Tuesday, 19 February 2013

The Fashion Week we never knew we had


Call me late if you will, but it wasn't until I watched the Haute Caribe video that I noticed the link between Carnival and Fashion.

Anya Ayoung Chee insists on maintaining the connection between her designs and Carnival. I had not really committed to the idea until she said something about the world having their eyes on Trinidad for Carnival these next couple weeks, and now they would get to see us for fashion too.Brilliant concept actually.
There we go battling FWTT to give us a chance, when we already had our audience! International celebrities come flocking to the streets for the fetes, J'ouvert and mas. How could I have been so ignorant to the immense opportunity?! 

I always thought of Carnival in terms of the music and energy. Fashion never crossed my mind because the costumes are a far cry from any contemporary fashion direction. It would be like drawing inspiration from a tacky Vegas Showgirl. Our designers don't even design clothing with remotely that amount of bead-work and embellishment. Yet how could I not have made the clear connection between the colours and the vibrancy? The photography, the movement? The life, the love, the passion?!

Carnival is our Life. Fashion is Life. Carnival is Fashion


see the video that woke me up at www.hautecaribe.com


Carnival has always opened up doors for fashion 



For the second year in a row, internationally recognized Trinidadian designer, Anya Ayoung Chee has presented her section for Tribe. This year she creates Acara Acraea for the Band's Butterflies and Beasts theme.Anya has been very instrumental in defining the undeniable link between fashion and Carnival. The launch for her section also included clothing which went with the theme of the section.


Monday Mas options have made another revolution. From going casual over the past few years, fashionable masqueraders are now resorting to custom made Monday costumes. One successful emerging Monday Mas creator is Ela Design Company, led by Maria Elena Jute and Nina Alcantara. This team goes all out with designs that could have belonged to their own section! This one is definitely for the hard- core costume lovers who will never settle for tube tops and hot shorts.


Where we are now is a good way off of the days when our mothers would smear lipstick on our faces and send us to kiddies Carnival. Trinidad's Makeup Artist community has really come out in the recent years, and many of them have undeniable talent when it comes to artistic and conceptual face designs.


Fashion Photography booms during Carnival!
Laura Ferreira is light-years ahead of her time. Her vision and realization of fashion photography in Trinidad has already propelled the image of the industry by having onlookers recognise it's potential.
In these pictures which feature The Lionfish section of Bliss Carnival 2013, it is blatant that Carnival and Fashion are the members of a unique marriage in a niche market owned by Trinidad.
Model: Nissa Hanooman
MUA: Christopher Rama
Hair: Ashvin Bally
Costume Design: Valmiki Maharaj

Monday, 11 February 2013

Music and Style


Conveniently two big music nights happened this weekend- The Soca Monarch Finals and The Grammys. I can just as easily get lost in great music as I can in a fabulously cut dress, so having two big nights one after the next was thrilling!

The Grammys has always set super high expectations for extreme fashion risks. This year stylists were issued regulations about dress code and modesty (if that's how you would describe "puffy skin"). With their second highest rated viewer numbers, it means that many of us tuned in to see who broke the rules! The Soca Monarch finals is always an opportunity for the artistes to go all out with outrageous costumes and gimmicks. This year, fashion was on the forefront, with the first ever "Fashion Police" and a show decorated with clothing by Meiling, Anya and Anthony Reid. It was a baby step for Trinidad fashion, but I was excited to finally see the link being made between dress and music. I have high expectations for next year, such as more designers dressing media personalities and performers- a little diversity rather than Carlos Street's finest.

Here are some of the looks that stood out to me from both nights!


Kelly Rowland made a huge statement, stepping out from Beyonce's shadow (perfectly timed after a reunion at the Superbowl half-time show). This dress is PERFECT for an event like the Grammys. She pushed the limit with these new dress rules, and straddled the line between class and crude. The dress fit her as well as her own skin. everything was exactly where it should be! Her body looked fantastic-- ugh- BEST dress I've seen on a red carpet in a long time!
Another Destiny's Child  family member, Solange Knowles outshone her sis Beyonce in this emerald (on- trend colour) dress with bright coral shoes! I love her style!

Speaking of Beyonce, her body looks AH-mazing, but she is insane to be this under-dressed at the Grammys for crying out loud! Not to mention she was a presenter- and has been out of the spotlight for so long! No excuses. This was a major disappointment.




Someone I can always count on to raise the bar is Machel Montano. His both performances were fantastic and high energy. I love that he did not resort to verbally bashing his main competitor, but paid homage to Super Blue in this provocative choice! Machel is the best entertainer we have. I say so!
For his Groovy performance he wore sparkly jodhpurs! Not the most flattering item of clothing, but a welcomed risk! I just hope he hasn't started a trend with this one.

 
Grammys men won the fashion award in my opinion. They were the risk takers and trendsetters this year. I'm loving the sophisticated take on the white suit! Wiz Kalifa and Host, LL Cool J also wore white.
Best accessory for the night was Trey Songz's pierced bow-tie!! Loved the little accents the the guys wore to accessorize their suits, but this was by far my favourite!


Worst accessorizing had to be done by Carrie Underwood. She is such a poor dresser it bores me to tears. Who helps this poor girl?!! That necklace was like 30 million dollars! Sadly she could have done without it. She succeeded at the impossible task of making a Roberto Cavalli dress look like a lame granny number. Wish she wore her hair up and did something a bit edgier. One word comes to mind every time I see this girl- "lame"

"Lame" is not a word I would use for Destra, however. While her style choices are ALWAYS quite questionable, I must commend her on actually making an effort. This wolf-like jeweled face looked like a bedazzled penis flapping between her legs, but hey- at least the girl has a glam squad! What she needs is a new one, but kudos for taking your presentation seriously! When you decide to change your stylist, "Call my name!" lol. I just had to.



(Machel pictures courtesy Nationnews.com and zimbio.com respectively.
Destra image courtesy Arlene Villarule.)



Wednesday, 6 February 2013

People are Funny about Money

We can talk to our friends about ANYTHING! People share intimate details about their sex life and would even give graphic insight into what their bowels are up to these days. God forbid some one brings up money! It's silly really. It's more probable that someone would open up to you about their pierced clitoris before they even begin to utter a word about their finances.


Well I am not one to stay quiet about anything (a blessing and a curse) and I want to say what people are scared to. I graduated with honours for my Bachelor of Arts degree 6 years ago. I had 2 years of work experience before any medical student my age even completed their internship. How is it logical, that they are paid more than I am today? How can we talk about diversifying the economy and branching away from the norm when we only reward the stereotypical "high status" jobs?

Almost all of my friends are doctors. That's what happens when you go to SAGHS. They are all intelligent, confident and hard working. We all are intellectually compatible and share similar lifestyle interests. Do you think that one of these friends would ever be asked to work for free? Why is it then, that in Trinidad, it is acceptable that professionals in the creative industries are asked confidently by our leaders to work for nothing more than their name in fine print?

Soowan Bramble
Gary Jordan Photography
www.flickr.com
Following a publication made on catalogs.com, a fashion model was listed as the top job to have in the fashion industry. Every Trini fashion model reading this just spat out her drink. I know girls in Trinidad with fantastic talent when it comes to modelling. Shan Fernandez, Soowan Bramble and Danielle Tardieu Moze are some of my favourites. These are some of the faces that you see everywhere! Down to on fete tickets you see Lisa See Tai! Every fashion show, every ad, every promotion- These girls are working their tight asses off. It is a shame that sometimes they are asked to work for free! Worse- that they have to run down people to get the payment that was promised to them in case of a paying job! (Trust me- I have been on the other end of that phone-call when models are calling and asking for payment. Ah. The beloved internship) It is no wonder all our talent jumps at any opportunity to go abroad! Why would anyone want to stick around where they aren't appreciated? I bet if Soowan became the next Victoria Secret Angel that EVERY local company would be desperate to get her face on their product. *Cough* Anya *Cough* Bmobile*

Danielle Moze
Photography by Barry Williams
For J'adore Accessories

I had a quite honest and open conversation with a very experienced young woman in the field who shared my sentiment. We have both spent thousands on our education (as have many other local designers and creative minds) and have developed an admirable work ethic as a result of the many obstacles that present themselves in such an industry. It is not right that we continue to accept this half-assed respect.

I urge all members of this industry- photographers, stylists, models, designers, graphic artists, MUA's, Hair stylists, painters, illustrators, pattern makers, garment technicians, DJ's, MC's, singers, writers, actors, dancers-- if you have a skill that you have polished through years of education, formation and diligence, raise the bar. Do not accept less than what you are worth. The world as we know it has evolved through design and imagination. Your thoughts are invaluable. If we continue to be shy and not stand up for what we truly deserve, this industry will never grow.

To see the top 10 best Careers in Fashion in USA seehttp://www.catalogs.com/info/bestof/top-10-careers-in-fashion

Friday, 1 February 2013

The Fashion Avenue

Anya definitely created an avenue for fashion in Trinidad.
Last night's show was quite the spectacle with a runway spread over two giant trucks in the middle of one of the busiest streets in the capital! The turnout was impressive, with people making their way to Adam Smith Square straight after work or school just to catch a glimpse of the celebrated designer who is putting Trinidad on the map.

Anya's patriotic drive is evident in the way she presents anything she does. Her both collections were dedicated to her twin island nation with names like "Tobago Love" and "Carnival of Colour". She said something that stayed with me- that for a couple weeks the world's eye is on Trinidad because of Carnival, but that now it would be on Trinidad for Fashion too! (Sorry world... at the moment we have nothing you can really see, unless you know someone who knows someone who gets their dresses from that wonderful secret talent living in Arima.)

It was all pretty moving and thrilling I have to admit, but, not to be a party pooper, however I do fear that all the hype may be nothing but hot air.

The country loves Anya...now. When she first entered Project Runway there was no big hullabaloo about it. When her sex tape came out, people had the nastiest things to say. Now, she's famous, and a plethora of sponsors and contributors are flocking to help her with anything her dear heart desires. Good for her! But what about the rest of us? If the CAFD students wanted to put on a street-stopping fashion show would Junior Sammy be so willing to lend his assistance? If it were another designer, would the ministries and relevant departments come together to make it happen? Another fashion prodigy can be lurking in our midst. Do we have to wait for them to win some sort of American Reality show before we acknowledge their talent? Newsflash! Anya was designing before her run in with Heidi Klum eh.

"The Fashion Avenue"  
They are declaring Ariapita "The fashion Avenue". Does this mean that spaces would be made for designers to set up their boutiques? Are the roadways going to be organised to make them more conducive for strolling shoppers? Is FWTT going to provide us with 2 weeks a year that coincide with the rest of the fashion capitals of the world? Are we getting a textile mill, or investments in the industry? Are there going to be factories ,or sweatshops (God forbid) ?What does this "Fashion Avenue" mean? I really am hoping for a straight answer.

Anya has done her part, and done so beautifully. I am taken by her humility and grace, despite her international success. We cannot, however, ride on her coat tails forever and only jump up when she organizes something. The girl is doing her- Trinidad needs to do Trinidad. It has been a wonderful distraction while it has lasted, but it is time for us to use her experience in a way to propel the industry as a whole, and to stop focusing on this individual! Don't put all your eggs in one basket TnT!