Front Row — Page 30

Rivini by Rita Vinieris and Alyne By Rita Vinieris Bridal Fall 2020

October 8, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Rita Vinieris has always taken an interest in what a bride would want to wear aside from your run-of-the-mill white dress. In the past, the designer has created graffiti jumpsuits and dresses in color palettes of blush pink and baby blue. We live in non-traditional times, so it’s time to start designing for non-traditional brides.

Alyne by Rita Vinieris appeals to a much younger customer with the brand’s sheer dresses and low-cut necklines. It is the era of more fitted silhouettes for the younger bride—unlike the traditional bridal ballgowns of the 1980s—and like most things, even in the bridal industry, sex sells. More brands are also designing for two-piece wedding ensembles, and Alyne offers consumers embroidered sheer crop top with sheer embroidered wide leg pants featuring fringe. It was an outfit that would work for a bride’s after party dress, as it was easy, comfortable, and sporty.

Rivini by Rita Vinieris, the designer’s better-known line is designed for a more classic, mature bride. However, the dresses were not without their marvelous details. A keyhole accent on a white column gown produced a little bit of a more fashionable edge, and lace embroidered capes paired with lace and sequin-embroidered gowns made for a dramatic, regal effect.

Photos courtesy of CLD PR

Both collections were designed with a structural softness that resulted in elevated silhouettes that don’t appear too rigid. Vinieris is one of those gifted bridal designers who can find inspiration from both the new and traditional silhouettes and create two lines that exist simultaneously.

Both lines are on trend the fall 2020 bridal season with the shoulder-baring look differing from the usual off-the-shoulder look. Spaghetti straps and form-fitting corset bodices were signature parts of this collection. Vinieris keeps managing to reinvent the look of bridal luxury, and that’s what makes her collections great and accessible.

—Kristopher Fraser

THEIA Bridal Fall 2020

October 7, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

If you are looking for a bridal show that always has interesting bridal themes, then THEIA would be a great choice. THEIA’s Creative Director Don O’Neill consistently injects interesting and unique themes and references into each bridal collection. From opium dens to David Bowie to 70s disco to Irish water nymphs, O’Neill is never at a loss for coming up with varied points of view and unusual sources of inspiration.

With that is mind, THEIA as a bridal brand has also evolved. Keeping in mind that the US bridal market can be a bit conservative and traditional, though the brand continues to draw inspiration from unusual subject matter, Don O’Neill has learned, over the years, to not allow the inspiration to weigh down the collection. There is now an accessibility to the collection that was somewhat missing some years back.

This season O’Neill was inspired by Frida Kahlo, after visiting the Frida Kahlo exhibit at the Brooklyn Museum. Additionally, O’Neill found inspiration Julie Helen, a friend who courageously battles cerebral palsy. These two strong women form the core of the inspiration for the fall 2020 bridal collection.

Signature crepe dresses form the foundation of the collection, simple and clean silhouettes alongside gowns adorned with jeweled straps, lace appliques, and guipure trims, or a plunging neckline embroidered with pearls and micro-sequins. laser-cut floral petals are delicately embroidered on soft tulle that gently stretches and cradles the body, while volume and ruffles in parachute taffeta, silk organza and tulle swirl playfully around the body decorated with flowers, like those that Frida picked daily from her gardens at Casa Azul.

Photos courtesy of THEIA

Standout looks in this outing include the brand’s crepe apron neck gown with fuchsia silk organza scarf, hand-beaded crystal vest over satin trousers, crepe off-the-shoulder gown with draped bodice and soft ball skirt, cutaway shoulder Mikado ball gown with plunge neckline, and plunge-front silk organza tiered ball gown adorned with silk flower.

—William S. Gooch

Lee Petra Grebenau Bridal Fall 2020

October 6, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

In case you were not aware, a slew of Israeli bridal designers now present collections during New York International Bridal Week. From Inbal Dror—who is a consistent presenter—to Mira Zwillinger to Galia Lahav, New York International Bridal has become a viable venue for Israeli bridal designers.

Lee Petra Grebenau celebrated its 10^th anniversary by presenting their fall 2020 bridal collection during New York International Bridal Week. As one of the premier Israeli bridal brands, is distinguished not only for its bridal wear, but also for its evening war.

“It’s an exciting time for me,” explains Lee Petra Grebenau. “The show marks the beginning of my 10^th anniversary and it’s like a dream come true; to be able to help other women fulfill their dreams by designing dresses that carry the most valuable of meaning in one of the most important days of their lives.”

For the brand’s fall 2020 bridal collection, Lee Petra Grebenau was inspired by one of the rarest gems, pearls. Pearls are symbol of purity and beauty and has represented timeless elegance and classic style.

Creating a bridal collection that relies so heavily on pearl embellishment, though quite beautiful, is a huge risk for any bridal designer. Especially, if that bridal designer is not solidly embedded in the New York bridal market. Still, Lee Petra Grebenau took that risk and the risk paid off, partly due to Grebenau employing the appropriate bridal garment silhouettes that matched perfectly the pearl inspiration. Also, Grebenau understood when to go heavy on the pearl embellishment—depending on the silhouette—or when less is more.

Images courtesy of Atelier PR

Standout looks from this fall 2020 bridal collection include pearl-encrusted silk tulle ballgown with small pearl belt, beaded A-line off-the-shoulder gown with corset and beaded illusion tulle, beaded silk tulle mini dress with feathers godets and matching cape, high neck jumpsuit encrusted with beads and feathers, and pearl-encrusted silk tulle ballgown with small pearl belt, beaded A-line off-the-shoulder gown with corset and beaded illusion tulle, beaded silk tulle mini dress with feathers godets and matching cape, high neck jumpsuit encrusted with beads and feathers,

—William S. Gooch

Dennis Basso Spring 2020

September 14, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Though Dennis Basso is known—particularly outside of the fashion industry—as a fur designer. But he is so much more than that. And with the push toward a free-free industry—California recently passed legislation that restricts manufacture and ownership of new animal fur products—Basso has rightly moved his brand beyond only creating animal-fur garments.

For spring 2020 Dennis Basso looked to classic beauties of the past and attempted to recreate their style as seen through the lens of modern sophistication. From the trendsetting style of Jayne Wrightsman and her bevy of svelte, swan-like friends to modern socialites of that ilk, Basso in this collection combined classic silhouettes of the 1950s and 60s—cinched in waist and bell-shaped frocks, as well as body-lengthening column sheaths—and re-interpreted these classic silhouettes into garments that a modern woman can relate. Additionally, Basso incorporated some sporty daywear, which is on-trend and seen as an element in many spring 2020 collections, in an effort to capture a more youthful consumer.

Basso has recently dressed some younger celebs, namely Bianca Andreescu, winner of the 2019 US Open, demonstrating that his brand can appeal to a younger consumer. However, Dennis Basso is still solidly a high-end fashion brand that has stronger attraction to the ladies who lunch ilk.

The color palette in this collection ranged from china blue and white, café crème to classic black and white. With fabrications ranging from trendsetting denim to cotton canvas, silk gazaar, jacquards and satins. There were some fur highlights evidenced in sheared mink, broadtail, and shearling. Basso also included a lot of embellishments in this collection from embellished flowers to beaded embroidery, feathers and three-dimensional flowers.

For the most part, Basso’s spring 2020 collection was a hit, but there were some misses. Namely, vintage looks that didn’t easily translate to the modern woman—particularly some of the garments that looked as though were taken directly from the pages of American Vogue of the 1970s.

Photos courtesy of gorunway.com/vogue.com

Standout looks in this collection include Basso’s café-paneled broadtail and nylon coat, paneled hazel suede jacket with paneled hazel suede midi skirt, striped mink and nylon jacket with floral hand-embroidered canvas cocktail dress, full-length white antique georgette maxi dress, and hand-embroidered white feather gown.

—William S. Gooch

Badgley Mischka Spring 2020

September 12, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Claudette Colbert is a name that many may not remember. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress in 1935 for “It Happened One Night,” and over her long career counted a Golden Globe win, along with Emmy and Tony nominations. She wasn’t one to be obsessed with the spotlight and buying a Hollywood mansion wasn’t her style, so instead she purchased Bellerive, an 18^th-century home in Barbados where she would entertain the likes of Frank Sinatra, Princess Margaret, and New York socialite Babe Paley.

When the creative duo Mark Badgley and James Mischka, the duo behind Badgley Mischka, saw the photos of how these notable figures dressed while visiting Bellerive, Badgley Mischka found their inspiration for their spring 2020 collection. Tropical patterns of colorful florals and the bright colors of lilac and orange were reminiscent of a vacation to Barbados. If Barbados was the mother of inspiration, the island’s seas and palm trees were the children of inspiration with forest green and aqua helping to create a dazzling collection.

Although this collection was for spring 2020, it did look a bit like a resort collection—perhaps a few of these designs could have been used for resort 2020. That said; Badgley Mischka also took classic silhouettes and gave them a twist.

The opening look was a tailored suit fitted for the professional businesswoman. Rather than your traditional black or navy power suit, this suit was done in gorgeous lagoon blue with Hibiscus flowers. Perhaps, it is time businesswomen are allowed wear more print-patterned garments into the board room.

As usual though, the duo’s design strengths are made most evident in their evening wear. A one-shoulder column dress in vibrant red was the perfect fit for those Upper East Side charity gala attendees, many of whom were found in the audience and have been long-time Badgley Mischka customers. A lilac gown with embroidered shoulders and a thigh high slit was both sexy and sophisticated, proving that the designers can dress both the older New York City doyennes and sexy young starlets.

Photos courtesy of Filippo Fior/gorunway.com/vogue.com

Badgley Mischka has taken the Hollywood fashionista look and given it an island aesthetic that is perfect for the modern woman. Once you escape winter, slip into your most colorful evening gown.

—Kristopher Fraser

Adeam Spring 2020

September 11, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

There is an East-meets-West design aesthetic almost every season at Adeam, the fashion brand by designer Hanako Maeda that has quickly become a favorite of celebrities including Maggie Gyllenhaal, Suki Waterhouse, Michelle Obama, and Oprah Winfrey. Maeda is continuously inspired by her two favorite cities, New York and Tokyo, creating an aesthetic that is part Japanese street style and part American contemporary. Maeda transported the audience to the port of Yokohama—where the Japanese first encountered Western culture when Commodore Matthew Perry arrived just south of Yokohama with a fleet of American warships—for her latest collection.

City girl style met nautical dressing as knitwear and tailored pieces were laced with classic maritime details such as stripes and sailor collars. Chunky sweaters in Adeam’s signature Angel Hair Cotton yarn, a fabric used to create breathable, lightweight pieces, included the color palette of ocean such as oyster beige, aqua blue, navy, and terracotta. They were accented with nautical stripes and sleeves that unbuttoned to expose a touch of skin. This increased versatility, giving consumers the ability to go from an early, balmy spring day to wearability in early summer temperatures.

Maeda also draws inspiration from kawaii, the culture of cuteness in Japan which refers to people and things that are charming, vulnerable, shy, or childlike. This inspiration was demonstrated in pieces like convertible sleeves and bold strip shirting. These playful, youthful sweaters were paired with structured, tailored pieces like sailor jackets, resulting in elevated, yet comfortable looks.

The more delicate cocktail dresses and evening gowns were inspired by a more fairytale-like idea of the ocean. Dresses were embellished with pearls and crystals that looked like droplets of water on the skin. Maeda also took an unconventional approach to seersucker, using it to create whimsical ruffles of red and oyster beige.

Images courtesy of Karla Otto

As Adeam’s celebrity clientele list grows, Maeda is now creating more red-carpet worthy looks. While there are still tons of day wear to be found, Adeam has expanded beyond elevated, tailored looks that are worthy of the Fashion Week street style photographers into looks fit for Hollywood’s prominent actresses. Adeam continues to be a brand with something that every woman would want to own.

— Kristopher Fraser

Deveaux Spring 2020

September 10, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Informing fashion editors and other industry professionals that they have to attend a 9 am show on Sunday during New York Fashion Week: The Shows (NYFWS) is not typically met with glee and fanfare. Street style photographer Tommy Ton, the designer and mastermind behind fashion brand Deveaux, realized that if he was going to have his audience leave Spring Studios, the main NYFWS venue, with a good taste in their mouths he was going to have to do something outside of the box. Cue the live music, a marching band, and models getting to treat the runway like a dance party, and voilá, Tommy Ton found the formula to turn sleepy, irritable frowns upside down.

As Janet Jackon’s “Love Will Never Do (Without You)” was performed by the live band, models walked the runway in a celebration of individuality, blowing kisses at the audience, or smiling broadly and strutting. One of the most notable things about Deveaux’s show was the diversity of the models with ranges in age and ethnicity from newcomers like Brazilian model Mariana Coldebella who has starred in editorials for international editions of Cosmopolitan and Harper’s Baazar, to legendary African-American models Veronica Webb and Coco Mitchell, who rocked the runways of Paris and Milan in the 1980s and 90s.

The combination of diversity and live music was appropriate for a collection that was easily approachable and filled with wardrobe essentials. Neutral tones of black, brown, navy, white, grey, and beige made up most of the color palette of the collection. There was something for the professional working woman with casual, but elevated silhouettes for blazers, and something for a casual everyday look with comfortable slip dresses.

Images courtesy of Alessandro Luciano/gorunway.com/vogue.com

Ton did have a bit of fun with some color evidenced in a printed dress that had images of vacationers and a long sleeve orange knit shirt that would make an excellent transition piece from winter to spring. He managed to create something that any woman could want or need from a sundress to corporate professional looks. His versatility is what continues to keep Deveaux thriving and worthy of editors attending an early show.

— Kristopher Fraser

Bibhu Mohapatra Spring 2020

September 10, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Interestingly, Bibhu Mohapatra’s spring 2020 collection was inspired by the book Nothing Personal. Published in 1963, Nothing Personal was a project by James Baldwin and Richard Avedon. Both Baldwin and Avedon were high school friends. And though paths were divergent from each other, in their own way their voices documented the American spirit and individuality of its time. Avedon through a photographic celebration of American beauty and changing norms, and Baldwin’s take on America’s dark side, a dissertation on America’s exclusivity, cruelty, but hopeful future.

In Bibhu Mohapatra’s spring 2020 collection, which is also the brand’s 10^th anniversary, the designer sought to show how these disparate reflections can express courage, diversity, originality, and strength. And like both Avedon and Baldwin, this collection shows incredible beauty and freedom, as well as honest transparency and reflection.

In this collection, Mohapatra is not afraid to express his maturity and ascendency. No longer pandering to outside influences who seek to direct a designer’s aesthetic, Mohapatra, in this collection, stays the truest to his brand’s DNA and soul. Perhaps, after much reflection and examination, Bibhu Mohapatra has discovered what works best for his brand and what truly reflects his purpose. If that is true, this discovery showed through in this collection. There were no tricks, no gimmicks, and no nods to what’s supposed to work, but bravely, just true Bibhu Mohapatra.

This collection contains some of Bibhu Mohapatra most-loved design aesthetics; asymmetrical cuts, non-traditional fabric combinations, pinstriped fabrics, and glam embellishments. And to balance out these signature looks, Mohapatra has also incorporated some the seasons most enduring trends; denim, polka dots evidenced in this collection as point d’esprit, swan feather jackets, and long-hair mink.

Though Bibhu Mohapatra’s day looks were strong and further expressed his new-found confidence, still, like in previous collection Mohapatra’s evening wear is his strong point. Where in previous collections Mohaptra’s architectural and asymmetrical cuts, at times, lacked movement and fluidity; however, in this spring 2020 collection there was much more ease of movement and comfort.

Photos courtesy of vogue.com

Standout looks in this collection include the brand’s mango crepe double-breasted vest suit over pleated tulle and cotton tunic, ivory point d’esprit dress with guipure lace skirt, ivory crepe column gown with crystal lattice embroidery, tangerine and turquoise dress with crystal lattice embroidery under black swan feather jacket, navy point d’esprit ball dress with crystal medallions under white swan feather jacket, and blush and black silk barathea gown with train.

William S. Gooch

Elie Tahari Spring 2020

September 9, 2019 by admin 2 Comments

The 1970s was a transformative time for downtown New York, particularly the Soho district. Artists and other creatives took over downtown neighborhoods, working in industrial spaces to create collectives and loft studios. For Elie Tahari’s spring/summer 2019 collection, Tahari took inspiration from 1970s downtown creatives, creating a contemporary New York-centric collection with a vintage feel.

Tahari himself first arrived in New York City from Israel in 1971, so his introduction to America was witnessing this transformation of New York’s downtown scene. At the same time, the ‘70s also saw a rise in the working woman, an inspiration for Tahari as he designed no frills collections for professional women. The look of the working woman has changed since the early 70s, and rather than do a collection that looked like wardrobe for Jill Clayburgh’s character in “An Unmarried Woman,” Tahari took ‘70s elements and gave them a contemporary twist.

A tailored jacket was done in a beautiful olive color and belted at the waist; a sleek trench coat featured a leopard print collar, and ikat prints elevated a cheetah silk twill shirt paired with matching pants that was quintessential modern fashion PR woman office attire. Many women today get to be a little more artistic and push the boundaries with their fashion choices at work, especially those in creative fields found in the current downtown New York scene.

There were a few pieces, namely a cobra cotton sateen jacket and a polka-dot shirt with matching pant in brown that seemed a bit out of Tahari’s element as he attempted to venture into more comfort chic pieces rather than office attire, but it was an acceptable attempt at something out of his comfort zone. He still sees what the working woman today wants for her wardrobe, and that idea continues to permeate through the DNA of his collections, whether it be a tailored jacket with some flare or a work dress with an artistic, but not too loud pattern.

Photos courtesy of Corina Lecca

The collection was committed to two silhouettes, either short and sleek or long and flowing, with little variation in the said silhouettes. Although there were many eclectic elements to the collection, like wide-patch pockets, oversized blazers, with a color palette ranging from rattan to macadamia, the juxtaposition of the corporate style against the creative helped the entire collection work as a whole. Here’s to the working women who have found a new sense of fashion freedom.

— Kristopher Fraser

Cynthia Rowley Spring 2020

September 9, 2019 by admin Leave a Comment

Cynthia Rowley knows how to put on a fashion show!! Unlike some nascent brands that understand production value, Cynthia Rowley acutely understands that no matter how good the collection is, a milquetoast production can bring down the value of the garments.

For her spring 2020 collection, Cynthia Rowley took up back to the streets, literally!! That’s right, Rowley set her spring 2020 show outside on Tribeca’s Jay Street. (Inside tip: Rowley’s design team moved to Jay Street a few months ago.) A tip to New York Fashion Week: The Shows designers; consider having some street shows in the future. Nothing is better than New York City architecture as a backdrop.

That said; for her spring 2020 collection Rowley was inspired by Dr. Seuss’ Oh, The Places You Go. And with Seuss’ estate’s permission, Rowley used some illustrations from the book as prints in her spring 2020 collection. Like Seuss and many of the characters in his book, there was a heavy psychedelic 60s reference that will entice many consumers to want to go back to that carefree time when being hip and unstructured was the norm, and you could seemingly be who you are, experimenting with cultural trends that reflected the mood of time.

Though the garments in this collection at times were unstructured, phantasmagorical and cartoon-like, there was great humor and vitality. Additionally, the floral prints on occasion did overshadow some of Rowley’s silhouettes. Still, this was a fun, easy breezy collection that with some tweaking will have instant consumer appeal.

Images courtesy of Filippo Fior/gorunway.com/vogue.com

Standout looks in this collection were Rowley’s sky blue boxy tied-at-the-waist thigh-length jacket with matching two-tone emerald and sky blue slacks, black extended crouch suspender-like romper, white baby doll dress with multi-colored sequined floral motif, green and black floral print dress, floral paint-splattered short dress with floral paint-splattered peasant blouse, and purple and blue sequined suit.

—William S. Gooch