Tampa Bay Fashion Week has passed us by, but that doesn't mean the well is dry. Hey, we're poets and we didn't even know it!
Uh, that was enough cliche action to last a lifetime (and a couple more for the road in this sentence). Anyway, a few fashion events are happening around town in the next couple weeks we want to let you know about.
This Saturday, you can catch the SoLily Fashion Show & Glitterama at PUSH Ultra Lounge, 128 3rd St. S in downtown St. Pete. Anything with the word "glitterama" in the name sounds like it has potential. It's the debut of the first line from SoLily, from the local design duo Lisa Alban Nicks and Holley Sinn, host of Studio 10. The friends have a "sparkle hippie" aesthetic. You can check out their collection here. The event is from 7-10 p.m. at the club. Tickets are $5 online and $10 at the door. Be sure to print out your purchase confirmation, which is your ticket. The first 100 guests will get swag bags. Proceeds benefit Feeding Children Everywhere.
On Nov. 9, check out Peace Couture at the Italian Club of Tampa, 1731 E. 7th Ave. in Ybor City. Peace Couture is an art, music and fashion show that benefits the Spring of Tampa Bay, a domestic violence shelter. You'll see fashions from House of Donshey, Sandra Hagen, Spathose, La France, Wicked Betty and the Spring Boutique, plus art from Danny Olda and music from Zulu Wave and Guiltmaker. Tickets are $50 for individual tickets (or $150 for four) and $75 for VIP with a gift bag and a reserved seat. Sponsorships are available from $500-$5,000. Register online.
Finally, check out the Kravitz+Hendrix launch party at 6 p.m. Nov. 15 at the k.hendrix showroom, 531 Central Ave. in downtown St. Petersburg. Kravitz+Hendrix is a collaboration between sports agent and entertainment attorney Ed Kravitz and fashion designer Kimberly Hendrix. They're getting together to launch a new talent management agency for athletes, models and artists, helping local folks in the fashion industry advance their careers. Two nights later on Nov. 17, Hendrix will be showing her new holiday fashion line at Chillounge in St. Petersburg's Straub Park. Doors open at 6 p.m. Admission is $25 in advance and $35 at the gate. A limited number of VIP tickets will be available for $80.
Wednesday, October 31, 2012
Monday, October 29, 2012
European fashion buyers look to Nigeria for something fresh at Lagos fashion week
A model struts the runway wearing a flowing newspaper print gown in this African megacity where international high-end fashion buyers are looking beyond the country's bleak headlines to uncover the next new thing.
There have been steady efforts to turn Lagos, a city with a fearsome reputation, into a fashion destination. They reached new heights at the MTN Lagos Fashion & Design Week that ran from Oct. 24 to 27 and drew European high-fashion brands such as the United Kingdom's Selfridges & Co. and Munich-based MyTheresa.com to Nigeria for the first time.
Ituen Basi's newspaper inspired Spring/Summer 2013 collection was among 39 collections spotlighted at the city's latest major fashion week. The Nigerian's collection evoked fun and glamour through its use of print and colour — characteristics which have come to define the vibrant local fashion scene.
With local brands seeking wider platforms and international retailers hungry for novelty, designers and buyers see opportunities for collaboration.
"There's something about the fresh, the unknown, the possibility of seeing a new brand springing forth into the limelight. ... These are becoming interesting to people outside Nigeria," said Omoyemi Akerele, the fashion week's founder and creative director.
An encouraging response to African-inspired designs by top Western labels gives buyers confidence that designs straight from the continent will also sell.
"Over the past few seasons, there's been a strong trend for print," said Bruno Barba, the brand public relations manager at Selfridges. "If you look at the collection of Burberry inspired by Africa last year; there was also Vivienne Westwood, Paul Smith. ... They've made that inspiration quite mainstream now. So, for us, it was interesting to take that trend and take it from its roots in Africa."
Online retailer MyTheresa.com, which ships top designers' clothes including Miu Miu, Givenchy, Lanvin and Isabel Meron to clients in 120 different countries, is also looking for products in Nigeria that will sell well. The company hopes that will set it apart from the competition in a fast-paced industry.
"For me, Nigeria represents a fun individualism," the company's buying director Justin O'Shea said. He also said that MyTheresa.com was looking to work closely with designers and adapt products for their clientele if needed.
Previously, several Nigerian designers have helped put the West African nation on the global fashion map.
Deola Sagoe has gained recognition from U.S. Vogue editor Andre Leon Talley and Oprah Winfrey. London-based Duro Olowu is considered one of Michelle Obama's favourite designers. Maki Oh has dressed American singer Solange Knowles and Hollywood actress Leelee Sobieski from her Lagos workshop. Jewel By Lisa, who has also dressed celebrities, designed limited edition BlackBerry mobile phone skins and jeweled cases for Canadian manufacturer Research In Motion Ltd.
While looking to Nigeria could bring much-needed novelty to clothes targeted to Western audiences, it could also endear a Nigerian clientele. Though the majority of the nation lives on less than $2 a day, the nation's wealthy elite — including upstart business owners, oil industry executives and corrupt politicians — have a growing appetite for top-shelf brands. Luxury goods stores are increasingly opening in a country where seemingly gratuitous displays of wealth are the norm.
"Nigerians are part of our Top 10 highest-spending foreign customers," Barba said. "It felt right for us to try and find a response that would appeal to them, excite them and be over and above what they already buy, almost as a recognition that they're an important part of our consumer base."
Friday, October 26, 2012
NE.TIGER 2013 Haute Couture Fashion Show
NE.TIGER opened China International Fashion Week in style. A host of celebrities and prominent figures from the fashion industry followed NE.TIGER's roar, and gathered in Beijing Hotel's famous Banquet Hall to see China's premier luxury brand opening the China Fashion Week for the 12th time in a row. The theme of the new 2013 Spring-Summer collection is HUA SONG, which underlines the brands ethos of "bringing antiquity to the present and merging Chinese and Western styles" handsomely. For all we know about the Song Dynasty's style, we can sum it up in 2 words, elegant and sophisticated. Elegant in a noble way while showing their sophistication through clean and tidy dresses that are simple and not pretentious. All this in an ingenious partnership with 2013 fashion trends featuring light, transparent and pastel colours that sent the audience on a visual journey, carried away to the tunes of ancient Chinese instruments. A connotation of not just East and West but modern technology and ancient/present day cultural diversity.
A total of 39 spectacular dresses emerged from the shadows accompanied by Song Huizong's famous masterpiece "Ting Qin Tu". At some stage one might feel dazzled by light. But there were no stars, no real ones at least. SWAROVSKI sent the finest crystals to add a Western touch to the breathtaking display of Chinese tapestry, embroidery, brocade, fusion of colours and bronze printings. Culture is deeply enrooted in a brand and only if you tend the roots, can a tree can grow.
Since its founding days in 1982, NE.TIGER has been nourished and inspired by Chinese tradition and culture but has never forgotten to also look ahead. NE.TIGER sees it as their mission to lead Chinese Haute Couture to the 21st century.
However, to see this show as a simple salute to the Song Dynasty and its culture and customs, would be mistaken. First and foremost NE.TIGER wants to exercise gratitude and appreciation of traditional Chinese customs and values.
During the afternoon, NE.TIGER held a Forum in the Hotel. Four famous Chinese Scholars, Li Dangqi, Wang Shouchang, Yu Ximan and Lu Xiao, were invited to be speakers. The discussion was about the renaissance and innovation of national clothing.
NE.TIGER will keep up their hard work to establish themselves as China's foremost national clothing company, while at the same time, preserving its inheritance and further developing it so as to incorporate old into new.
Eventually establishing Chinese fashion, amongst Western fashion, as a global player. NE.TIGER wants to represent a new, young and stylish China that is aware of its heritage and ready to emerge into something new.
Let us conclude with NE.TIGER's founder, Mr.Zhang Zhifeng, own words: " To people of the Southern Song Dynasty, the love for flowers was more than simple admiration of their beauty, but a symbol to embrace life itself. It's beauty and richness, simplicity, nature and openness to the world."
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
N.C. Museum of Art develops online fashion course for students
N.C. Museum of Art develops online fashion course for students
When Raleigh fashion designer Stephanie Sevilla saw the Anselm Keefer piece hanging in the N.C. Museum of Art’s West Building, it felt familiar. “It has a heavy, yet complex vibe to it,” she said.
Keefer’s untitled work – made of oil, acrylic, emulsion, shellac, lead, charcoal and straw on a photograph, then mounted on a canvas with stones, lead and steel cable – is described as a “vast, cosmic mystery … a scarred landscape.”
Which, in Sevilla’s view, made it a perfect complement to her fall collection of mostly sleek black pieces in silk, wool, linen, jersey and leather, evocative of the danger and mystery of a femme fatale.
“They share a feel and a mood,” Sevilla said. “I like strong contrasts. And texture you can appreciate close up and far away.”
The notion Sevilla expressed – that fashion is art and that art can inspire fashion – was the reason she and fellow local designers Zac Schell, Anthony Wilson and Marissa Heyl had gathered on a recent Friday evening at N.C.M.A. along with museum educators, fashion experts and professionals, art teachers and students. The museum and the N.C. Virtual Public School are collaborating on a creative arts curriculum for the state’s public high school students, in this case, creating a course called “The Art of Fashion,” which aims to launch next fall.
It’s another way the museum hopes to make art, and the N.C.M.A., relevant to young people.
“We’re trying to provide multiple entry points to our works. This isn’t just a museum, it’s a performing arts center, a park,” said Michelle Harrell, coordinator of teen and college programs at the N.C.M.A.
To date about 300 students across the state are taking virtual courses shaped by the museum and Virtual Public School, including ones focusing on the art of photography and the art of game design. The virtual classes are electives with course credit.
“We think fashion will be widely popular,” Harrell said.
To develop a course, a think tank of subject-area experts brainstorms concepts and content – a process that takes six months. The fashion think tank includes Uvo bag designer Gigi Karmous-Edwards and Cynthia Istook, a professor in the N.C. State College of Textiles, founders of Fashion Worx, a nonprofit incubator aiming to help members of the state’s fashion community.
“We’re all about education,” Karmous-Edwards said. “Our whole concept is growing the fashion industry in North Carolina. The more we can educate and get people excited, the more people we get going to schools like N.C. State’s College of Textiles and do something fashion-related.”
Fashion Worx used its ties to local designers to pull in Wilson, Sevilla, Heyl and Schell to show some of their pieces, especially for the recent think tank gathering, and the art that inspired them. Schell showed a fitted leather chain-mail dress as he stood before artist El Anatsui’s “Lines That Link Humanity,” made of discarded aluminum and copper wire. Heyl’s three looks from her fair trade Symbology Clothing line, which features textiles inspired by Indian prints, was paired with the colorful “Raqqa II,” by Frank Stella. Anthony Wilson’s elegant draped dresses matched the feel of “Pi,” by Morris Louis.
And indeed, the inspiration helped. Although originally the models were set up as pieces of art to remain untouched, fashion’s strong tactile pull prevailed. The designers invited guests to feel the fabrics. That gave the think-tankers something to consider: How do you bridge that gap in this different facet of art education?
“I think we’re at the point of what are the possibilities,” Harrell said. “Bringing in local designers might be that tactile element we’re missing.”
In any case, the show and the course are just the beginning of the museum’s look at fashion as art, Harrell said. She hints at a blockbuster fashion event in 2014.
“There’s so many natural connections between art and fashion. I love that we’re pushing to limits of what is art and what should be in a museum. It’s exciting for the museum to be part of that conversation.”
When Raleigh fashion designer Stephanie Sevilla saw the Anselm Keefer piece hanging in the N.C. Museum of Art’s West Building, it felt familiar. “It has a heavy, yet complex vibe to it,” she said.
Keefer’s untitled work – made of oil, acrylic, emulsion, shellac, lead, charcoal and straw on a photograph, then mounted on a canvas with stones, lead and steel cable – is described as a “vast, cosmic mystery … a scarred landscape.”
Which, in Sevilla’s view, made it a perfect complement to her fall collection of mostly sleek black pieces in silk, wool, linen, jersey and leather, evocative of the danger and mystery of a femme fatale.
“They share a feel and a mood,” Sevilla said. “I like strong contrasts. And texture you can appreciate close up and far away.”
The notion Sevilla expressed – that fashion is art and that art can inspire fashion – was the reason she and fellow local designers Zac Schell, Anthony Wilson and Marissa Heyl had gathered on a recent Friday evening at N.C.M.A. along with museum educators, fashion experts and professionals, art teachers and students. The museum and the N.C. Virtual Public School are collaborating on a creative arts curriculum for the state’s public high school students, in this case, creating a course called “The Art of Fashion,” which aims to launch next fall.
It’s another way the museum hopes to make art, and the N.C.M.A., relevant to young people.
“We’re trying to provide multiple entry points to our works. This isn’t just a museum, it’s a performing arts center, a park,” said Michelle Harrell, coordinator of teen and college programs at the N.C.M.A.
To date about 300 students across the state are taking virtual courses shaped by the museum and Virtual Public School, including ones focusing on the art of photography and the art of game design. The virtual classes are electives with course credit.
“We think fashion will be widely popular,” Harrell said.
To develop a course, a think tank of subject-area experts brainstorms concepts and content – a process that takes six months. The fashion think tank includes Uvo bag designer Gigi Karmous-Edwards and Cynthia Istook, a professor in the N.C. State College of Textiles, founders of Fashion Worx, a nonprofit incubator aiming to help members of the state’s fashion community.
“We’re all about education,” Karmous-Edwards said. “Our whole concept is growing the fashion industry in North Carolina. The more we can educate and get people excited, the more people we get going to schools like N.C. State’s College of Textiles and do something fashion-related.”
Fashion Worx used its ties to local designers to pull in Wilson, Sevilla, Heyl and Schell to show some of their pieces, especially for the recent think tank gathering, and the art that inspired them. Schell showed a fitted leather chain-mail dress as he stood before artist El Anatsui’s “Lines That Link Humanity,” made of discarded aluminum and copper wire. Heyl’s three looks from her fair trade Symbology Clothing line, which features textiles inspired by Indian prints, was paired with the colorful “Raqqa II,” by Frank Stella. Anthony Wilson’s elegant draped dresses matched the feel of “Pi,” by Morris Louis.
And indeed, the inspiration helped. Although originally the models were set up as pieces of art to remain untouched, fashion’s strong tactile pull prevailed. The designers invited guests to feel the fabrics. That gave the think-tankers something to consider: How do you bridge that gap in this different facet of art education?
“I think we’re at the point of what are the possibilities,” Harrell said. “Bringing in local designers might be that tactile element we’re missing.”
In any case, the show and the course are just the beginning of the museum’s look at fashion as art, Harrell said. She hints at a blockbuster fashion event in 2014.
“There’s so many natural connections between art and fashion. I love that we’re pushing to limits of what is art and what should be in a museum. It’s exciting for the museum to be part of that conversation.”
'Fashion police' Twitter account called online bullying
A controversial Twitter account allegedly run by University of Windsor students and described by police as "bullying" has been deleted.
An anonymous "fashion police" Twitter account, with the handle @uWinFashionPoli, was for months tweeting photos and snarky comments critical of what university students were wearing on campus.
“How do we feel about this girl's glitter backpack? Is it obnoxious or flawless?” the fashion police ask in one tweet found stored on TOPSY, a company that stores and provides analyses of hundreds of billions of tweets.
“We didn't know green pastel tweed was supposed to be in this season. #uwinfashionpoli #uwinfashionproblems,” reads another tweet.
Whoever ran the account encouraged fellow students to send their own photos and comments.
Lately, several students took to Twitter denouncing the fashion police account, which began in the summer and shut down sometime on the weekend.
Laura Nicola, a fourth-year philosophy student, was one of them.
"Lead by example! Where are your outfits? Afraid of being treated the same as you treat others?" Nicola tweeted last week.
Nicola called the account "immature."
"It’s very disturbing to think people judge you based on your outfit rather than who you are," she told CBC News. "It was typical of high school, rather than university."
Nicola wasn't alone in her public scolding of the anonymous tweeter.
“It's always easier to judge people and make rude comments about them anonymously,” tweeted user Ruth U. who goes by the handle @Mumbleduck.
Some Twitter users who claimed to be students were uneasy at the thought they might be photographed on campus and then posted online for anyone to see.
“Who made you the experts? Stop being so creepy and taking people's photos without their permission,” tweeted user Amy Chan who goes by the handle @AmyGleeson2.
"That was one of the things I really criticized. I don’t think it’s fair to take your picture and post it online," Nicola said. "In a world where technology is so well developed, it’s hard to expect people to respect your privacy."
Windsor police Sgt. Steve Lamarche said the fashion police account “is definitely bullying.”
As part of the community services branch, Lamarche works with elementary and high school students. The branch highlights bullying and cyberbullying.
"Cyberbullying is anything that uses newer communications or Facebook or Twitter [and] narrows in on one individual or group and allows others to gang up and demean them," Lamarche said.
He said the fashion police account fit the mould of cyberbullying. It targeted a specific group and posted photos in which people could be identified by their clothes or location.
"The whole problem with cyberbullying is that you can be anonymous," Lamarche said. "There are things you say online that you wouldn't say in front of their face."
An anonymous "fashion police" Twitter account, with the handle @uWinFashionPoli, was for months tweeting photos and snarky comments critical of what university students were wearing on campus.
“How do we feel about this girl's glitter backpack? Is it obnoxious or flawless?” the fashion police ask in one tweet found stored on TOPSY, a company that stores and provides analyses of hundreds of billions of tweets.
“We didn't know green pastel tweed was supposed to be in this season. #uwinfashionpoli #uwinfashionproblems,” reads another tweet.
Whoever ran the account encouraged fellow students to send their own photos and comments.
Lately, several students took to Twitter denouncing the fashion police account, which began in the summer and shut down sometime on the weekend.
Laura Nicola, a fourth-year philosophy student, was one of them.
"Lead by example! Where are your outfits? Afraid of being treated the same as you treat others?" Nicola tweeted last week.
Nicola called the account "immature."
"It’s very disturbing to think people judge you based on your outfit rather than who you are," she told CBC News. "It was typical of high school, rather than university."
Nicola wasn't alone in her public scolding of the anonymous tweeter.
“It's always easier to judge people and make rude comments about them anonymously,” tweeted user Ruth U. who goes by the handle @Mumbleduck.
Some Twitter users who claimed to be students were uneasy at the thought they might be photographed on campus and then posted online for anyone to see.
“Who made you the experts? Stop being so creepy and taking people's photos without their permission,” tweeted user Amy Chan who goes by the handle @AmyGleeson2.
"That was one of the things I really criticized. I don’t think it’s fair to take your picture and post it online," Nicola said. "In a world where technology is so well developed, it’s hard to expect people to respect your privacy."
Windsor police Sgt. Steve Lamarche said the fashion police account “is definitely bullying.”
As part of the community services branch, Lamarche works with elementary and high school students. The branch highlights bullying and cyberbullying.
"Cyberbullying is anything that uses newer communications or Facebook or Twitter [and] narrows in on one individual or group and allows others to gang up and demean them," Lamarche said.
He said the fashion police account fit the mould of cyberbullying. It targeted a specific group and posted photos in which people could be identified by their clothes or location.
"The whole problem with cyberbullying is that you can be anonymous," Lamarche said. "There are things you say online that you wouldn't say in front of their face."
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Waterfront Fashion Week Night Three [Fashion]
The third night of Waterfront Fashion Week brought punk rock and romance to the runway, along with minimalist styles and dreams of paradise. The night's event kicked off with boutique shows from Boutique Serendipity, Rodes and Sara Simpson.
Boutique Serendipity heavily featured minimalist swaths of black, white and camel, accented with the occasional eye-catching color. The standout for me from the boutique was a teal faux fur caplet by Cartise, draped over a Google Nexus-inspired multi-print dress by Ted Baker.
Rodes split up their set to feature their wares for men and women, beginning with a small selection of menswear from Scott Barber, Georgroth, Hilti and Z Zenga. My pick from this opening act is the red/black shirt by Georgroth, paired with a charcoal jean by Z Zenga. From the headliner came pieces from the likes of Herve Leger, Ali Ro and Halston Heritage, while the set closed with an encore from the men wearing looks by Samuelsohn, Etro and Hart Schaffner & Marx.
Finally, jeweler Sara Simpson sent several selections down the runway, including a necklace composed of red coral sticks, black onyx and pavé crystal beads, an early 20th century brass sash pin, and a vintage piece composed of gold cotton pearls with gold filled ruffles, all accented with red and royal blue faceted glass.
After intermission came the makeover winners, each of whom received services from Z Salon & Spa as well as inclusion in this night’s festivities. This was then followed by the final two Emerging Designer nominees, beginning with the punk-influenced looks of Damian Michael Pearsall, whose cereal-box dress was the centerpiece of his collection. On the other end, Elizabeth Turner’s softer art – including a number of swimwear pieces – had many in the audience dreaming of spring and summer of 2013.
Featured designer Jules Reid of Va. took the audience through dreamland with her resort/holiday styles, ranging from sleepwear that could be worn outside on the beach, to dresses inspired by India’s artistic motifs.
Cincinnati, Ohio-based featured designer Lindsey Lusignolo closed the third night of Waterfront Fashion Week 2012 with bridal and evening pieces, including one bridal gown that would not look out of place at the Louisville Ballet.
Friday night was a decent showing for Louisville’s first-ever fashion week. Did the final shows Saturday night send off the affair in a blaze of glory, or in a more subdued mood? You shall soon find out. Until then, view the slideshow below to see what you missed from the third night.
Friday, October 19, 2012
Fashion Eyewear Launches Their New and Improved, User Friendly Website
Online designer eyewear retailer, Fashion Eyewear, has taken their customer feedback on board and upgraded their website. Here are some of the changes the company has made to improve user-ability:
Designer Frames
On this page the extensive list of luxury eyewear brands are clearly set out in alphabetical order. Users can easily search for the brands they're looking for by hovering over the arrow or tabs to view the brands. Fashion Eyewear has also added more lens options enabling prescription wearers to select the best lens materials, tints, lens coatings as well as select frame sizes.
Designer Sunglasses
Use the special filter tools to find designer sunglasses online. Potential consumers can sort eyewear models by price, frame colour, manufacturer, and even frame shape. For keen bargain hunters, use the price filter tool to find models. Around 60% of the company's existing customers love Ray Ban sunglasses so the company has dedicated drop-down tabs for people who are specifically searching for Ray Ban Wayfarer and Ray Ban Aviator sunglasses only.
Prescription Sunglasses
For people who are looking for prescription sunglasses online, take advantage of customizing your prescription sunglass lenses. Whether the desired lens is fully tinted and grey or graduated and brown, the choice is completely up to the user. There's also additional boxes where one can add in the prescription reading, saving time and money.
Help & Info
For any common questions, take a look at the 'Help & Info' page. Here, the company lists their most frequently asked questions (FAQ's). To search for frequently asked questions, simply click on the given links i.e. delivery, about products and services, etc to be directed to the correct section of the page. If there is a query that has not been answered, simply contact the company via email, telephone or Live Chat.
Designer Frames
On this page the extensive list of luxury eyewear brands are clearly set out in alphabetical order. Users can easily search for the brands they're looking for by hovering over the arrow or tabs to view the brands. Fashion Eyewear has also added more lens options enabling prescription wearers to select the best lens materials, tints, lens coatings as well as select frame sizes.
Designer Sunglasses
Use the special filter tools to find designer sunglasses online. Potential consumers can sort eyewear models by price, frame colour, manufacturer, and even frame shape. For keen bargain hunters, use the price filter tool to find models. Around 60% of the company's existing customers love Ray Ban sunglasses so the company has dedicated drop-down tabs for people who are specifically searching for Ray Ban Wayfarer and Ray Ban Aviator sunglasses only.
Prescription Sunglasses
For people who are looking for prescription sunglasses online, take advantage of customizing your prescription sunglass lenses. Whether the desired lens is fully tinted and grey or graduated and brown, the choice is completely up to the user. There's also additional boxes where one can add in the prescription reading, saving time and money.
Help & Info
For any common questions, take a look at the 'Help & Info' page. Here, the company lists their most frequently asked questions (FAQ's). To search for frequently asked questions, simply click on the given links i.e. delivery, about products and services, etc to be directed to the correct section of the page. If there is a query that has not been answered, simply contact the company via email, telephone or Live Chat.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)