among the fans of her fashion line, Mel the Clothing.
Country star Jelly Roll and NHL hotshot David Pastrnak of the Boston Bruins have both been spotted celebrating Stern's fashions.
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Her style trots across the "Runway for the Roses" on Saturday in Boston. It’s a celebration of the Kentucky Derby while also raising money for local charity.
"I was always the person that showed up at a party wearing something eccentric or something that I created," Stern told Fox News Digital.
Her inspirations?
"I love sparkles and glitter and sports," said Stern.
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She was working as a fashion copywriter, stitching together dreams in her spare time, when she arrived at the Nantucket Wine Fest, a swanky festival on the Massachusetts resort island.
"I wore a sparkly champagne bottle design and like a zillion women came up and asked, ‘Where did you buy that?’" said Stern.
"My friends said, ‘Come on, already. This is your passion. You have to do this!"
The breakout moment for Mel the Clothing (@mel_the_clothing on Instagram) came during this past NFL season.
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Television cameras caught a celebratory moment in the luxury boxes of a Kansas City Chiefs game.
Taylor Swift and Brittay Mahomes jumped up to cheer together.
In Mahomes' arms was her toddler, wearing a glittering little red Chiefs jersey designed by Mel the Clothing.
"Mel's personality really shines through in her clothes," said Matt Ribaudo, publisher of BostonMan Magazine.
The publication hosts the Runway for the Roses at The Sporting Club at the Omni Boston Seaport Hotel.
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The event is being held in tandem with the Greg Hill Foundation, a charity founded by Boston radio personality Greg Hill, and with Woodford Reserve Kentucky bourbon.
More than a dozen models sporting Stern's Derby-day fashions will stroll across the Runway for the Roses, while guests get ready to cheer the Run for the Roses.
The former fashion copywriter often incorporates pithy phrases into her designs.
"Talk Derby To Me" reads the white lettering on one blue dress; "Maye the Horse Be With You" declares the words on another black Darth Vader-like design.
It's a reference to "Star Wars," the classic movie often celebrated on May 4th, this year also the date of the Kentucky Derby.
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It's also a salute to recent New England Patriots draft pick, quarterback Drake Maye.
"It's my way to welcome him to Boston," said Stern.
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