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Portland Fashion Week

PFW: Project Runway Peeps

Another year of Portland Fashion Week wraps up.

Posted by: Eden Dawn on Oct 09, 2011 at 10:00PM Speech Bubble 1 Comments

Photo: Yi Yin

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Thanks goodness for Saturday night’s fashion week finale. After that many shows, people, photo editing, writing, elbow rubbing, etc. I was in such desperate need of pizazz I just kept coating on hot pink lipstick to try and rev up. But, thanks to a little show called Project Runway, we managed to get some pizazz out on the runway and I gave my clown lips a rest.

Before the show, I popped backstage to take a minute to do some quick interviews in between the mayhem. Jay Sario was back for his second year of PFW (which he credits producer Tito Chowbury for making happen) and told me he thinks Portland is a “city where you can find great dressers.” That’s a compliment I’ll take from a New Yorker.

Michael Costello took a moment to chat with me while also brandishing a curling iron and hair spray giving his models bouncy shampoo commercial worthy hair. He spoke of many inspirations for the debut of his resort line, but after I heard “Indiana Jones” and “Bohemian”, I was already sold. Add to the fact that he mentioned he only sketched 10% of the collection in advance and let the rest “come to him” while draping and I high tailed it out of there to my press seat like an eager little beaver.

The show began with Sario’s structured, tailored and thoughtfully seamed pieces. Everything he does always slightly reminds me of a badass female warrior that also wants to look pretty. That in iteself is pretty cool. The metallic gray material was the perfect hint of shimmer in person and the jacket detailing was impressive.

Seattle knit wear designer Helen Sharp somehow was thrown in with the boy party, but I’m always a sucker for hand loomed yarn ensembles. My favorite looks of hers were the color blocked black and white pieces with a particular standout of a long slubby cardigan over a striped bikini. And while I commend her for only merchandising the outfits with her own pieces, knit booty shorts are a tough sell for me. Ideally, I think Sharp could collaborate with another Seattleite apparel designer for some lovely linen shorts or pencil skirts for a little match made in the stars.

Photo: Yi Yin

Michael Costello

Bryce Black sent one (yes, only one since he did just have to design an entire collection for NY fashion week last month that Project Runway got to keep) dramatic Avant Garde piece of leather and feathers down the runway while an Italian opera soared in the background. Where was this piece during your avante garde challenge on the show Black?!

And finally, Michael Costello sent his breezy, lovely, flowing resort wear line down the runway in a lux looking display. I turned around at one point half expecting to be transformed to a poolside with a waiter sauntering up Mai Tai in hand. While sadly, that part never materialized, what did happen was a collection of halters, jumpsuits, and every kind of dress you’d ever require for a hot weather vacation/occasion. The draping was divine, the fantastic head pieces spot on and the sheer (pun intended) difference of the pieces to our normal NW gear made these sunny ensembles some of my hands down favorites of the entire week.

After the show, I hit the after party to see a joyous crowd party down. In between watching the over tired volunteers toast champagne and dance with designers I had a moment to think about Portland Fashion Week. Is it perfect? Nope, not at all. I had issues with some of the collections and the start time and so on. However, it’s still responsible for my introduction to designers like Leanne Marshall, Suzabelle, Duchess and Ms. Wood. Designers I have massive respect for and continue to follow their work. And as long as there is still the opportunity for me to find some diamonds in the rough, I’ll keep putting up with overly loud techno music and late start times.

Project Runway alums Black and Costello buddy up at the after-party.

So, PFW, until we meet again… I bid you adieu.

Tags: Bryce Black, Portland Fashion Week 2011, Michael Costello, Jay Sario, Helen Sharp, PFW: 2011

Portland Fashion Week

PFW: Local Loves

Night 3 of PFW is for the locals.

Posted by: Eden Dawn on Oct 08, 2011 at 10:00AM Speech Bubble 2 Comments

Photo: Yi Yin

Ms. Wood

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In today’s fashion mood check, I’m happy to deliver thumbs up from last night’s performance from the neighborhood kids. And thank goodness for that because this ol’ editor needed a little shot in the arm. The crowds turned out, the mood was vibrant and the audience was just plain enjoying the show. You know, all the things you want and love about a fashion show.

Kicking off the night was Amai Unmei and her line of dresses. There were some solid pieces for sure, but two in particular raised my blood pressure a notch. The duo tone shades of gray draped jersey and a swinging flawless red halter were super fabulous. Think I might need to pay a visit to the shop come springtime.

Stephanie D. Couture transitioned from her primarily bridal and eveningwear line into mainly jersey ready-to-wear pieces. I’m sure she’ll sell plenty of the easy dresses, but I have to admit, I missed her fancy eveningwear pieces. She always had a way with flowing silky satin’s and I loved that.

Ms. Wood made a dramatic turn from her black and gray heavy fall collection after an inspirational trip to Hawaii and sent out a resort appealing spring collection. With bright turquoise and red hues the easy to wear/care pieces were great backdrops for the amazing accessories (also created by the designer and her husband). The carved wooden shoes came out one after another with a particular fringed one catching my heart and as always my love of the Ms. Wood bag continued.

Collier showed some cute east coast college prep inspired suits and pieces resulting in a series of male models looking completely adorable. My favorite look was a particularly “Geek-Chic” moment with glasses, gray plaid blazer, sweater vest and a tie.

Now you can see why I feel conflicted with the fabric.

Finally, Seth Aaron showed his collection with a series of screaming pop-art faces emblazoned on fabrics while models wore matching wigs and creepy masks. It was the kind of thing where either you got it or you didn’t. And I was in the latter category. Seth Aaron’s other fabric consisting of his new S.A. logo looks so much like my high school’s (Salem Academy) logo, I cannot get into it. I realize that’s my own deal, but it’s still true. However, Aaron still is an amazing tailor. The purple and black color blocked shift dress was beautiful and tasteful and the shape and fit of a princess seamed coatdress was amazing. Maybe one day the collection will come out in solid color options for those of us who feel uncomfortable wearing so much school pride.

(Tonight is the end of the haul with Project Runway designers Bryce Black, Jay Nicholas Sario and Michael Costello.)

Amai Unmai
Stephanie D. Couture
Ms. Wood
Collier
Seth Aaron*

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Tags: Ms. Wood, Stephanie D. Couture, Seth Aaron, Portland Fashion Week 2011, Collier Clothier, PFW: 2011

Portland Fashion Week

PFW Night Two: Athletic-Wear

Night two of our week of fashion.

Posted by: Eden Dawn on Oct 07, 2011 at 02:00PM Speech Bubble 5 Comments

Photo: Yi Yin

Anna Cohen’s look for the Imperial Knits Collection was my total fav. Everyone needs an amazing sweater dress. Especially here.

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I’m going to be real blunt here and say that minus one glorious breath of fresh air, the second night of Portland Fashion Week left my normal sunny self with a serious case of the grumps. Why? Because I don’t like to leave a fashion show feeling utterly confused… and I did.

I’m not going to go into minute details for each active wear company that showed – Adidas, Grenade, Ryu (because does Adidas really need my opinion on how to improve their company? Uh, no), but I do have some overall thoughts. First off, while I know athletic wear is a huge part of this city, there are some issues showing it. Every girl knows the importance of a good sports bra, but I didn’t need to see like four of them on a fashion runway last night. The problem with active wear on the runway is this: The motivator behind purchasing athletic wear often has to do with what the performance fabric does (wick sweat, waterproof, etc.) or the tiny additions for assistance (iPod pockets, mesh panels, etc.). And you can’t see any of that on a runway. I might have been looking at the most space age sports bra in the history of the world, without seeing it up close or having any kind of literature to speak to that, they all looked the same to me. (Although Adidas did show some cool shoes and lifestyle clothing as well that I genuinely liked.)

Moving on, I have a brief open letter to Grenade. I know your gloves and outerwear are loved by many a snowboarder and that is lovely. However, putting models in company t-shirts and bikini bottoms with their cheeks chilling on the runway is not fashion and the audience groans can back me up on that.

Photo: Yi Yin

Hey Grenade! This is not cool.

Earthtec’s line of casual wear made from recycled material (like plastic water bottles) was perfectly wearable and sellable. Nothing was particularly re-inventing the fashion wheel, but that doesn’t seem to be the point of the line. And with the back-story it has of sustainability first, I suspect it would be embraced here.

Ethos Paris, Lenzanita and Avni all had a couple highs and some lows. My advice to the bunch is to be consistent and know your demographic, I was often confused if it was heading towards my mom’s age or mine. Either legitimately works, but choose. And I would like to politely state that Avni’s frantic Irish jig music loudly playing during their runway segment nearly induced a panic attack for me. Perhaps something a little more pleasant or fun would be advisable.

Finally, Anna Cohen’s line for the Imperial Yarn strutted down the runway and my slouched posture perked up into a proper state. The line of knitwear (non-knitwear pieces were from Cohen’s design archives) consisted of cozy, wanna-snuggle-up-inside, chunky pieces in shaped silhouettes. The line is Oregon 100% with the sheeps raised here, wool made, garments designed and created. That makes me love it even more. Standout piece of the night for me was a blue sweater dress with big contrasting knit petal shaped pieces hanging from the neck. It made the near jig panic attack totally worth it.

(Tonight is one of my personal favs of the week with all local kids, including Ms. Woods, winner of last year’s Emerging Designer competition)

adidas
Grenade
Earthtec
Lenzanita
Ethos Paris
Avni
Imperial Yarn

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Tags: adidas, RYU, Lenzanita, Grenade, Ethos Paris, Earthtec, Anvi, Anna Cohen Imperial Knits, Portland Fashion Week 2011, PFW: 2011

Portland Fashion Week

PFW – Catapult: The Emerging Designers Competition

How do you kick off an annual fashion week? With a competitive bang.

Posted by: Eden Dawn on Oct 06, 2011 at 03:00PM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

Photo: Yi Yin

Catapult: The Emerging Designers Competition

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Has it already been a year since the last whirlwind of Portland Fashion Week? My ankles have just barely healed from traipsing in 5” heels around the Swan Island shipyards, so the answer must be yes.

Last night was the kick off to the annual runway extravaganza with the Catapult: Emerging Designer competition. Nine newbie designers produced collections for the show with the hopes of being selected for this year’s prize package. Included in that prize package is a little coverage in this here magazine by moi, which is why I was on the judging panel and why I am keeping it real in the constructive critique area. The truth is all have some amazing promise and I’m quite proud that our city has a constant stream of talent bubbling from it, but there was also evidence of some growing pains. It’s the reality of being new and starting out. You don’t even want to see some of the first fashion articles I wrote….

The show began with a little speech from Mayor Sam Adams and then Sue Bonde, director of the fashion departments of The Art Institute, introduced the panel of judges. Finally 90 minutes after scheduled (thanks to a broken projector) the show began!

House of Summer
What I loved: Designer Summer Gunter took her 60’s mod inspired line to the next level by designing her own prints and creating one-of-a-kind layered outerwear pieces held with magnetic closures.
Hoping to be helpful: The jumpsuits weren’t particularly flattering on a size 2 model, potential customers are going to be all sizes and everyone wants to look slim and feel good in their clothes.

Silkwood Boutique
What I loved: Sandy Varzarschi knows how to create lux looks. The fabric looked expensive and the color palette and line were completely cohesive.
Hoping to be helpful: Some pieces reminded me so much of other designers (i.e. a Chanel boucle top) it made me momentarily lapse on who I was watching.

Michelle Is Well
What I loved: Michelle Franklin makes cool coats. The effort she puts into the detailing and pieces are impressive. Plus, her last little shift dress was something I would wear in a heartbeat.
Hoping to be helpful: Without a consistent fabric, color or theme the pieces felt like good individual pieces, but not like a collection.

Photo: Yi Yin

Grishley

Grishley
What I loved: Amanda Grisham conceived a line that both caught on the Pendleton craze, but would also look great in a variety of other prints. And the styling of the outfits was hands down some of the strongest of the show.
Hoping to be helpful: Ditch that tulle. It caps off the demographic younger than necessary and looks like a newbie designer move. Women in their 30’s would happily wear these, but tulle scares them off.

Chicago Harper
What I loved: This line Joshua Buck designed for Sharon Blair’s Studio SKB company featured impeccable tailoring. I have one word for the pants: amazing.
Hoping to be helpful: If the goal is to hit up the Portland market, I’m worried the innovation will be a tough sell, but simultaneously I don’t want discourage creativity. It’s a tough one.

AM Renegade
What I loved: The blue and white dress. I really loved the ease and movement of that bold stripe little dress. And that huge fringe necklace? Come to me!
Hoping to be helpful: The same suggestion I had for MichelleisWell. The pieces never gelled into a collection for me. It needed a consistent story to draw the viewer/buyer in.

Moontess
What I loved: Designer Mihaela Munteanu knows how to work swimsuit and lingerie. Those pieces aren’t easy to fit or sew and she has real strength in that area.
Hoping to be helpful: Please ditch the props. If I never see another umbrella on the runways of a fashion show, I would be thrilled. In addition, pursue the swim/lingerie route. You’re much stronger here and not many people are good at those things.

Lizz Basinger Designs
What I loved: Ms. Basinger had no shortage of interesting designer details that had my fashion editor eye looking up down and all around. The finale jacket was so well done with the pleating and princess seams, it’s the first hooded coat I’ve ever wanted to own.
Hoping to be helpful: That yellow killed it (not in a good way) for a lot of folks. Color is the first thing you see about a garment and if it’s not flattering you’ll lose them before they even look to see how cool the clothing actually might be.

Photo: Yi Yin

Studio SKB/Chicago Harper

Becky Ross for Wicked Quick
What I loved: The dip-dyed ombre pants were an unexpected delight and something I actually can’t remember seeing before. The finale dress was both cool and the comfiest looking “gown” ever.
Hoping to be helpful: This one is tough. Ross designed the collection for Wicked Quick, which is a T-shirt line, but the tees were the things throwing me off the outfits. I wished there were cute little blouses or something in its place.

With all that massive amount of thought, praise, suggestions and confusion in my head I went into the longest judging deliberation we’ve ever had for Catapult. With panel members ranging from educators, to other designers, writers and shop owners there were a lot of conflicting opinions. After it was all said and done, we agreed with the audience vote and chose Amanda Grisham and her Pendleton based coatdresses to be the next Emerging Designer. We also wanted to make a special acknowledgement of the innovation we saw Joshua Buck making with menswear.

Congratulations Amanda, I am excited to see what you do next!

(And we’re back on to the races. Night two of PFW devotes itself to activewear and rumor is a couple of hunky Timbers will take the runway.)

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Tags: Becky Ross, Studio SKB/Chicago Harper, Moontess, Silkwood, Grishley, Lizz Basinger, Wicked Quick, Michelle Is Well, AM Renegade, House of Summer, Portland Fashion Week 2011, PFW: 2011

SHOP TALK

PFW: Project Runway Peeps

PFW: Local Loves

PFW Night Two: Athletic-Wear

PFW – Catapult: The Emerging Designers Competition

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