Best Fashion Designer


Important: This article was last updated on September 21, 2005. Please call ahead to confirm hours, prices, dates and other information.

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Readers' picks

Best Bartender
 Cat, The Poor House, Fort Lauderdale

Best Club DJ
 DJ Kid Fresh

Best Radio Personalities
 Paul Castronovo and Young Ron Brewer, Big 105.9

Best Athlete
 Dwyane Wade, Miami Heat

Best TV Personality
 Jade Alexander, WFOR-TV (Channel 4)
 
Rene Ruiz
Rene Ruiz Couture, 262 Miracle Mile, Coral Gables, 305/445-2352, www.reneruizcouture.com

 Heavily inspired by the glamorous Hollywood movies of the 1940s and '50s, this designer appreciates nothing more than talking with his clients and finding out how they want to look. Born in Cuba, Ruiz fled the country when he was 14 years old. He graduated from the International Fine Arts College in Miami in 1990 and opened his first design studio two years later. Creating flirty and feminine designs, he mixes fur and silk on everything from evening gowns to geometric-print wrap tops and has designed wedding gowns, jeweled handbags and leather bustiers. Ruiz enjoys seeing his creations on his clients, who include Paris Hilton.