David Paul & Nick Verreos

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Nick Verreos (born February 13, 1967 in St. Louis, Missouri) is an American fashion designer, fashion commentator and former Project Runway contestant. He began his career in Los Angeles working for a variety of companies, before forming his own design firm, NIKOLAKI, with partner David Paul in 2001. He and partner David Paul live in the Los Angeles area with their dog Benny.

Verreos was born in Missouri on February 13, 1967 to a Greek-American father and a Panamanian mother. Though born in St. Louis, Missouri, he spent his early childhood in Caracas, Venezuela. Verreos and his family moved back to the United States when he was 10, and he finished elementary and high school in San Francisco, California. He began college at UCLA, studying Political Science and International Relations, but after graduation, turned his interest to fashion design and pursued additional work at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising (FIDM) in Los Angeles. He completed the Advanced Fashion Design Program at FIDM in 1993.

After finishing studies at FIDM, Verreos immediately found success in the fashion industry. He won the Suisse du Jeune Talent competition, in which he represented the United States in St. Gallen, Switzerland.

Four years after winning the My Scene Barbie Challenge on Project Runway, Verreos mentored a group of FIDM students as they, and he, at Mattel's request, created one-of-a-kind designs for the FIDM Barbie 50th Anniversary Collection.

NIKOLAKI gowns designed by Verreos and Paul have been worn by a number of notable celebrities, including actress/singers Beyoncé, Katy Perry, and Carrie Underwood, Academy Award winning actress Marlee Matlin, who wore a NIKOLAKI gown to the 2008 Academy Awards, Project Runway host/supermodel Heidi Klum, Desperate Housewives cast members Eva Longoria and Brenda Strong, actress/comedian Kathy Griffin, Dancing with the Stars co-host Samantha Harris and judge Carrie Ann Inaba, and former Miss USA and TV Guide Network Fashion Wrap host Ali Landry.

In June 2005, Verreos participated in the second season of Project Runway, a reality television program in which fashion designers compete against each other for a design mentorship with Banana Republic, seed money to start their own line, and other prizes. Verreos finished in fifth place in the competition. He won the "All Dolled Up" challenge in the third episode in which designers had to design a dress for the My Scene Barbie collection. The doll was later marketed in limited release to the public and quickly sold out. He was judged one of the top three designers during the "Social Scene" challenge in the fifth episode. However, he ranked among the bottom two or three in three additional challenges: "Window Shopping" (episode six), "Flower Power" (episode nine), and "Makeover" (episode ten). He was eliminated after the Makeover Challenge in which he was charged with designing a fashion makeover for fellow contestant Daniel Vosovic.


Nick Verreos is a fashion designer, fashion commentator and former Project Runway contestant. He began his career in LA working for a variety of companies, before forming his own design firm, NIKOLAKI, with partner David Paul in 2001. He and David live in the Los Angeles with their dog Benny. NIKOLAKI gowns designed by Verreos and Paul have been worn by a number of notable celebrities, including Academy Award winning actress Marlee Matlin, who wore a NIKOLAKI gown to the 2008 Academy Awards.









































Season 2 of Project Runway aired on Bravo from December, 2005 through March, 2006.

In the Winter of 2007, Verreos was a guest mentor on Project Runway Canada where the designers had to create two resort wear outfits.

He appeared in an April 2008 episode of the Karma Air show Fashion 411 with Barbra Horowitz to share some of the behind the scenes experiences on Project Runway, as well as the events and projects with which he was then involved.

Since being a contestant in Season 2, Verreos has appeared as an audition judge, guest judge and guest commentator on various seasons of Project Runway, and continues to blog on Lifetime's official Project Runway website, in addition to maintaining his own personal blog.

In addition to his Project Runway appearances, since 2008, Verreos has been a regular panel member on TV Guide Network's Fashion Wrap, which covers the Oscars, Grammys, Golden Globes, Emmy Awards and Screen Actors Guild Awards each year.

In 2011, Verreos was asked to makeover Virgin Mobile's celebrity couple: SPARAH.

In February 2008, he hosted three fashion segments on E! Countdown to the Academy Awards. He also covered the Red Carpet Arrivals on SOAPnet.com for the Daytime Emmy Awards in June 2008 and the Primetime Emmy Awards in September 2008.

He appeared on a January 2008 episode of the CW show Crowned: The Mother of All Pageants to help the mothers and daughters with their pageant gowns and choose which team had the best outfits.

In 2003, he began teaching at FIDM and has been associated with the school ever since. He currently serves as FIDM's official fashion spokesperson.

Verreos's father was a U.S. State Department diplomat in Panama, and met Verreos's mother there. His mother's great uncle, Arnulfo Arias, served as the president of Panama on three occasions (1940–41, 1949–51, and ten days in October 1968).

Verreos's sister Rita Verreos appeared in Survivor: Fiji, which aired in Spring 2007.

For the 2008 holiday season, Verreos, along with LL Cool J, Vanessa Hudgens and Ty Pennington (among others), participated in the Sears "Grant A Wish" campaign. Each celebrity was asked to share a personal "American Wishtory" about a gift that helped them become who they are today. Verreos described how his mother's gift of a sewing machine inspired him to think beyond fashion illustration, and to think about what it would be like to design and create fashion.

A native of Southern California, David Paul is truly a representative of the melting pot of American culture. Born to a Mexican-American mother, whose own parents immigrated from Guadalajara and Hermosillo, and an Architect father, who hails from Louisiana, David spent his childhood growing up in sunny San Diego.

Heavily influenced by his artistic parents, David realized his own love of theater and the arts. After immersing himself in the performing arts as a child, David left San Diego to attend the University of California, Los Angeles where he received his B.A. in Theater Arts, and later his M.F.A. in Costume Design.

After graduating, David began working in the entertainment industry, building an extensive resume for himself by designing costumes and working on shows such as Queer Eye for the Straight Girl, Passions, Undressed, and numerous other productions on MTV, ABC, FOX and the WB. David has also worked alongside Andre Leon Talley for Vogue Magazine and with such illustrious photographers as Arthur Elgort, Regan Cameron, Noe DeWitt and Amanda DeCadanet, styling for Kate Hudson, Heidi Klum, Vanessa Paradis, Twiggy and Heather Graham.

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nick_Verreos

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