The Velvet Room Boutique (2248 West 41st Avenue) “Design A Dress” contest is open to aspiring designers who have less than two years trade or professional experience and are 18 years or older.

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Choose one of the below events and submit a design for a dress that fits the criteria described. Participants may include sketches, pictures, flats and fabric selections in their submissions. Participants may submit designs for one or more of the categories for a maximum of three submitted designs.

• Gala: Design a floor length dress for a black tie gala or awards night (size six)
• Wedding: Design a dress that can be worn to a daytime wedding and evening reception (size eight)
• Birthday: Design an age appropriate dress that the Birthday Gal can wear to her 40th or 50th Birthday Bash. (Curvy size eight)

Initial submissions are due at 6pm on Friday March 26, 2010. For more information, click here.

Students, got some time on your hands? Here’s an exciting new contest to fill your post-Olympic depression! During this week of Olympic hangover, why not shift your focus to something new and exciting, such as the chance to win 1 of 3 VIP trips Down Under with Tourism Australia and Talentegg.ca?! If you’re a Canadian student, this new contest is a simple way to win an awesome Aussie adventure this summer, where you can Spend 3 weeks in Australia with VIP access to the hottest destinations for a “Social”, “Adventure”, or “Wildlife” itinerary of your choice!
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All you have to do, is submit a fun 60-second video about why Australia is perfect for you. Submit it to www.campusperks.ca, and get your friends and MMV readers to vote for your video! Find out more about the contest and submit today at www.campusperks.ca!

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If you’ve ever caught yourself (or a friend) treating the sidewalk like a runway, the “Wear Else New Face Contest” is for you. Simply email Wear Else your picture and a line or two on why you think you, or someone you know, should be the new face of Wear Else. Ten finalists will be invited for a professional styling and photo shoot, and the finalists’ best pictures will be posted on the Wear Else website, where shoppers and fans can vote for a winner.
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What’s in it for you? The winner will not only receive a $2,500 shopping spree, photo shoot and VIP status at Wear Else, but she’ll also be featured in a Wear Else advertising campaign, on the website and on any television appearances.
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Contest closes on December 15 at midnight. Send two digital images, including one full body shot, and a few sentences on why you (or your friend) should be the new face of Wear Else to newface@wearelse.com. Pictures must be in jpeg, tiff or png format and no larger than 1MB each. Contestants must reside in the Lower Mainland.

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Spend on Trend was one of the first events I ever wrote about on Modern Mix Vancouver, and it was the friendly guidance and support from Nicole Stewart (the PR representative behind this event) which taught me a lot more about the local fashion and media industry.
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Now, Spend on Trend is back again and Modern Mix Vancouver readers can get first dibs on this trendy exhibition event, featuring Canadian designers and their arts, crafts, clothing, jewelry, accessories and more! From August 21-23, shoppers can head down to the Scotia Bank Dance Centre (677 Davie Street) to, quite literally, “spend on trend”. Tickets to this event are regularly $5 at the door, but one lucky MMV reader will have a chance to get postal-mailed a pair of tickets, directly to their door.
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All you have to do is email info@modernmixvancouver.com and tell me what your favorite reason for shopping local is! Submissions will be drawn at random and the winner will be notified in the first week of August!!
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For MMV’s media coverage of Spend on Trend 2008, click here.

Stop by Holt Renfrew (737 Dunsmuir Street) on May 30th between 1pm and 4pm to enter a styling competition in partnership with FASHION magazine:

• Clients are invited to bring a friend (as their model) and dress them (”style them”) in Holt Renfrew contemporary fashions.
• Once the customer is dressed up they are walked over to the FASHION magazine cover photo board where they will get their photo taken in a “live photo shoot!”
• The customer will receive their photo in a contemporary Saturday photo card and a copy of the photo will be posted on the photo board.

FASHION magazine representatives will be on hand to observe the styling and hand out magazines to our clients. At the end of the day the editor of FASHION magazine will choose the winning look. The winner will be contacted on Monday June 1st for a prize of $500.00 in a Holt Renfrew Electronic Gift Card.

Think you could do a great job blogging, photographing and interviewing the behind-the-scenes contemporary world of Holt Renfrew? Holt Renfrew is having a “Contemporary Correspondent” search running until May 28th, 2009. Tell them why you should be their Contemporary Correspondent and you could win a $1,000 Holt Renfrew Wardrobe and a Sony Vaio® notebook PC! To enter, submit a photo of yourself or short video, along with a 200 word blog on why it should be you. Two finalists from each city will be selected, at which point they will turn it over to their Facebook fans to select the three winners, based on a series of voting challenges.
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Speaking of Facebook, the official Holt Renfrew Facebook Page has just been launched. Become a fan and get the scoop on what’s happening at Holts!

Celebrating its 5th year of publication, Cinephile (UBC’s film journal) will be screening the award-winning, Canadian zombie comedy “Fido” at the Pacific Cinémathèque (1131 Howe Street) on March 3rd at 7pm. Director Andrew Currie will be in attendance for a Q&A. Guests will be well supplied with beverages, hors d’oeuvres, and a bevy of exciting door prizes and silent auction items.
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The fundraiser is part of Cinephile’s ongoing effort to keep our non-profit graduate film journal (the only one in print in Canada) alive and thriving from year to year. The event also marks the launch of Cinephile’s first 2009 issue: “Far From Hollywood: Alternative World Cinema.”
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Fido takes place in a 1950s-esque alternate universe where radiation from space has turned the dead into zombies. Fido stars Carrie-Anne Moss, Billy Connolly, and Dylan Baker and exemplifies a clever balance of the light-hearted and perverse; it is a darkly comic zombie film layered with genre parody and political commentary about US Homeland security.

Welcome to Willard, a small town lost in the idyllic world of the 50’s, where the sun shines every day, everybody knows their neighbour, and rotting zombies deliver the mail. A corporation was born: ZomCon, who defeated the legions of the undead years ago. Since then, they have domesticated the zombies and made them our industrial workers, our domestic servants – a productive part of society. ZomCon would like the people of Willard to believe they have everything under control…but do they?

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Ticket Information:
$15 for adults | $12 for Students (or 2 for $20) | Frederic Wood Box Office: 604.822.2678

Secret Obsession is an intoxicating floral oriental fragrance weaving together forbidden fruits, exotic flowers and a sultry wood signature for a provocative and addictive sexiness. In 100 words or less, tell us your “secret obsession” and the best entry will win a Calvin Klein “Secret Obsession” Prize Pack. DEADLINE: Monday December 15, 2008. Winners will be notified by December 16, 2008.

Read the winning entry for MMV’s “traumatizing hair story” contest in collaboration with Suki’s Hair Salon!

In collaboration with Suki’s Hair Salon…

CONTEST: In 250 words or less, tell us about your most traumatizing hair experience and the best entry will win a redeeming pamper day at Suki’s Hair Salon or The Spa at Suki’s. Make us laugh, make us cry, make us cringe with embarassment! Entries will be judged on humor and trauma! Email us with your submission at info@modernmixvancouver.com with the subject line “Suki’s Hair Contest”. Please include your name, gender, age, contact information and preferred prize. Guys can enter too!

PRIZE: Your choice of
1) A hair cut, color, treatment (if necessary) and style at Suki’s Hair Salon; or
2) A facial, manicure and pedicure at The Spa at Suki’s.

DEADLINE: Thursday October 30, 2008. Winners will be notified by November 1, 2008.

*Submitted entries are property of Modern Mix Vancouver and we reserve the right to edit and post select entries on our website.