blog team
ABOUT NISSE BENHADDAOUI
People like Amelia Earhart (first woman to fly across the Atlantic) inspire Nisse Benhaddaoui a lot. Earhart is a true-blue adventurer, a woman that was highly confident of her ability to ‘fly’. Like the famous Earhart, Nisse believes that all the beautiful things we know in fashion are made possible by people with a can-do mentality. The Earhart-mentality has been passed on from designers like Coco Chanel – in a time when women weren’t allowed to be entrepreneurs – to contemporary designers.
Nisse is a master student Journalism and New Media and shares stories about things that excite her, for instance: French vintage magazines from the past century, old furniture, fashion documentaries and photography. Among other things she writes for Mode.DeJaap.nl.
Found by James
ZOOMING IN ON A FASHION APP: THE COLOR FORECAST
What colour are people wearing on the streets of fashion capitols Paris, Milan and Antwerp? Right this minute, colours like marine and ocean blue, black and various shades of grey are ‘trending’ in Paris. It might have something to do with the rainy weather. In Antwerp it’s almost as if it’s autumn and people match their wardrobe with the windy, grey coloured air of the city. Milan on the contrary is dressed for spring with its fuchsia and bright greens. All of this can be experienced on the new app called ‘Color Forecast’.
How does it work? On strategically placed cameras you see people crossing the streets of the earlier mentioned cities. 24 hours a day. The camera decodes all the colours on the screen and translates them into pie graphics and other information charts – visualized like a traditional weather report. In this way you can see what colour is worn the most and that makes it a fun app: being able to see what people are wearing, real time.
Inspired by the thought that fashion nowadays is more and more determined by streetstyle (think of the numerous streetstyle blogs!) Pimkie created this concept. The French highstreet brand connects the trending topic colours with her own collection; for every colour that is trending, Pimkie offers a selection of items. For example, if today’s colour is Prussian blue then Pimkie ‘suggests’ Prussian blue sweaters, trousers and accessories. The result? Aside from the buzz the items get sold out easily. Combining weather reports, streetstyle and colour forecasting in one app: an inspiring marketing campaign.
Take a look on pimkiecolorforecast.com for todays trending colour.
E-jungle top three list
The WWW is like a jungle, filled with things yet to discover, but so much more accessible than an actual jungle (and so much more safer: if you compare a wormbot or a Trojan horse with tarantulas and piranhas). Within a few mouse clicks you can enrich your taste.. And that made me realize, why not dedicate a blogpost to it? Here are three favourites, that I recently spotted in the blink of an eye on e-jungle:
ONE.
Boo van der Vlist: her work has been exhibited at Blaak10, a gallery / artshop where you can look at the latest installations and shop for jewellery, clothing and interior design as well. All the pieces in the store are one of a kind, made by alumnus students of art-college Willem de Kooning. I came across Van der Vlist’s necklaces made out of power plugs, wrenches and screwdrivers. They are quite refreshing and timeless.
TWO.
Nail decoration: It’s a big thing to decorate your nails all the way and completely let loose, all shapes and colours are aloud. Nail art is emerging and you can see it on all the Pinterest entries labelled with the tag ‘nail art’. It seems like everybody is experimenting nowadays. One of America’s finest nail decorators is Madeline Poole. Unfortunately for us, she lives in Los Angeles, serving clients like actress Zooey Deschanel. Leopard prints, dollar bills or multi-coloured tips: nothing is crazy when it comes to her work. And still she manages to keep her goofy designs elegant.
THREE.
Anntian: This label has the same focus like monsieur Henrik Vibskov: a huge passion for prints. Formed by graphic designer Anne Hilken and fashion designer Christian Kurt the Berlin based duo makes beautiful knitted sweaters, dresses and jumpsuits.
Emma Francois: the anthropologist turned designer
Emma Francois, designer of the French label ‘Sessun’, prefers old things with a story over all things new. By adding her own imagination to them, she ‘recycles’ the object and creates her own story out of it. It may not come as a surprise that her house in Marseille is furnished with vintage furniture and antiques, mixed with neutral and warm earthly shades. She also collects souvenirs from long and far exotic travels. Actually, that’s exactly how the story of Sessun commenced.
She was 22 when she visited Latin America for the first time. Studying economic anthropology. Francois became acquainted with craftsmanship and the colourful culture of Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru. A life changing experience followed. Back in Paris she immediately started to knit and crochet small items from pure alpaca wool, as a try-out. She received positive reactions on the things she learned in South America. She worked from there and in 1995 Sessun was born: ready-to-wear clothing where urban culture and Paris chic are combined.
While urban was a big trait of Sessun in 1995, in 2012 the brand has matured and Francois designs more timeless, elegant pieces. It might have something to do with the fact that the brand reaches a bigger audience nowadays, which wasn’t the case in the nineties. Those are the terms of commercial success; summer 2012 with Sessun is like a young fresh girl strutting down the French Riviera. But instead of glamorous drapes of chiffon, this girl loves vintage, mixing female and male items and has a certain je-ne-sais-quoi attitude. It results in a warm colour pallet, with high waist shorts, skirts and dresses. As well as some male bow-ties and blazers. If you take a close look at Francois’ home-interior, you see the resemblance in her 2012 collection. Bringing the exotic to home and home to work, the anthropologist in Francois is still very much alive. Visit homedit to view Francois’ house in Marseille.
Henrik Vibskov: a multi-interpretable artist
A fashion designer by day and a drummer by night, the ideal combination of two creative jobs you would say? Designer Henrik Vibskov, one of Copenhagen’s treasures, would never be only hitting the drums or only designing fashion. Too boring. He likes to compare it with a salad: “I like the combination of tomatoes, pepper and pineapple. You need mixture to make it a bit more balanced.” So aside from his work for electronic band TRENTEMØLLER he studied ‘Fashion Design’ at the prestigious Central Saint Martins. He now has a permanent schedule on Paris Fashion Week.
His work can be typified as a combination of two elements: humor (he has the tradition to give his collections bizarre names like ‘The Fantabulous Bicycle Music Factory’) and the reserved Scandinavian signature: minimal clean cuts. Vibskov is aware of the expectation for him to deliver minimal designs, “you need to get some food on the table,” he explains. Humor on the other hand is reflected in his ingenuity to experiment with ‘odd’ materials. A laptop bag made out of beads for instant. Or a men’s coat printed with colorful flowers.
If you look at the spring collection you immediately recognize the humor vs. minimal element. Let’s start with humor. Men are wearing goggles, a beret, rainbow knitted pants and suits with psychedelic prints. But if you look closely you see the fiercely cut coats, pants and blouses with a modern fitting. Conclusion? Fun is hidden in the color combination and the graphic print while minimal is hidden in the construction of the garment.
Henrik Vibskov is clearly still in touch with his Scandinavian heritage, but studying in London has enriched his work with a bit of rock ‘n roll, humor and healthy quirkiness. Like Vibskov said, he needs ‘mixture’ to stay balanced.
NEW AT MODEFABRIEK/ CUTTING EDGE: CONCHITA PEREZ EMBRACES ‘PHILOGYNY’
What do UK-designer Conchita Perez and fashion icon Coco Chanel have in common? Answer: Karl Lagerfeld’s blessing and the fact that they are both smart entrepreneurs. Just like Coco, Perez has her own salon to showcase her collection. She founded ‘Self Esteem Salon’, a space where she exhibits art, shows her collection on the catwalk and where her boutique “Lovely Innit” is housed. She is a power woman who is very DIY-oriented, which might remind you of the movie ‘Coco avant Chanel’,where (in the end) we see a proud Coco watching her dressed up models strut down the catwalk. In her own studio.
Just like her, Perez might be one of those, ultra-driven women. She collaborated with different artists and designers – for instance Alexander McQueen – and worked her way up to here: getting ready for Paris Fashion Week.
Basically, Perez likes to dress other strong women. That must be the reason why she named her S/S 2012 collection ‘Philogyny’, which means “fondness, love, or admiration towards women.” The ideal woman is feminine, but in control. Naturally powerful. It is seen in the translation of Philogyny: “The use of the luxurious and transparent silk in contrast with the rawness of leather on the woman’s skin,” as Perez describes it. The result is a balanced partition of fierce-looking leather jackets and trousers, combined with the delicacy of silk tops.
Very wearable for women of today’s society: not afraid to be feminine, but definitely not feeble.
For more information, stop by her website: http://theselfesteemsalon.conchitaperez.co.uk/
NEW AT MODEFABRIEK/ CUTTING EDGE: ALEXANDRA KIESEL CONSTRUCTS THE RULES OF FASHION
It took Berlin-based designer Alexandra Kiesel only six months after her graduation in February 2011 (Weiβensee School of Art) to win an important award. ‘The Designer for Tomorrow Award’ was handed to her by Marc Jacobs himself; which, you must admit, is kind of impressive. The advantages? The opportunity to show her new collection to an important audience at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin. And…flying to New York to meet Marc Jacobs in his studio, where he gave her some food for thought: “It’s nice to make fashion. But it only works if you make fashion, which is purchased by customers!”
A market-driven orientation is the key to success when it comes to Marc Jacobs and Alexandra Kiesel implemented this mindset in her collection ‘Building Blocks Individuals’. A very wearable yet authentic collection. She tries to explain the specific rules of fashion, mathematical ánd technical, inspired by the allure of German Modernism: Bauhaus style. Kiesel explains: “My outfits are characterised by strongly contrasting colour combinations, geometric shapes and rather austere cuts. With my second collection, which I will present at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin on January 18th, I choose the same idea. Under the banner of ‘support your local heroes‘ I have collaborated with Berlin-based artists for my debut-collection and I combined various illustrations in a highly diverse and multi-faceted manner.”
With Marc Jacobs’ advise resonating in her head, it’s up to Kiesel to give the audience some food for thought, revealing the rules of fashion.
NEW AT MODEFABRIEK// BERLIN PROMISES: LOOKING BACK AND AHEAD WITH HIEN LE & ISSEVER BAHRI S/S 2012
In Berlin the old and new are merged as one. The city is known for its industrial design as well as its Russian architecture, bohemian artists, its do-it-yourself mentality and graffiti plastered districts. Somewhere along the line the old and new blended and it has been translated into fashion. The Next and Cutting Edge-platform presents two Berlin-based labels that pay homage to modern fashion design: Hien Le and Issever Bahri.
Hien Le, born in Laos, describes himself as “precise, patient and strong willed. Patience and strong willingness are shown by his choice to gain years of experience in tailoring and pr before he took the ‘jump’ in starting his own label. The other trait ‘precise’ is reflected by a minimalistic signature. The garment is sharply designed, using “clean and refined shapes”, which fits the frame of ‘new’ Berlin. In the S/S 2012 collection he combines his love for simplicity with his family’s origins in Laos. Hien Le named every garment after one of his relatives and incorporated colours like dark blue, deep red, soft yellows and apricot out of folklore outfits. These colours are neutralized by focussing more on European-styled garments: sharp blazers, breezy shorts, jumpsuits and dresses. Hien Le dedicated the collection to his grandfather, who encouraged him to become a designer, he explains: “I was always impressed as a child when watching my grandfather working and sewing. I wanted to do fashion at the age of 12, so I kind of got into his footsteps.”
Another Berlin promise, Issever Bahri, is founded by Derya Issever and Cimen Bachri in 2010. Both were fresh out of college (Fashion Design at HTW Berlin) but packed with impressive experiences. To name a few: Alexander McQueen and Boss who taught them the secrets of embroidery.
Issever Bahri is all about handcrafted items inspired by Greek and Turkish traditions. Derya Issever explains: “While growing up we were both always surrounded by handcrafted items and the different techniques of handcraft.” Handcraft is used to make a sophisticated yet edgy statement, or as the designers call it “sleek, strong and raw.” How is this sleek yet raw image translated in S/S 2012? “The silhouette is sleek but the material we used represents rawness. For example the raw look of neoprene in combination with the crochet leather,” answers Issever. And yes, crochet leather inspired by traditional Turkish doilies– the handcrafted item she refers to – plays the lead in this collection. This shows Issever Bahri’s strongest quality: making the best out of childhood traditions and putting it in a modern context.
The two labels resemble in the fact that they focus on the future but embrace their backgrounds. Just like Berlin itself they aren’t afraid to blend the old and new into a cutting-edge story.
For more information, visit:
http://isseverbahri.com and http://hien-le.com/
NEW AT MODEFABRIEK: BRUUNS BAZAAR // DANISH CRAFTMANSHIP ILLUMINATED BY ASIAN ART S/S 2012
“Relaxed elegance”, the key concept of Bruuns Bazaar has been taken to a new level in the S/S 2012 collection. Yes, we see loose fitted dresses and blouses but the sharp angles and plain colours create a certain edge, the so called ‘Scandinavian signature’. Rebekka Bay, Creative Director, stated that this minimalistic signature is “influenced by modernism and architecture, which inspires designers to focus on craftsmanship, functionalism and detail.”
When it comes to detail we must pay attention to the colours. Asian art is rooted in the colour scheme of this collection. Bay explains: “We found inspiration in a Wong Kar-Wai movie called ‘In the mood for love’ and in Nobuyoshi Araki’s sensual flower photography. For the colours we looked towards exotic fruits and oriental flowers. Ranging from Pale Hibiscus, pink Orchid and waxy Flamingo lily, to Dragon fruit, Magenta Rambutan and bitter orange-green Kiwano. We played the livid colours against subtle neutrals in vanilla, camel, tobacco and midnight blue. Topping it off with architectural and graphic shapes.”
This mixture of Japanese shades and functional design results in a rich set of effortless looking garments. “Relaxed elegance” is for instance reflected in romantic vanilla knits, a camel leathered sack dress, mustard-yellow pants or razor-sharp black and white blazers; handing us the classic Danish design.
While Bruuns Bazaar is known for representing timeless minimalism. This summer she lets us cross the frontier and dream of a long custard coloured (Japanese) summer.
Visit the website for more information: http://www.bruunsbazaar.com/
