Rusty Phillips, owner of Belle Epoque in Kansas City, Missouri, holds many distinctions, but is most interested these days in the results of NAHA. Rusty is a finalist in the Contemporary Classic category and freely admits that his submission is the result of hard work, time and energy. "I worked on it for over a year," he told me during a break from his TIGI workshop held in the Soho area of NYC. "There was a lot of practice and planning. I am thrilled with the results."

We will be there with Rusty this weekend in Las Vegas for the NAHA presentations and will bring you all up to the minute coverage. Best of luck to Rusty and all the other finalists.

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