Fashion Design Phoenix

By Allison Mistlebauer
[This weeks guest blogger writes from Phoenix, AZ.]

Despite the fact that fashion design did not officially emerge until the late 19th century, the principle of projecting a certain image using clothing and accessories was already well-established by royalty and wealthy land owners in Europe.  Henry VIII was masterful at using clothing to portray a specific image; power. He chose only the finest silks and most expensive fabrics and jewels when he met with other Kings and he was keenly aware of how his image and clothing reinforced his position as King.

Once a formal profession fashion designers used clothing and accessories to express their unique styles and ideas while pushing forward new ideas that might challenge the cultural norms of the time. Many designers, like Coco Chanel took already up and coming styles and made them more mainstream and fashionable by using their well-established name. Though Coco Chanel did not originate male-like sports wear for women, she did make it popular.

Fashion design is almost inevitably tied to the social and political happenings of the time and serves as a key element in any history lesson, especially one that focuses on the role of women.  Design during wartimes were vastly different than those of the Golden Age in Paris, as the clothing for women needed to be more practical as they took positions in factories to support war efforts. The main colors of a given time-period also reflected culture. Darker colors were more prevalent during wartime which is in stark contrast to the neon colors of the 1980’s era of freedom and choice.

Fashion design sometimes dictates the trend and sometimes follows the needs of the time. Though today London, Paris and New York may still arguably be the centers for fashion design, many other smaller US cities are starting to develop their own set of fashion designers and create their own fashion culture.  Democratization of fashion design has led to an explosion of designers in cities large and small across the globe. Small niche markets have cropped up each with their own set of well-known designers and followers.

Though Phoenix would not rank very high as a fashion design center, it is starting to develop its own place in fashion by hosting a Fashion Week, showcasing local designers who have a more global following and recognizing new and aspiring design artists.  Given the growing population of the Phoenix market, it’s a good market for some made-to-measure and ready-to-wear designs.  Angela Johnson, one particular designer in Phoenix has not only been recognized locally, but has started to create a more global presence.  Her unique designs take an eco-friendly approach where she uses old, vintage and thrift t-shirts to create new designs.  She has created ball gowns out of old t-shirts that have an edgy and unique look to them as compared to the traditional ball gown.

Fashion design in the Phoenix market will continue to evolve and grow even though the global fashion centers will likely remain unchanged.  A smaller market like Phoenix affords new designers great opportunity to create a name and build a reputation.

 

Fashion Design in Hawaii – Guest Blogger

By Jessica Goto

Courtesy HiloHattie.com

From the best fashion bikini photo shoots on the beaches to the chic modern styles in the Malls and Boutiques; Hawaii is a great place to launch a new product, line, service, or flagship store.  Some people think of Mu’umu’u’s as fashion here in Hawaii.  A Mu’umu’u is a traditional Hawaiian dress that was seen in the old Elvis movies filmed here.  It’s a long vertical dress that covers you from your neck down to your toes.   Or they would imagine resort wear in the islands.  Not your typical resort wear, more like the matching aloha wear that is an absolute must for most tourists to purchase while visiting.  However, we are placed in the middle of the Pacific Ocean where east meets west.  And, there’s a melting pot of diversity in our islands that contribute to the different arts, styles, fashion trends, and consumer demand.  So not only do we wear Mu’umu’u’s to our traditional Luau’s (Hawaiian feast), but we can dress it up high fashion as well, like the rest of the world.

Local designers not only design resort wear, they also have an eye for chic fashion designing as well. And, some are very successful at it.  In fact a friend of mine just accepted a job as the Merchandise Representative for a new resort line being designed here and manufactured in Bali.  There’s also fashion awareness and networking groups for young artist in the industry.

In the past two years, there has been a recent boom of little boutique shops popping up in downtown Honolulu.  I have friends that are owners to a couple of these unique boutiques.  Some are vintage, however most are very cutting edge trendy with the classic chic styles as well.  These shops are doing very well in the downtown area and make it fun to find one-of-a- kind pieces.

The islands also make a perfect place for retail markets to open their flagship stores.  Ala Moana, has a high success rate for retailers that are surviving the economic changes.  Demands here may be higher due to the amount of visitors we get as well.  So weather you are looking into a fashion career, designing, or mass marketing, fashion here in Hawaii is alive and well.

What is Fashion Design? Guest Blogger POV

By Brigitte Moreau

Fashion History in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield

I am very pleased to have this opportunity to introduce my hometown; Salaberry-de-Valleyfield in the province of Quebec. The city I live in had a great impact on the fashion Industry.  In fact, it is at the very heart of the Canadian Industry Itself.

Valleyfield is located in the South-West of Quebec, approximately 30km from Montreal, between Lac Saint Francois and the St. Lawrence River.  The port in Valleyfield is positioned at the center of the St. Lawrence Seaway and has direct access to the Atlantic Ocean and the Great Lakes. Needless to say, that this was a great advantage for the economic and industrial boom.

In turn, this attracted prosperous entrepreneurs such as Alexander Buntin from Scotland.  In 1875 an Industrial complex was built by the “Montreal Cotton Company” which consisted of several buildings, some of which had 4 to 5 floors.  There was a huge paper mill and a cotton mill where carding and weaving were done as well as a spinning mill amongst others. The complex was the biggest textile mill in Canada and dominated the local economy up to the 1900’s.  In fact, It was one of the largest employers of female labor and children. Today, part of the Industrial complex which belonged to the Dominion Textile as of 1905 is now a shopping mall with 34 boutiques. The other part, formerly the “Gault Mill” is now the Delta Plaza Hotel.

Now let’s get on with the interesting part and what I love most…Fashion. Based on what I have observed, there are multiple fashion trends in Valleyfield, depending on the region and socio-cultural background.   Trends of the older generation in one particular region (Buntin district area) is primarily related to the 1980’s, with black leather fringe jackets, tight Lois blue jeans, t-shirt and sweatpants. However, the younger generations of this sector have creatively upgraded the look to what is currently in vogue.  Fashion conscious they are, and have developed various styles such as Emo, Gothic and Punk-rock by adding bright colors and accessories amongst others.

Another sector called Bellerive has several independent fashion retail boutiques that carry apparel from famous fashion designers such as Michael Kors, Anna Scott, Joseph Ribkoff, Lacoste, Rudsak, Iris, Rachel F.  and Brave leather to name only a few. Valleyfield also has 2 fashion designers that I know of and a few fashion stylists. One boutique in particular has a private fashion show within the store once a year for their VIP clients and gives away prizes up to $5,000.  This mark of appreciation keeps their clients coming back year after year.

According to the (CFIB) the city of Valleyfield is ranked in the top 15 best cities in which to do business in Quebec and based on the assessment of commercial activity conducted in 2009, there is a lack of services in the clothing and shoe industry.  Therefore, I presume I will be very busy after I get my diploma as a Fashion Image Consultantant.

What is Fashion Design?

By Connie Bozant, Guest Blogger from Santa Clara, California

Fashion design is the combination of design and beauty artistically expressed in the formation of clothing and accessories determined by cultural and social influences.  Fashion design falls within three categories which are haute couture (made-to-measure), ready-to-wear, and mass market.  Most fashion designs worn today are the trendy styles of the mass-market category.  The ready-to-wear fashion design collections are in between the haute couture and mass market.  Haute couture designs are custom made and of a higher fabric and close attention to detail.  The ready-to-wear designs provide a descent fit but more cost economical than the haute couture designs.

Based on what I have observed, San Francisco has a fashion style of its own that is much more eclectic and laidback than many of the out fashion industry cities.  In San Francisco, clothing is typically layered due to weather changes fromone geometric area to the next.  However, while the fashion design or standard choice of the San Franciscan may be limited it does not eliminate San Francisco from the fashion industry.  The Gap, Inc. and Levi Strauss are among several fashion companies headquartered in San Francisco, which have paved the way in the fashion industry.  San Francisco has been moving up in the rank of cities to have a representation in the fashion design industry.  San Francisco is one of 13 cities in North America to play a major role in the fashion industry.  According to the Global Language Monitor’s 2012 ranking of the Top Fifty Fashion Capitals, San Francisco has fallen slightly in the rankings from last year but still holds the 41^st rank in the fashion industry.

Fashion designers are generally artistic with an eye for color combinations, fabric, and textile use to create original fashion designs based on the market.  San Francisco fashion institutes produce many creative fashion designers.  During the 2012 Fashion Week in San Francisco, there were several fashion designers that were interesting.  Among those designers were Jennifer Ly (La Bete) and Jake Wall (Artful Gentleman).  Colleen Quen, Bacca DaSilva, Jill Giordano and Brian Scheyer (gr. dano), Jan Warnock, and Christopher Collins were among the best local designers in San Francisco reported by KCBS SF Bay Area news in 2011. Colleen Quen is a contemporary designer that creates stunning one-of-a-kind gowns.  Bacca DaSilva creates interesting urban or rural clothing with an artistic flair.  Jill Giordano and Brian Scheyer the designers of gr.dano is a contemporary ready-to-wear clothing line for women that is gaining in national recognition.  Jan Warnock creates high fashion ready-to-wear that is inspired by diversity of San Francisco.  Christopher Collins is also gaining national recognition for his one-of-a-kind ensembles.  One designer that I personally find interesting is Tommy Phamfor his jeanswear design, Grp.E Jeans, and his interest in giving back to the community by teaching at the Academy of Art University.

What is Fashion Design? Guest Blog

This weeks student blog comes from Dubai, United Arab Emirates

By Nicoline Prendergast

Fashion Design in Dubai – UAE is a very fast pace industry. The interesting part here is the melting pot of all different cultures and ethnic backgrounds; they are holding on to their traditions but are being influenced at the same time by each other and the western world.

Seasons and change of climate are not playing such a crucial role as you would know it from Europe or the US.

Especially here in Dubai, it is interesting to see and explore the design on the “ABAYA” (black long robes the females are wearing), in Kuwait for instance it is very simply and mainly in black with almost no variety in cuts, maybe some applications or expensive Swarovski crystal applications, while here in the UAE, there seems to be no limit.

There is a basic cut, black and long and covering the female body shape. But there seems to be no limitation on creativity and styles.  Borders, layers, colorful applications and patterns; baby doll cuts, Kimono cuts etc. and of course different materials, sometimes along with exclusive handmade ornaments and applications with Swarovski crystals or other materials, ribbons, belts etc.  These abbayas are mainly all tailor made and individual pieces. Mostly they assemble the “HIJAB”(female scarf) and build one whole united outfit.

Even the males slightly following trends with their “DISCHDASCHA”, mainly held in white, but material changes and here in the UAE also the color, sometimes even short sleeves and interesting borders.  In general you may determine the origin of the male based on the DISCHDASCHA worn. Kuwait for example the DISCHDASCHA has a regular standing color as we would know it of a dress shirt.

Due to the change of temperature the Kuwaiti males [are] changing the material in the wintertime to heavier textile and also different colors and styles such as e.g. pinstripes, while during the hot season the DISCHDASCH is always white.  Saudi Arabia they usually carry the regular pointy collar while the UAE DISCHDASCHDA doesn’t have any collar at all but they have an a weaved attachments which now these days is usually sprayed with cologne and back in the days had the function of using it against mosquitoes and flies.

Even within the “GHUTRA” (the male headscarf) worn by the males, trends developed over the past few years. While in Kuwait and Saudi it is still worn open and in a traditional way along with the “IGAL” (black flexible ring which was used as a whip from the Bedouins ancestors), the UAE males developed a certain wrapping technique. Along with the Omani males who usually apply the wrap techniques over the little cap they wear underneath, and also use woolen, more colorful pattern “GHUTRAs”, instead of the traditional white or pattern white/red or white/black.