Vegas Magazine - Niche Media - There is a place beyond the crowds, beyond the ropes, where dreams are realized and success is celebrated. You are invited.
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY LEILA NAVIDI DESERT PATROL style star INCLUDING HEADLINER MARIE OSMOND. BY CHELSEA STONE W STYLIST STACIMICHELLE VIRGA JETS AROUND THE COUNTRY FOR HER BIG-NAME CLIENTS, hen Donny & Marie headliner Marie Osmond signed a deal for a new talk show, she entrusted one person with the task of making sure she looks her best on-air: StaciMichelle Virga. The Las Vegas-based fashion stylist and personal shopper has been travel- ing back and forth to Los Angeles to the set of Marie! (on the Hallmark Channel this fall) every week with the star. "Not many people get the chance as a stylist to have a steady client like that," Virga says. "It's been the biggest blessing of my career." Virga first met Osmond three years ago when she was hired to style the glamorous entertainer for an infomercial—it was Virga's big break. The two hit it off, and have been working together ever since. To achieve Osmond's "upscale but approachable" look, Virga shops everywhere from high-end department stores and local boutiques (Summerlin's Vasari is a favorite), to little-known vintage stores. Her clients trust her to scour hidden gems, resale shops, and big-city designer showrooms across the country to find a broad selection. "Every project is different," she says. "I could be styling a high-fashion job one day, the next day I could be styling some- one in khakis and a polo shirt, and the next day a costume. The part I love best is the diversity." A native of Brooklyn, New York, Virga came to Vegas 16 years ago to pursue acting and modeling. After working in front of the camera with several local casting agencies, she realized that being behind the scenes was her true passion. "It started out really small, just dressing kids for their head- INSIGHT A big move: "I wouldn't have had these opportunities in New York. When I moved to Las Vegas, it was perfect timing for me to build up a business and make this happen." Plan B: "I always had an interest in entertainment, but at first I thought I wanted to be an actress." shots," she says. "But after I got a taste of it, I went after every opportunity. As soon as I realized this could be an actual career, I was pretty steadfast." Virga counts NBC My News 3, Fashion Show mall, and Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino as some of her steadiest clients, and has worked with other Vegas celebrities, such as Donny Osmond and Andre Agassi. The busy fashionista has also been working on another passion of hers: The Shop 11234, her online store that features chic, hand-picked accessories from outside of Vegas. She's also watching downtown as it con- tinues to develop and eventually wants to open a storefront shop there. "This fall, one of the bigger things is relaunching my online boutique, stylingbystacimichelle.com," she says. "We're going to do a big launch in October, just revamping things to get that back up and running, because people have been wanting certain items. Because I'm always out and about in the field, I kind of get first dibs on everything going on in the fashion world." V 60 VEGASMAGAZINE.COM