Emeril Lagasse and I on the red carpet

You might call Emeril Lagasse the culinary king of New Orleans.  The internationally acclaimed chef owns three restaurants in the Crescent City and countless more nationwide.  His passion is as evident in his cooking as it is in his dedication to philanthropy.  Emeril created the Lagasse Foundation nearly a decade ago to support culinary programs in area schools and rebuild New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina.  The impact has been far-reaching, benefiting thousands of children and adults in our city.

Every year, the Lagasse Foundation holds back-to-back fundraisers, Boudin and Beer and Carnivale du Vin, which combined raise roughly $2 million annually.  As a local news personality, I was asked to cover the red carpet for Carnivale du Vin and lucky enough to be invited to enjoy the 5 course wine-paired dinner prepared by a team of celebrity chefs including Tyler Florence, Mario Batali, Marc Forgione and Sammy Hagar.

Unfortunately, I only had one day to prepare!  I’d picked up the Krina Zabete sleeveless maxi dress at Target for $49.99 the week before, not knowing where I would wear it.  I’m a huge proponent of mixing high-end and low-end finds, so I decided to give it a go for Carnivale du Vin.  I paired the Target dress with Badgley Mischka pumps and donned designer jewels I already owned.  It was a risky move, but I think it worked.  Do you?