Pageant Video Blog
This past weekend I had the opportunity to watch the beautiful ladies of Alabama compete for the coveted title of Miss Alabama Teen USA 2016.
Winning this year’s Miss Alabama Teen USA 2016 crown is Erin Snow (Gadsden). Erin will compete alongside 50 other young ladies from across the country for the title of Miss Teen USA 2016. Watch Erin’s crowning moment below!
Video by Zac Grimaldo/PixelBroom Studios. Photo by Miss Alabama USA/RPM Productions.
-Will the Pageant Guy
This past weekend I had the opportunity to watch over 100 young ladies from across the Lone Star state compete for the coveted title of Miss Texas USA 2016.
Winning this year's Miss Texas USA 2016 crown is Daniella Rodriguez (Central Webb County) and former Miss Texas Teen USA 2013. Daniella becomes only the 6th woman to Texas history to hold both Miss Texas USA and Miss Texas Teen USA titles. Watch Daniella's crowning moment below!
Video by Zac Grimaldo/PixelBroom Studios. Photo by Miss Texas USA/The Crystal Group.
-Will the Pageant Guy
Katherine Haik is athletic, artistic and academic. Katherine loves playing sports; she has been playing softball for 11 years and basketball for eight years. Dance is also very important to Katherine, she has been dancing for 12 years and is on The Dancer's Edge competition team and her high school dance team.
Katherine was inspired by her grandmother to become an artist and pianist. She is in talented art at her high school and has been playing the piano for five years. Since Katherine began modeling she has participated in New Orleans Fashion Week for four seasons, modeled for Sherri Hill, was featured in an editorial in Scene Magazine and has done print work for many designers.
Although Katherine is very involved in a variety of activities, academics always come first. She has maintained a 4.0 GPA and is very involved in Beta Club. Throughout this year she has gained a passion for working with children who have special needs by working with many organizations. (Bio and photo by Miss Universe Organization)
Special thanks to Nia Sanchez for the interview and Zac Grimaldo for video.
-Will the Pageant Guy
Last month during the Miss USA 2015 pageant, I had the amazing opportunity to spend 5 days, capturing on photos and video, all of the Miss Teen USA 2015 contestants during their visit to Baton Rouge.
From spending time at the Childrens’ Hospital, to enjoying Louisiana’s finest food at a crawfish boil — and all of the amazing events in between — the Miss Teen USA 2015 contestants truly had an incredible weekend together building new friendships before competing at the Miss Teen USA 2015 pageant on August 22nd.
Many thanks to the Miss Universe Organization for allowing us to document these great moments on video, to Blair Bongiovanni for organizing a hospitable and fun-filled week, Zac Grimaldo for his talented video production, every sponsor that participated throughout the week, and to all of the Miss Teen USA 2015 contestants for making the Miss USA 2015 weekend an unforgettable one!
Here’s a short film of the Miss Teen USA 2015 contestants at Miss USA 2015 in Baton Rouge. Enjoy!
-Will the Pageant Guy
GUEST BLOG: Gown designer Joey Galon
My name is Joey Galon, originally born and raised in San Francisco, California. I received my B.A. degree in Fashion from San Francisco State University. In my senior year of college, I interned in the Special Events Department for I.Magnin, working with some of the greatest designers from Givenchy, Carolina Herrera, Thierry Mugler, and so many more. After graduating college, I relocated to Southern California working at Neiman Marcus Beverly Hills and got to work with Valentino, Escada and many more fashion designers.
I took a bit of a diversion in my career and started planning corporate & sports related events, eventually pulling me away from the fashion world. 25+ years in the special events industry, I had a deep yearning to design some gowns of which I officially launched my line at the last "True Beauty Expo" a beauty expo hosted during the Miss USA pageant week in Las Vegas.
I remember feeling so intimidated looking at the other booths of amazing fashion design icons like Sherri Hill, Tony Bowls, Carlos Alberto and many more established pageant gown designers. Always envisioning one day, I will have a gown on the Miss USA competition stage.
Fast forward to today, I was approached less than a week out from our reigning Miss Nevada departing to Baton Rouge for her official Miss USA competition journey. I had designed a gown for a previous Miss Nevada USA, Jade Kelsall who loved the gown I made for her that she texted a photo of it to Shanna Moakler, Executive Director for the Miss Nevada USA pageant.
Shanna asked if I could make a gown for Brittany McGowan before she departed. I took on the challenge and made my promise to design, construct and have a gown ready for Brittany by the time she departed for Baton Rouge.
Shanna was open to my direction and design, so I at least had some creative freedom to create a special dress representing my state of Nevada. We chose silver as Brittany would be representing the Silver State of Nevada. I found some incredible lace fabric and saw a design that I felt would best compliment her figure.
I had also made the detachable Edwardian train of platinum silver dupioni silk. I've always loved working with this fabric as I love how light it is that it flows well and at the same time has great body and form when it drapes.
Brittany was so inundated with her last week that unfortunately, she wasn't able to meet me earlier in the week. I literally sent her a measurement sheet to fill out and then from there, we cut the fabric to make her gown. She arrived back into town on Friday as a going away party was planned for her that night.
Before she left for her send off party, she tried the gown on and it fit like a glove. I then took the gown and applied (by hand...one by one) thousands Swarovski crystals throughout the gown.
The gown is very sheer and I used a very light liner, so I reinforced some areas on her body with extra cut out lace appliques.
Basically, the gown was ready for her by the time she departed. This was the fastest gown I designed and turned around for delivery to any client.
Because Brittany had the gown for a very short time, she didn't have any prior rehearsals in the gown. She literally was practicing her walk and detaching her train in the hotel hallway.
I had Brittany's gown commissioned by a local Nevada designer, Joey Galon, three days before she left for Miss USA. I discussed the style and cut with him and chose the color and fabric! He was fantastic in executing it so quickly!When Brittany first put it on, she had that magical moment and just knew that was her dress! We thought the detachable train would be fun and dramatic. You could tell when she walked out she simply felt beautiful and for me that is the whole purpose of evening gown competition!
-Shanna Moakler, Executive Director of the Miss Nevada USA pageant
While watching the telecast of the Miss USA pageant, it was so surreal watching Brittany make it up the ranks as finalist. I just wanted to see my gown on tv and certainly, the goal was accomplished.
Truly it was a magical experience as I had set out a goal to have a gown on the Miss USA stage and here I had the opportunity.
I could've easily declined allowing my fear and/or doubt get the best of me due to the lack of time....but I trudged forward and stayed committed to creating this gown for Brittany and finally, fulfilling my dream of a gown at Miss USA.
I will eternally grateful to Jade Kelsall (Miss Nevada USA 2012), Shanna Moakler and for Brittany McGowan for taking a chance on me and providing me with such a golden opportunity -- the chance to fulfill one of my greatest dreams.
I'm just building my evening gown design company....one dress at a time!
Look out world.....my goal is to have my company name up there in the rankings with all the other great pageant gown establishments.
Rebecca Dunn is an anchor for Newsy.com and is seen nationally on TV and online. Rebecca graduated in May 2014 from the University of Missouri with a degree in Communication Science and Disorders, where she was a Dean's List scholar. During her time as an undergrad she founded a mentorship program called 'Mizzou for You' to help peers who have special needs transition from high school to the ‘real world'. Rebecca is well-traveled and hopes her adventures continue. She has studied abroad in Europe and went on a mission trip to Africa where she visited orphanages in Kenya and Malawi.
Rebecca is passionate about orphan care and hopes to make orphanages less of a process and more of a home in the future. Rebecca recently created a YouTube channel and video blog called “Huddle Up” because at the end of the day, we’re all on the same team. Life is competitive but Rebecca believes if we continue to uplift one another and act like teammates, nobody will ever lose. Video by Zac Grimaldo/PixelBroom Studios. (Bio by Miss Universe Organization)