In Review: Dress Rehearsal

Fashion designer Emma Berg and jewelry designer Stephanie Lake elegantly showcased their newest work at an intimate cocktail party to raise funds for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Twin Cities, with a special focus on music and art programming. The l'etoile co-sponsored benefit was held in the gilded ballroom of a private estate in Deephaven, MN. Guests were treated to an array of canapés and desserts from Chow Girls and Perfect Day Cakes, as well as musical performances from Boys & Girls Club members and videos about the organization before the fashion presentation began.

Berg created a rainbow of cocktail dresses and gowns specifically for the event. The capsule collection opened with cocktail dresses in white, navy and dandelion yellow. They were fairly conservative designs compared to the majority of the collection, but each had understated details and design elements that separated it from the average cocktail dress.

An asymmetrical cornflower blue wrap dress could also be worn as a light-weight coat. On its own, the translucent fabric and potentially plunging neckline (depending on how loosely the dress was worn), could be fairly risqué, despite the layers and gathers of fabric. But worn as an additional layer over another gown or dress, it would function as a fashion-forward look for the more conservative dresser.

A voluminous cream sleeveless cape trailed a simple white dress and red lace waistband. Elements of the design were almost cocoon-like, and the cape hung down the model's back like dripping wings. It had an incredibly graceful effect. Though the red lace was stunning, it would be interesting to see this look belted with something that maintained its ethereal quality.

An delicate one-shouldered dress in complimentary shades of green felt suited for Titania in A Midsummer Night's Dream. The dress was expertly sewn (in chiffon, no less), but even so, there were a few slight puckers of fabric. With a design such as this, anything that breaks the flow creates a distraction.

The penultimate design, a dramatic magenta gown, recalled the gentle turns and folds of flower petals. The skirt and bodice were immaculately sculpted, and the color itself was incredibly rich. The exaggerated flowing sleeves were interesting and well-constructed, but the drama of the look limits the piece to the fashion brave. It would be too Dynasty for most women, but with only slight editing, it could become a far more wearable gown.

The finale dress was a bouquet of colors. Flowers, hand-painted by local designer Max Lohrbach, blossomed on yards of silk that gathered and ruffled around the model. The result was stunning. One of Berg's signature design elements is a vertical gathering that cascades, uninterrupted, down the front of her gowns. However, this particular gown's shape would have been more dynamic if the horizontal line of the black waist band was unbroken.


Jewelry, headpieces and bags by Stephanie Lake complimented the collection. Lake, who also co-hosted the event, has found success by creating statement pieces that are almost alarming in their boldness. She and Berg made a very smart pairing. Several lucky party-goers wore Lake's jewelry for the event, and a pop-up shop gave attendants the opportunity to examine her pieces up close.

Styling by l'etoile's own Jahna Peloquin and hair and makeup by Charlie Brackney and the talented crew of Haus Salon hit just the right note of avant garde. The models from Vision Model Management were impeccable as always, even after changing into little black dresses to assault the hors dourves table. The event was understated and elegant, and raised enough funds to purchase a number of musical instruments for the Boys & Girls Club's American Guitar & Band Academy, including a new piano, drum kit, and more.

In Review: Rock the Garden 2011

By Natalie Gallagher
Photos by Erik Hess//content share via How Was The Show

Rock the Garden manages every year to be that place where Twin Citizens run into absolutely every single person they have known since their tenure on “the scene” began, and Saturday’s massive music bash did not disappoint in that regard. I watched as the sea of concert-goers schlepped around in their galoshes and ponchos, shuffling from the beer line to the Chef Shack line, alternating between muttering about the shitty weather and repeating uplifting phrases like, “It’s not actually that bad!”


The weather certainly had an effect on the fashion for the day, as looking out across the field at 4 p.m., amidst a gentle wash of droplets, all I could see was a colorful ocean of yellow, pink, and blue ponchos in varying shades. To some degree, it felt like we were all musical refugees and the Walker was our camp; everyone looked vaguely pathetic and bedraggled, not boozed enough to really enjoy anything.

Nothing a bucket of fries and a pint or eight of trusty Summit can’t fix, really.

So Tapes ‘n’ Tapes kicked off the musak moshing at 4:15 on the dot, and they brought back a lot of material from The Loon and Outside, which was great for the half-committed crowd that assembled itself for them. I spent most of my time accidentally stepping on people and then realizing I knew them.


As the day wore on, the terrain of the Walker field became wetter and muddier as the rain was like a slutty slutski, coming in and out in a veiled tease of what might come if we stuck around long enough. Some people ditched the poncho in favor of the very boho garbage bag ripped with armholes, and it was like seeing the rise and fall of a fashion trend within 7 hours as the rain gear became increasingly more elaborate as people had time to kill before anything really exciting happened. I saw one girl wearing what appeared to be a Victorian ensemble assembled out of three black garbage bags and a plastic ribbon. (At the end of the night, when the weather eventually tapered off to a nice damp, sticky, non-drizzling state, these magic rain outfits would disappear to reveal, uh, jeans.)


So while the crowd was caught somewhere between fear of storms, hope for sun, and buzzily trying to locate the single vodka tent, Booker T. Jones introduced himself to the young audience with the funky jams that made him legend, deliciously delving into “Green Onions” three songs into his set. It’s the kind of slow-jamming, soulful sort of music that sounds like one of the most face-meltingly hot days of summer instead of one of the muggiest days of fake-summer, but all the same, Booker T. is a Hall of Famer and worth a listen any damn day.


By the time Neko Case took the stage, the music refugees had been stuffed with enough corndogs and booze to blearily make it through her whiny set. The Tweeps, press peeps, and all other peeps generally agree on this: Neko Case bantered too much, and it wasn’t even good banter. It was like, sarcastic “oh sorry to be an afternoon bummer” snarky banter, said quietly whilst she was tuning her guitar, and it just came off as insincere and snotty. Also, she appeared to have some kind of root or plant attached to her hair. Or maybe it was just four different barrettes. Anyway, kind of disappointing, though hearing “Man Eater” was rad.


Whilst waiting for My Morning Jacket to take the stage, the rain clouds mysteriously disappeared. At the top of the hill, there was a fantastic view of the downtown skyline, with steam rising up through the crevices between the buildings like…well, I’ll let you take the analogy wherever you want it to go.

One of the more memorable moments of the evening happened when the Current’s Mary Lucia came over the PA to announce that there was a lost child named Dominic. Parents could claim him, said Lucia, “ironically enough, at the vodka tent”. That’s summer in the city for you, I guess.


For all the relative lackluster and general muckiness of the day, MMJ really nailed it. They are one of the most appropriate outdoor festival bands, and helped redeem RTG 2011 from its previous two years with some rather uninspiring headliners (2009 featured the Decemberists, 2010 with the lukewarm MGMT). The mass of concert goers took to them well; ponchos were ditched once and for all, and as My Morning Jacket closed with the essential “One Big Holiday”, the good and hearty people of Minneapolis (and beyond) exited, happily buzzed, with a young night ahead of them.

FOR MORE IMAGES BY ERIK HESS, VISIT HOWWASTHESHOW.COM

Our own Jahna Peloquin also took some crowd photos of the hotties in the crowd:

In Review: WAMarchy

by Kate Iverson / Photos by Stephen Stephens & Erik Hess
(shared content with Secrets of the City/Scene Spree)

This past Saturday, l’etoile collaborated with the Weisman Art Museum on their closing gala, a final blowout to celebrate the iconic museum’s year-long hiatus and expansion project that kicks off this week. Since early this year, l’etoile had been brainstorming with Weisman marketing guru Christopher James on the concept of a “break all the rules” party at the museum right before the renovations were to start. It took a little convincing, but the higher-ups eventually gave us their blessing and WAMarchy was born. Once tickets went on sale, the event sold out almost immediately!

At 8pm the doors were open and well-heeled attendees of all ages flooded in. The Art Creation Station sponsored by Friedman/Iverson and mplsart.com was one of the first things people stumbled across when walking into the museum. Long tables with scads of art supplies piled onto them invited people to create custom pieces to hang along the walls of the corridor. We even brought a stack of old l’etoile print issues for people to cut up and collage into their art.

WAMarchy! Time Lapse at the Weisman Art Museum from Stephen Squared on Vimeo.

We commissioned Cult Status Gallery owner Erin Sayer and her posse of graffiti artists to create a “WAMarchy” inspired mural and interactive art wall for attendees to add to in the main hall, which was completed Friday. The mural, sponsored by Art Space, was huge, colorful and stunning – a perfect representation of the vivid WAMarchy theme. At the last minute we got the okay from the building manager to add an additional wall for people to draw on during the event, which ended up being one of the most popular spots of the night.

Projection artist Clement Shimizu put together an impressive video installation that overwhelmed one huge gallery. Manipulated footage of art installs that have happened at the museum and huge eyeballs surveying the crowd were just a couple of the visual tricks Shimizu had up his brilliant sleeves. As a backdrop to the eye candy, DJ Adam Mehl of Radio K’s “Out of Step” kept party goers riled up all night with a seriously rockin’ punk playlist.

In the far gallery, the God Damn Doo Wop Band kicked things off at 9:30pm with their rebelliously adorable, bop-worthy tunes, which had stylish attendees swing dancin’ their hearts out throughout the set. After a brief intermission, Epitaph Records punk rockers Off With Their Heads took the stage for a truly raucous performance that filled the room with happily pogo-ing party people.

Photo by Erik Hess for l'etoile

Fueled by free Surly Beer, a red wine tasting from Big Top and Sorella (previously forbidden in the hallowed halls of the Weisman) and a taco bar, bahn mi sandwiches and a cash bar from D’Amico, the party kept rockin’ until the stroke of Midnight.

For even more pictures from the night, visit Digital Crush Photography

For more behind-the-scenes commentary on the event, check out the new weekly Secrets of the City feature "Scene Spree" where Kate Iverson will be recapping her weekend arts antics every Monday.

In Review: Fell at BlackBlue

by Natalie Gallagher

On the quiet corner of Selby and Dale at St. Paul men's boutique BlackBlue, photographer Cameron Wittig stood beside a picture of the Hollywood sign and explained why he was averse to typical tourist photos.

"There are millions--billions--of photos of the Hollywood sign, and Niagara Falls, and so on. They look the same every time… so I added a fingerprint." Wittig gestured to the blur of pinkish flesh that was obscuring the left side of the print. "One in every million is a photo like that."

Wittig is entirely unpretentious about his work, which is refreshing especially considering his impressive background. (He has freelanced for Rolling Stone, New York Times Magazine, American Craft, and more.) He has the sort of unassuming character that invites conversation from anyone on any level, and as the small room circulated with old friends and interested visitors, Wittig seemed pleased at the warm reception. Much of the merchandise and furniture in BlackBlue had been cleared away to make room for the warm bodies, and there was a pleasantly crowded neighborhood vibe about the evening. I continued to plague Wittig with questions about his exhibit, pointing to a print of three shots of open blue sea that had been stacked on top of one another.

"Well, it's a classic rule, to work in threes…never put anything in the middle," Wittig explained, referring to the Rule of Thirds in photography and art which dictates that the picture be composed so that the subjects are located around one of the eye's intersection points (about two-thirds up from the image) instead of the center of the image.

Wittig seems determined to break all the classical rules, and he does it so successfully and so subtly that the viewer barely notices. Perhaps because the motivation doesn't come from a want to rebel, but more from a desire to disrupt the pattern. He is not riding against the waves of tried and true compositional statute simply for the sake of doing things differently, but rather out of a need to find the difference in a sea of sameness. Another example of this is a piece titled "Postcard"--a wide and scenic picture of the Denver skyline, with white mountain peaks and blue sky in the background. Indeed, it would make the perfect postcard--if Wittig hadn't chosen to display it upside-down.

Beyond the individual shots, the exhibit itself seemed to carefully break with convention. The first print was a black and white shot of a young man levitating above a river, and was the only picture to feature a person. Other photographs included close-up shots of water crashing into a shore (Lake Superior, I was later told), a picture of a window where the view was the brick wall of another building, and wood scenes with psychedelic lights and shadows. The final piece was of a solemn wooden door closing on a room, with just a crack of light peeking from the floor.

Each photograph seemed like a piece from a very different series; viewing them side-by-side should have been distracting, but oddly, the contrasting subjects lent themselves favorably to Wittig's overarching goal of disturbing the paradigm. Besides that, the photograph collectively shared the ability to polarize a particular moment in time, forcing the viewer into the silence of the instant in which the picture was taken. In the same way that Wittig searches for uniqueness in the world through his lens, he challenges viewers to find it for themselves. Shots like the ones of the Lake Superior waters breaking into dirt and rocks are at once familiar and strange, like fragments of a blurry memory, and even as the viewer tries to place them, their significance can shift from violent to precious and back again.

The title of the exhibit is Fell, which, Wittig noted, can mean a lot of different things: to fall down, to fell a tree, etc. In each photograph, there seems to be a pause somewhere--a point of solitude where the viewer forgets what they are actually looking at, in the same way that a sudden fall or a stricken tree can affect the scene. Appropriate, I thought. Another break in the pattern.

Fell will be on display at BlackBlue throughout December. For more info, visit the website here. For more of Cameron Wittig's work, visit his online portfolio here.

In Review: SCENEaSOTA

by Beth Hammarlund / photos by Stephen Stephens

Last Saturday night, fashionable Twin Citizens flocked downtown to attend the sold out fashion show SCENEaSOTA. In its third year, the production has matured to become an anticipated annual event in the local design community. This year's incarnation was held in Loft2 above Om Restaurant, an airy warehouse space with a picture window view of busy First Avenue. Before the show began, guests sipped wine and pouted for photographs, while taking the occasional break to sample fragrances and test Smashbox cosmetics. Eventually seats were filled, gift bags were inspected, and the fashion chatter came to a halt.


In addition to featuring collections from eight designers, producer Maritza Ramirez broadened this year's presentation to include four fashion-centric short films by Elijah Chhum. As the lights dropped and the projectors rolled, you could feel the crowd's energy and excitement in the air.

The fashion kicked off with looks from Jenn Bratvold and accessories by Carrier Pigeon. Bratvold's collection included nods to schoolgirl style, English country dressing, and retro mod fashions. The designer clearly has a lot of great ideas, but needs to streamline her point of view. At times the collection felt jumbled, but a number of pieces were quite sharp and gave audience members a sense of the designer's potential.


Britta Feuerhelm showed a collection of drip-dyed silks in a variety of blousy shapes and colors. Though the designer has a great eye for creating interesting palettes, she still has room to grow with her construction, which was often overly basic. However, a few dresses and separates boasted clever shapes and cuts. Hopefully the designer will continue to move in that direction. The collection's leather accessories by Feuerhelm deserve a mention as well. The juxtaposition of drapey silk and structured leather and accessories by Ann Lambrecht was chic, without feeling overly styled.


Kathryn V's segment opened with a ladylike dress that was heavily featured in one of the accompanying short films. Though the elbow-length sleeves and graceful scoop back conveyed a coy sexiness, the shirttail hem felt strangely out of place. The designer had better luck with separates, where she showed mix-and-match skirts, blouses and jackets. Playful baubles by Timmilynn Johnson accessorized the collection.



Jenny Carle has become known for consistently feminine and well-tailored cocktail dresses, and while she maintained her signature aesthetic (there were plenty of tiered skirts and and structured strapless necklines), she broadened her range with a selection of full-length gowns. A sweetheart navy number was smartly accessorized with gold jewelry from Tasha Rae, the overall effect of which was Grecian without veering into the costume. A stunning closing gown was one of the highlights of the entire show.


Christine Carmichael of Carmichael Claith opened with a full-length one-shoulder gown in dramatic crimson. For the most part, the designer stuck with what she does best: ladylike pieces with a whiff of classic Brittania. The last three looks (despite an addition of a fun pinstripe menswear-inspired jacket complete with coattails) were all variations of the same olive party dress. It was a gorgeous look (the tea-length version is pictured above), but it was disappointing not to see more variety from an established local designer. Feathered and beaded accessories from Bionic Unicorn kept the styling from veering into the overly sweet.


Though Raul Osorio has been straying more into womenswear, his menswear is still where he best captures his unique sensibility in his designs. Accessorized with pieces from Freedom From Doubt, Osorio's well-made collection of drop-crotch coveralls, skinny trousers and tailored shirts was sophisticated and irreverent. Contrasting pockets and crotches coupled with two-tone bow ties and dapper hats served as a necessary reminder that Minneapolis fashion has more to offer consumers than cocktail dresses and princess coats.


Frances Zerr's collection of dresses and separates immediately reminded me of Beverly Hills 90210. In a good way, I promise. Tapered pants, casual bustier tops with spaghetti straps, and button-front dresses felt fresh and modern, while still referencing the style of our favorite '90s teenage heroines. There were plenty of styles suitable for modern Kelly Taylors and Brenda Walshes, not to mention a few black pieces that felt very Emily Valentine. The collection was paired with delicious faux fur accessories from Ruby3, though there were a few moments when accessorizing a thin sundress with a faux fur ushanka didn't make sense.

Finale designer Kevin Kramp continued along his path as the Twin Cities' most avant garde menswear designer. Though many of his styles are reasonably unisex, I couldn't ignore a pang of jealousy as the male models paraded down the runway. It would be a treat to see the fearless designer tackle womenswear. As has been the case in the past, Kramp's pieces were paired with accessories by Ferociter, a line also known for taking risks. Ferociter designer Aimee Dukes and Kramp continue to compliment one another's aesthetics.

Despite a few minor technical hiccups, the presentation ran smoothly. Chumm's short films were an unexpected treat for many guests. Though the films included moments that felt overly self-aware, they were tightly edited and successfully atmospheric. Chumm excels at communicating moods and feelings, and his films consistently set the tone for the following designers.

Models were provided by Vision Model Management, and considering the whitewash of models on the international runways, kudos must be given to both Vision and SCENEaSOTA for casting an array of gorgeous models that were racially and aesthetically diverse. Though there were still the occasional self-conscious poses, the majority of the models walked at a confident clip with a seasoned attitude.

All in all, a dynamic showing of local talent across the board, from design to film to production. We expect that Loft2 will be booking a number of fashion events in 2011, as SCENEaSOTA proved it to be a perfect setting for a large scale, stylish soiree. In fact, we're already fantasizing about next year's SCENEaSOTA in our heads...

For more photos from the event, check out our post HERE.

MNfashion Week in review: Envision: Artopia Fall 2010

Text by Jahna Peloquin, as told by Richard Anderson
Photos by Chris McDuffie

With a whopping 14 local designers and five boutiques, this fall's Envision: Artopia is its biggest ever. The well-produced show by Ignite Models Inc. always packs the house, and last Friday at Graves 601 Hotel was no different. The production was accented with visuals from Anthem Heart, a live painting by Jesse Draxler and Christopher Park, a bumpin' soundtrack from DJ Shiek (accented by live electric violin), and a live hair show - whew. (And did you know 100 percent of the silent auction proceeds benefit the Young Survival Coalition, a breast cancer research fund?)

After the show, we sat down and reviewed the lines, Project Runway-style, with the ineffable Richard Anderson. Anderson definitely knows his fashion - the longtime Minneapolis resident has witnessed the ups and downs of local fashion over the years first-hand, and he's one of the most stylish men in town. He's like our very own Galliano. An interior designer by trade with his company Cherub Designs, Anderson made a name for himself making regular appearances on HGTV's Decorating Cents; he's also an impeccable fashion stylist, and in some circles he's known as his hilariously campy drag alter-ego, Bitch Flowers.

Let's start the show.


Jahna: This is YQY by Vivian, by Vivian Aronson. She’s a new designer from China.
Richard: I responded nicely to this. We really liked the references with the
coral. They were really cute dresses – I could see you wearing one or two of them!
J: Totally!
R: There were some dresses in the collection where the long hair covered some of the styling. They put a cute dress on a cute girl and it should’ve been fun. Perhaps with some better styling, it would've made more of an impact.


J: Next up we have a knitwear designer, Allilamodie. I've seen her stuff before, it's kind of cray-cray but there's some talent there. It's all hand-knit from what I understand.
R: I always love to see knits because it’s so hard to do knits. When I looked at the first look I thought, what a cute dress, but nix that black fabric! Where are we going with this? Is it daywear, is it nightwear? Put it with some brown leather over the knee boots, a Mongolian hat, make it look fall! It looks spring.
J: What about this jacket/denim look? I think it looks sort of dated.
R: I hate the jacket, and those pants are ill-fitting.


J: This one is actually pretty cute.
R: The pumpkin and taupe, loved it. Frickin' love it. Any girl would buy that sweater and wear it over jeans a cozy Sunday afternoon, or out at night with a great piece of jewelry.
J: Hit or miss is what I’m getting. Talent and skill for sure, but questionable taste level.


J: This is Kathryn V. by a recent grad, Kathryn Sterner. She's carried at Cliché.
R: I kind of like it. I like the ‘70s reference of the slouchy sweater and the
boots.
J: Yes, it's very wearable and smart. Very on-trend. She's really come a long way since I first saw her at SCENEaSOTA last fall.
R: But couldn’t you just die when they were holding those floral boutiques? That made no sense at all.
J: I thought it was kind of cute!
R: They’re women in daywear. I don’t get it. You’ve got the glasses, you’ve
got the cute jumper, but the flowers are distracting.


R: I think she’s got some good references here. The schoolgirl skirt with the pleats, and the sailor pants fit her beautifully.
J: Very well made. I'd wear those in a second.
R: But I think my biggest disappointment was the styling, throughout the show.
J: Apparently, each designer was responsible for his or her own styling.
R: We want to see it look more runway and less mall. I know we’re going for minimalist for jewelry this fall, but give us something to look at. And the hair is just wash and wear.


R: Oh, Russell Bourrienne! He continuously impresses me and he doesn’t get the credit he deserves. I love that he makes classic menswear fun. There were pieces like the plaid trench coat that we have seen, but with the exaggerated lapels. The zipper jacket, despite it being so many zippers, he took a basic bomber jacket and made it interesting, sort of gave it an art deco look. He took a classic peacoat and gave it those interlocking buttons.



R: The yellow coat is like ...what’s the movie with Madonna and Warren Beatty?
J: Dick Tracy. It's so you.
R: I want it so bad! It has that ‘60s London feel - all dolled-up dandies. I know he did his own styling, and he did it right. It looks masculine but fun.


J: Here's Amanda Christine. She sells her stuff at like 30 stores around the country.
R: You can tell. I can’t throw her under the bus. There’s good references there.
I’ve seen it before, but I like it. She adds her own twist. And I love shorts for fall. It’s well-done, and she uses good fabric.


J: This is Jenny Carle, another Cliché girl.
R: See, the plaid dress was cute. Then she threw the cheap-looking overlay on it. That’s when you need someone to come in and say, stop!


R: That taupe print dress, I thought of you immediately!
J: Yes, we used it for our fall shoot in l'etoile. It's adorable.
R: It’s a little bit Mad Men but not quite. Love the fabric, it almost looks like upholstery, which I love. Almost a perfect dress.
J: The styling was great with the little crinoline and gloves.
R: Yeah, that gave it some runway appeal.


J: We're kind of skipping over the boutiques, but I always love what Cliché does with styling.
R: I did love the childlike construction paper Lady Gaga-esque crowns. And I really
loved the necklaces made from construction paper. I think some designers should
make those out of resin. It was playful silliness you could throw over a simple
dress. That was a retail store that said, we should do something more.
J: They made the accessories themselves.
R: I loved the presentation. That’s why we go to a fashion show - for something unexpected.


R: But this last look - the sweater with the holes in it with a bunch of tulle? It looks like Freddie Krueger went to the prom.


J: Who is this James Reilly? I've never heard of him before.
R: He’s kind of a friend of mine. I was hoping for more from him. Some of these pieces were pretty.
J: I thought it looked a little dated. Interesting, but dated.
R: Yeah, it looked like the ‘90s! That green dress with all the heavy rouching and cape and all the velvet... But the big kimono jacket, I could see some girls wearing that.


R: This looks like a dress that Daryl Hannah would have worn in 1995 with boots. Totally grunge.
J: But I can't tell if it's on purpose or not.


J: This is a Hmong designer who was in Voltage last year, PFT Couture by Pafoua Thao. I really liked what she did for Voltage and other shows in the past but I don't know what's happening here.
R: I know where she's going, she's trying to be really edgy. But the model looks like she’s overwhelmed. It should have been a knee length skirt or leggings.


R: Oh gosh, the crop top.
J: It's sort of a weird proportion, like it cuts off the model in a weird place. Did you know that's Raina Hein? She was the one on America's Next Top Model.
R: That skirt is fun for Beyonce, or Bitch Flowers. That’s a stage skirt. Where would you wear that? The MTV Music Awards?
J: I think that's the point. It's pretty cool - the skirt, at least.


J: This is ArielSimone. She was recently in a show at New York Fashion Week with some Project Runway alumni. I remember seeing her work last year and not liking it much, but it seems like she's coming a long way.
R: The first skirt seems too short - the proportion is off. And the necklace with the earrings is too much! The other skirt is totally cute and the print is fun, but the grey blouse just killed it. She needs something with color. Maybe she should have stolen the necklace off the other girl and thrown it on here.


R: That velvet thing...Oh my god. Brigette Nielsen would’ve worn that in the ‘80s
J: You would remember!
R: That was like, go to the club and look like a hooker. It just looks cheap – the
fabric, the cut is too short.
R: Then we have the Liza Minelli trapeze. Barbra Streisand in 1966.
J: I sort of liked the idea of it but somehow it got lost in translation.
R: And because she did the drop in the back, you can see the reverse of the fabric because she didn't line it. The print is kind of fun. Cut the sleeves off, line it, and maybe? But no jewelry, no hair - it just ended up looking frumpy.


J: This is one of my new favorites, Tender Cuts. It's by this young designer Emily Bryngelson.
R: I think it’s cute, it’s wearable. I love all this pumpkin everyone is doing. I
think the skirt is something you could buy now and wear ten years later. And that's a perfect blouse, don’t you love that?
J: Yes, it looks luxe yet youthful.
R: I love the grunge reference on the first look, the oversized boyfriend jacket. All of this stuff is totally cute. I like the colors, the jumper! And it's good, clean styling.


J: The corduroy jumper with the suspenders was one of my favorite pieces of the night.
R: It’s four season clothing, I love everything she did.


J: This is Sydney Ilten. She's better known for her feather accessories that she sells at Cliché.
R: It’s fun, I don’t know. I like that she threw those crazy leggings on that one look. But I don’t know if this stuff fits well. Maybe too big of pleats, too high up.
J: It looks kind of sloppy.
R: You’re right.


J: This is Kimberly Jurek's holiday line. I think she's calling her line K.Jurek now instead of kjurek couture.
R: I remember this coming down the runway. The rosette has been done and I don’t
think it should be done again. They were so big and stuck out so far, it’s like a
growth!
J: Without the rosette, though, they're very cute, luxe party dresses. Very wearable and retail-friendly.


J: I loved this look on the runway. The fabric was so gorgeous.
R: It’s very Halton from the ‘70s. The cut, the fluidity...it's great. Just take the rosette off! You could fit a family in one of those.


J: This is the holiday collection by Calpurnia Peach. I'm a fan of theirs.
R: But what's going on with this first look? It's like, I’m a sophomore and showing my first collection at the fashion institute. Where did they get off putting white pants with that? They started right with the top but the crinoline and pants...you don't want to be that girl at the party.
J: Yeah, it's very unlike them. Maybe they're trying to shake things up? I think the pants and top could've been cute worn with other things, just not together. And it's hard for tulle to not look cheap.


R: The blue dress is definitely cute. I could see you wearing that. The
print captivates me. What is that?
J: An owl. They do all their own original prints, you know.
R: What are the napkins hanging off her waist? It looked like pocket lining.
J: I see what they're going for but I feel like they do best with more edited looks. The froo-froo doesn't work. But I do appreciate the wood-grain print.


J: Now, this was my favorite look of the night. Hands down.
R: Agreed. I love this one with the mice. I was like, they just redeemed themselves. A girl with a sense of humor would wear that. Isn’t it very Prada, like when she did lipstick and carnation prints - the pop art references?


J: Finally, Christopher Straub. This was a preview of his Spring 2011 line.
R: The hydrangena dress was really cute. This look came down the runway and I got
excited. It was well-made, unexpected, and I love the trapeze shape. This one is perfect.
J: Agreed, it's such a chic look and so unexpected coming from him. He said he designed the patterns himself.


R: But then it went downhill. The teal dress had potential but threads were hanging off. Then we’re back to the top with the exaggerated detail, and I get designers are doing the architectural thing, but skirt looked like dining room upholstery. I do love the petal shrug.
J: The petal work has sort of become Christopher's trademark. He does it well.
R: But the dress didn’t fit well, it wasn’t a good length, and I hated the belt.


J: Then we go to his gown.
R: I didn’t get it. I liked his attempt with the print top, but the skirt looked like
a prom dress. And then he put that big heavy purse with it. And the shoes were terrible.


J: More petals. This one is pretty cute.
R: I remember this coming down the runway and thought this could be fun, but the
raspberry corset was too much.
J: Yes, it's too extreme.
R: Maybe just with a belt. He’s known for the petal dress and he does it well.
J: It won him a challenge or two on Project Runway, after all.