YMI Fall 2011 Runway Show

YMI is in the midst of growing from a jeans label to a lifestyle brand, and on April 3, the Los Angeles–based juniors fashion brand gave an update on its fashion progress with a runway show of its Fall 2011 collection at Exchange L.A. in downtown Los Angeles.

YMI’s 45-look show was divided into three parts: animal prints, jeans and glam rock. The animal-print segment featured tank tops and T-shirts with leopard prints, as well as faux-fur outerwear bearing giraffe prints. Outerwear silhouettes featured hoodie-like coats. Another look was a dress with metal studs and sequins intended to look like animal markings.

YMI started in 2000 with a denim focus, and for much of the show, YMI displayed what was next for its jeans looks. They included anklet jeans with 27-inch and 29-inch inseams. There were trouser-style jeans, many with a dark wash, and the microflare, which is something of a mix between stillpopular skinny jeans and flared jeans, which are forecast to be the popular denim body of 2011 and beyond. From calf down, the microflare is fitted like a skinny jean. But from waist to calf, the jean has the looser body of a flare jean. Tops displayed in this segment featured a bandeau style.

With the David Bowie tune “Suffragette City” blaring in the background, the show’s glam rock segment was intended to evoke the sizzle of the glam rock scene of the early 1970s. With YMI’s treatment of this fashion look, it showed tops and jeans bearing sequins, studs, lace and leather jackets as well as T-shirts with rock ’n’ roll graphics such as two glossed-over lips.

Alexander Wang

“IT'S ABOUT American tradition and heritage,” said Alexander Wang of the spring/summer 2010 collection he showed at Pier 94 on Saturday. “I didn’t want to put a time period on it. I didn’t want it to be about the Eighties or the Nineties, I wanted it to be about classic American sportswear with an edge.”

And, boy, did he deliver. From the military-inspired twill vest and shorts that opened the show to the tinsel dresses that closed it, Wang took classic American off-duty (and, as in the case of some football-inspired pieces, on-duty) sportswear to a very cool place.

In Wang’s world, a plain grey sweat suit gets sexed up with cut-outs, leather and lace, nylon baseball shorts are quilted and given exposed zips, while a striped rugby sweater is cropped to there and worn with khaki-and-sweatshirt fold-over trousers to reveal a very toned tummy. Oversized white button-downs boast back-baring crisscross details and the arms of an off the shoulder sweatshirt dress wrap around the model’s torso, making it look as though she’s hugging herself.

The models’ long, messy side braids, exposed cotton skivvies and backless knee socks (sounds weird, looks cool) only enhanced the sporty-sexy vibe. All told, another winner for Team Wang.

 Read More at http://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/show.aspx/full-length-photos/id,8256

Nashville Fashion Week

Step back New York, Milan, London, and Paris - there’s a new fashion week in town: Nashville.  I know what you’re thinking, how could a relatively small town known for honky tonks and country music boast an amazing fashion week?  Well, we pulled it off and had a fabulous week which included fashion powerhouses like Christian Siriano and Kelly Cutrone!

Here were my top five highlights of the week:
1) Christian Siriano
Flowing gowns, perfect fabric, and over-the-top pieces encompassed Siriano’s collection.  The silhouettes and use of texture were absolutely breath-taking!

2) Kelly Cutrone Workshop
Seeing Kelly Cutrone speak was so inspiring and frankly, she was the opposite of how she comes across on television.  I found her to be compassionate, real, and extremely kind.  She spoke about her life and what it takes to make it in the fashion industry and also came to most of the fashion shows throughout the week! 

3) T. Rains by Traver Rains
Feathers, fur, and lots of bare legs flowed down the runway at the spectacular T. Rains show.  This was by far the most provocative and fun collection of the whole week!

4) White Rabbit
Local designer Shea Steele wowed crowds with her beautiful collection.  I was completely in love with her pieces and found it to be the most wearable collection of the week – you better believe I’ll be hopping over to her store Local Honey to pick up some these perfectly chic pieces.

5) Steven Oo
Steven Oo’s collection was filled with amazing knitwear and beautiful neutrals.  Seeing this collection made we want cozy up in a gorgeous piece of knit wear and go conquer the fashion world!

Read More at http://www.vogue.in/content/nashville-fashion-week

Dress made of 1200 pens for Lady Gaga?

A UK designer who has created an incredible dress from a staggering 1,200 biro pens has said that the garment would be perfect for eccentric pop star Lady Gaga.

It took 640 hours to sew all the Bic pens onto the extraordinary garment, which is also covered in 2,000 crystals and is worth around
10,000 pounds. The dress weighs 8lbs - just over half a stone - but, according to designer Annette Carey, it's completely wearable.

“I wanted to create something incredible from the pens,” the Daily Mail quoted Carey, as saying.

Pen Dress“I took an everyday iconic object that everyone has probably used at least once and turned it in to something extremely beautiful.

“It is designed to be worn and it would be perfect for someone who has a bit of a wild, edgier side.

“I was thrilled to work with BIC in creating this anniversary dress,” she added.

The main body of the dress is made of 100 per cent silk and tulle netting. The fiddly, dressmaking process took up to 13 hours a day. The dress went on display at the Inkspiration: Story of BIC Cristal exhibition at the Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising, West London.
Read More at http://www.hindustantimes.com/lifestyle/fashionandbeauty/Dress-made-of-1200-pens-for-Lady-Gaga/Article1-681184.aspx

Fashion Trends: Lower The Better

The latest in fashion trends is the flesh-flashing trend which is the exposed skin between cropped top and hip-hugging jeans started by Mariah Carey cutting off the tops of her jeans and continued by Britney Spears and Christina Aguilera.

It is a season where everybody is showing off tummies and belly buttons and low-cut jeans are the jeans of the season. The look began several years ago with the popularity of belly-button piercing and the rise of midriff exposure. But as shirts crept up and midriffs became less shocking, the focus began shifting south.

The biggest advantage of the low-rise look is, it visually lengthens the torso and has a slimming effect. And, by picking a short or long top, women can control the amount of skin they bare. "With this belly-baring fashion gaining more popularity amongst pop diva's and stars, the fashion is likely to spread more rapidly coz women like to copy their role models" says Kabir, designer, who adds, "Low-rise is about an attitude and if you have the attitude to wear it, you can pull it off. It's about being sexy and really feeling sexy and feminine in a pair of jeans."

And with stores such as Levi's still filling racks with low-rise offerings, the lower belly is likely to make a continued appearance through fall and beyond.

However not all can carry off these fashion trends. Low cut can be hard to wear if you have a fleshy lower abdomen.' You can't have a lot hanging out,' says Nikita, model, 21, 'A little bit hanging over is cute, because women usually have a little bit of a paunch; they don't naturally have flat tummies. But you don't want stuff hanging over the sides.'

Women attempting the pelvic flash should remember that the look works much better when they're standing up. So, when sitting down, adjust yourself to be sure that your belly isn't drooping over the top of your low-slung pants.

Also, if you're going for the low-cut trend, consider it your duty to make an appointment for a bikini wax first.
Read More at http://www.seasonsindia.com/beauty/fashiontrends_sea.htm