Compliments of the Barbados Advocate Web Posted - Fri Jul 22 2005

By Nigel Wallace

The incredible designs of Ms Fitness Barbados 2005, Ciji Blacket and well known local design house Simon-Peter, created an exciting air to a family oriented beach party, celebrating the diversity of the Monin line of Drink syrups.

The incredible fruit based flavours of the Monin line of drink syrups provided a host of tasty treats, which provided a mellow and relaxed air to the Arts and Fashion Festival, which took place at the Blue Monkey Bar and Restaurant on Sunday, July 17.

Popular for their presence at Barbados leading coffee houses, the Monin line of products was showcasing its diversity last Sunday, as it was enjoyed with cocktails, sorbets and even champagne, according to Vaneta Mack-Trotman,office manager for Monin distributors, the West India Coffee Company.

As patrons to this event lazed on the Paynes Bay beach, which transformed from Sunny to overcast, to enjoy the incredible flavours of Monin, several models hustled and bustled about, in preparation for an incredible fashion event.The models trotted down a tiled runway that way layered onto the beach.

Designer Ciji Blacket was right at home at the beach, and her popular line of swimwear was a definite crowd pleaser. Simon-Peter were quite happy to maintain this feeling and their line, Bubbles, was light, breezy and right at home on the warm sands and placid ocean of Barbados West Coast.

With all eyes on the lovely designs and models strutting the runway, one final fashion surprise awaited patrons to this event, as John Hunte, representative of the Pulse Entertainment Group here in Barbados, singled out some of the models and officially launched the Barbados leg of the Caribbean Model Search.

When the show was over, the drinks continued to flow and further spectacle was created as the beautiful models of the Arts and Fashion Festival, retired to the shoreline to shoot some scenes for the Simon-Peter DVD shoot.

Simon-Peter collection @ Caribbean Fashion Week 2004