AIFW insider: 01/31/10

Sunday, January 31, 2010

Replay

Replay has been a household name for years already, but they are still improving themselves every season. Tonight they showed their new collection in a packed room: "Seattle sound, grunge style, mixing and matching, comfort and love for details are the key concepts for Fall/Winter 2010-11”.

With their specialty being denim of course, it was clear where the main focus was on. Jeans were shown in many ways: baggy, slim and cargo shapes, but also long jeans, skirts, jackets and very short hotpants. The classic indigo blue is mostly dark, but as always Replay showed some innovative washes and amazing details. Studs are still popular, as the label keeps on rocking their street-smart and cool style.

Denims were combined with plaited skirts and tops and floral patterns for women: feminine but still tough. The cowboy-look was clearly still a source of inspiration, combined with motorcycle elements like leather jacket and studded (thigh) boots. Cardigans with Alaska-style knitwear added to the wintery feel of the outfits.

The menswear collection had the same edgy character as the female version with plaited shirts, motor jackets and army print cardigans. All outfits were strong, powerful and nicely styled, as we expect it to be of this high-standard brand.

The audience seemed to love every bit of it, especially when the last model made her appearance: the well-known Victoria’s Secret face Ana Beatriz Barros. Replay did it a again: a strong, exciting high-quality collection.

Photos by Aram Goudsmit

Written by Lisa Goudsmit

I want a Beick Bike!

Spotted outside the runway venue: Beicks. The new concept from Beick is a combination of ingenious and contemporary design, which allows customers to create their own bike online from a choice of more than 5 million different variations. Everything from handlebars to saddle and from tyres to luggage carriers can be individually picked, always creating a truly unique bike. After choosing your design you can always continue to update your Beick.

We love it. We want one. Pink with flowers and glitters. Now.

Merle Deterink of AIFW with her Beick

AIFW Team Loves Sorel

That quality and sustainability doesn’t necessarily mean boring proofs Sorel: the Canadian cool boots are getting more and more populair nowadays. Not only outdoor-lovers, also movie stars like Brad Pitt and Kate Hudson wear their Sorels with great pride! The most populair model, the Caribou, is already a classic but we also love the Joan of Arctic!

Sorel embodies honest and unpretentious footwear, combining style and comfort. Many fashion-victims, like Bastiaan van Schaik and Jetteke van Lexmond, were spotted wearing their Sorels during Amsterdam International Fashion Week. The organisation of AIFW were extremely happy to slip into their Sorels in between shows: high heels are great, but in the typical Dutch icy weather, Sorel definitely saved the day!

AIFW's Merle Deterink (r) and Stéphanie Floor (l) wearing the JOAN OF ARCTIC™ by Sorel

Claudia Sträter

Claudia Sträter is thé brand for confident women: the designs are timeless and elegant and make women feel in control. Because it is designed for active ladies, the clothing is chic but still very comfortable. Even though Claudia Sträter is 100% Dutch design, it has an international allure that would appeal to women around the world.

The show started with models in a lot of black and leather: elegant but cool. The silhouettes throughout the show remained very powerful; the Claudia Sträter-woman is sexy without showing too much skin. Each item is beautifully made with a great eye for detail: high standard as we expect it to be. Basic colour like black, brown and beige are lit up with touches of vibrant red, sea blue and the occasional animal print. The basic designs leave room for individual interpretation and invite women to mix and match. Claudia Sträter is very now, but also very tomorrow: this is timeless fashion at its very best.

Photos by Maria Rudnaya

Written by Lisa Goudsmit

Ado les Scents

I don’t need many words to describe Hyun Yeu’s new collection: it was simply amazing! With his label Ado les Scents he produces mature, sophisticated and innovative menswear with an edge. He described his collection Rain as one “based on having fun on a rainy day. Playful yet chic.” The main item is the coat, that was executed in a variety of shapes and materials.

To me the Korean Yeu truly is one of the biggest innovators in menswear today. He is not afraid to give his designs an androgynous touch and to use materials like wool, denim, velvet ánd fur. Using basic colours like black and grey and combining them with orange and silver details, the designs get a timeless but trendy look. We are already looking forward to his next collection…

Photos by Maria Rudnaya

Written by Lisa Goudsmit

Contemporary Luxury Experience the Eyewear Volume #01

An exciting new event took place during the weekend, just a few steps away from the official AIFW runway venue: Contemporary Luxury Experience the Eyewear Volume #01. In an original setting, some of the world’s most interesting eyewear designers showed their collections. Not Just Vision invited labels like Paul Smith, Badgley Mischka and Linda Farrow to connect to the audience.

Simon Jablon

We talked to Simon Jablon, son of the legendary Linda Farrow and creative director of the company, who told us he only relaunched the brand 6 years ago. “My mother designed throughout the 60s, 70s and 80s and worked together with brands like Sonia Rykiel and Balenciaga. After 3 decades of hard work she quit mid 1980s. It was like 6 years ago that I found this warehouse filled with my mother’s vintage designs and decided to continue her work. I redesigned some models and now we here we are.” And Linda Farrow is definitely here to stay, again. Celebrities like Nicole Richie, Madonna and Pixie Geldof have been spotted wearing Linda Farrow, but their best ambassador is probably Lady Gaga: she seems to absolutely love all the extravagant designs. Currently the Olsen Twins are working together with Linda Farrow as well: they asked the brand to create a special collection for them. The revived eyewear label is also working together with amazing fashion designers like Dries van Noten, Raf Simons, Alexander Wang and Matthew Williamson.

Besides the designs, the choice of material is also very special: titanium, 24 carat gold and mammoth tusk (!). Jablon explains:: “The melting of the polar ice caps has exposed quite a lot of mammoth tusk, enough that some of it has found its way to market. We are among a few labels around the world that are allowed to use this material, and we only produced a small number of frames form it.” It certainly adds another value to this brand that is highly original and innovative.

Photos by Maria Rudnaya

Written by Lisa Goudsmit

La Dress by Simone

Sunday morning started with CLUB BRILLIANT presents Breakfast at Amsterdam. The gathered crowd was treated to crossaints and coffee, a nice way to recover from Saturday night and to start this very last day at Amsterdam International Fashion Week. The showing designer, who was kept a secret till the last moment, was La Dress by Simone.Introducing the collection was a mixture of short clips: the Golden Globes show of last year, clips from the legendary movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s with Audrey Hepburn, pieces of old 1940s Hollywood films and parts of Top Gun and Mission Impossible with Tom Cruise to name a few. At first sight the clips didn’t seem to have so much in coming a part from the fact that they were all reflecting the typical Hollywood glamour, all in a specific zeitgeist.

As the show started, sweet French chansons were played and a group of models, all wearing cute pastel-coloured dresses, entered laughing and giggling. The dresses were typical for La Dress: elegant, sophisticated and feminine. I loved the entire atmosphere and entourage, tres joli et Français! This first subcollection is called “a Box of Candy” and we love it (almost) as much as chocolate!

The second line shown was ‘My Little T-Shirt Dress –MLTD’: “set your inner rock-chic free”. Young and glamorous with an edge, this subcollection will appeal to all fun-loving girls out there.

Part 3 of the collection was named ‘She’s a Busy Lady’; obviously inspired by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Dresses designed to make every woman, at every occasion, feel confident and feminine. We loved the classic cuts, the nice fabrics and the entire effortless-chic look.

The last subcollection, ‘A Night to Remember’, included the most glamorous pieces. Cute cocktail dresses, party outfits and evening gowns were all perfectly executed. My favourite was a long black off-the-shoulders dress with a bow to highlight the waist: classic and elegant with a twist, everything we expect from la Dress.

The fact that the subcollections shown were so very different was in line with the concept of La Dress: Simone believes that “every woman carries a multiplicity of women within themselves.” I wish I could dress al my personalities in La Dress, every day...

The show ended with a deserved standing ovation....

All photos by Maria Rudnaya

Written by Lisa Goudsmit

Fancy Guy, Fancy Name, Fancy Dresses

The closure of today, Saturday the 30^th, was looked at with great expectations. The designer, Michael Barnaart van Bergen, is one of the biggest promises for the Dutch fashion scene. Even though he only recently graduated from the Amsterdam Fashion Institute, he is already becoming a favourite of magazines, journalists and fashion lovers. His style is clear: feminine, elegant and chic. His specialty? Dresses, dresses, dresses!

For this show, ‘Beau Monde Presents C’est Brilliant Les Icônes featuring Michael Bernaart van Bergen’, the designer seems to have gotten inspiration from a few different angles. The show started with 1950s style cute dresses, but with an almost futuristic twists. The models, wearing classic A-line dresses in colours like beige, off-white, grey and black looked refined but cool with their striking sunglasses. After that the classic dress was shown in many different ways: from a long satin purple gown to a short bright pink version and from a Bretagne-striped shirtdress to a neon-coloured party dress. The designer played a lot with shapes, patterns, materials and colours but never forgot his own style.

Michael Barnaart van Bergen seems to have it all, being a charming personality himself and having the gift to make every woman look and feel special. He has already designed gowns for a number of Dutch stars for the red carpet and my guess is that we will be able to enjoy his designs for many more years to come. Michael Barnaart van Bergen: remember his name!