the aftermath of the internship

After many quashed dreams last year, I decided that 2013 would be MY year. I forcibly predicted 2013 as the point on the timeline when Trinidadian creatives would come together and magically fit themselves with ease into the grooves of a blossoming fashion industry. Well perhaps you can call it goat mouth, but since the year begun, I have had nothing but amazing opportunities come my way!

Following my appearance in the Express Woman magazine, I started getting a flurry of phone-calls an emails from women not only wishing for a consultation, but of them expressing bountiful congratulations and support! Even my primary school teacher sent me an email to tell me how proud she is of me and extended her hopes for my prosperous future. I have now been asked to participate in so many pending projects. I want to take them all on! I am so happy to be doing this work.

The truth is though, that I am but one person. Sometimes I doubt myself. When the calls came rolling in, someone very close to me asked "You think you're that good?" You know what? YES I AM. I have been preparing my whole life for this. I have done everything I possibly could have to bring myself to this exact point. People don't put their trust in me because I say I'm able. They do it because I am. Sometimes we just have to do away with shame and people-pleasing and just be unapologetic for our awesomeness. If I don't believe in myself, why should anyone else?

This surge of confidence is not solely owed to my power sessions with Ms. Sacha Lalla- I would not know half of what I do if it weren't for Babatu Sparrow. Sparrow noticed me midst a crowd of less than enthusiastic students. He believed in me from Day one. He never let me get comfortable. He challenged me constantly. He gave me responsibilities with which I would have never  trusted myself. In every essence f the word, he is my mentor in fashion. With him I observed first hand what is the true meaning of "dedication". His multi- talent when it comes to creativity is insurmountable. He not only taught me the process of style, fashion and the industry, but he was a friend when I needed advice. He was a brother when I needed a shoulder, and a drill master when I needed discipline.  He opened up so many doors for me, and led me to meet so many influential people. He turned me into a workaholic like himself- And I wouldn't have it any other way. My internship as a mere assistant to this man, is a time to which I will always look.

I 100% recommend that if you want to get into this industry, you need to do an internship- an unpaid one at that. Do the 6am calls to set. Stay until 1am doing inventory. Work through the flu. Go fetch coffee even though they told you you wouldn't have to. Run up and down Frederic Street searching for last minute prop ideas when the shoot is in progress. Just do it.There will be moments when you want to give up and cry, but the fact that the only gain you have from the experience is knowledge, is a strange but moving force that invigorates you to push harder.

To Sparrow, you are fucking amazing. I never told you how much it meant to me that you took me on to work with you, despite my inexperience. Because of you, I am confident that I can take Trinidad fashion by storm. I would wish that you continue to inspire others, but I prefer to spend my wishes on things that aren't likely to come true naturally. Love and Respect <3

The truth hurts sometimes

The CFStyle.com editor shared a very personal and controversial preoccupation on Facebook this morning.

"There are times as an Editor that I wish I could go through young or new Caribbean "designers'' pages and give them the proper critiques they need to grow and attain the true level of designer when it comes to construction and finish of their product and cohesion of their collections... or simply tell them which badly photographed pieces do not need to be included in their portfolio as it brings down the quality and credibility of their work. But many of them are still too emotionally attached to their work to understand constructive criticism versus personal attacks. It's very sad, but it's also a major part of why the regional industry is yet to be taken seriously."

The fact is you can and should-- actually you must give them the most honest critiques  It is a tough industry. Much of it is based on subjectivity and taste. Sometimes this may blur the line when it comes to the mere fact that fashion has standards!

Caribbean fashion, especially Trinidad fashion is close to my heart. During my training as a stylist, I was taught to stay away from online shopping. When I tell my clients this, they are aghast. Shop in Trinidad?!! The horror. What is there to buy in Trinidad?!! The truth is, they are kind of right. The options are limited and the quality is poor a lot of the times.

I own a copy of this book. A must-have for
all aspiring designers

Fashion does not start in the store, nor the runway. It begins in the place of inspiration. If your place of inspiration is how you can get a deal on this cloth and make some money- you are not producing the kind of fashion we need in the region. You should not just know how to stitch. You should be a master clothier. No idea should seem too far fetched. No fabric should be too luxurious. Fashion is an expensive business. No one ever said that designers are rich people. If that's your motivating force, you are not the kind of fashion designer we need for the region. Get sponsors. Build networks. Do research. Read. Travel. Don't for one second feel that as you step out of Design school you are the best designer in the country. With school you have barely scraped the surface of what you need to achieve before you send looks down the runway. How dare you allow a bunch of sweat shop workers to produce better garments than you, who has all the time in the world, not to mention water and shelter? Go touch designer clothing. Look at the perfect Hong Kong seams. Study the impeccable draping.

If we would stop patting one another on the back for less than mediocre work we would get somewhere. I know that a lot of hard work goes into these collections no matter how poorly they are presented, but the mere fact is that the work was not enough. We need to set higher standards. As the editor said, "it's a major part of why the regional industry is yet to be taken seriously."

To the editor, whip out your inner Anna Wintour. If it wasn't for her hardness, so many of the American designers we know and love today would be lost in a see of unfinished hemlines and exposed zippers.




I leave you with a provoking thought. It comes from a book (best book you will ever read) "A grain of wheat" by Ngugi Wa Thiongo. The prologue is an excerpt from the bible 1Corninthians 15:36

"Thou fool, that which thou sowest is not quickened,except it die."

In other words, we must struggle and hurt if we hope to achieve greatness. For the seed to bare wheat, it must first crack and be forced open. Becoming a designer- one deserving of the title, requires the same torture. Nothing great was achieved without hardships to precede it.

Here is a link you can go to for help selecting fashion books : http://pennyluxe.com/2009/12/10/holiday-gift-guide-books/

What to wear to the wet fetes

Every year I wait with eager anticipation for Soaka- the best fete EVER.

This year, I went to bed around midnight and tried to peel myself off of the bed when my alarm sounded Kes "Your Body Wukking" at 2.30am! I put the coffee to brew and jumped in the shower to stretch out the cricks in my lower back with some Snake oil. I checked my body parts, made sure everything was intact. Since foot, waist and neck were working fine, to Soaka I went!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p31mbXaJPdc

The party starts at 3am and goes on through sunrise and the hours when you should be home making Sunday lunch. When Machel comes on, he calls for the water trucks to soak the crowd with enormous water hoses. Sounds like the prelude to pneumonia but it really is the BEST morning of your life.

This year I thought I would be all chic and wear my J. Angelique white ruffled bodysuit.

 I had never worn it before, and it was perfect with some blue denim shorts for a wet fete such as soaka. It definitely caught the attention of many a media photog. You can imagine my horror when I was handed a small plastic bag of yellow dyed powder. I was even more horrified at the overwhelming smell of scented talc- and the appearance of rainbow coloured clouds. Machel was set to shoot his video for Fog at the fete- I had only just received the memo that he was inspired by Phagwa for the concept. Before I knew it, I was covered in pinkness and my new suit was ruined.

So what to wear to the wet fetes?
I would have said to wear a cute crochet cover up, or a sleek monokini and hot pants- But since I "fraid powder" I would say wear whatever you don't mind ruining. A plain white vest, disposable shorts and waterproof makeup are your safest bet. You never know when a phagwa session might mysteriously present itself.

J. Angelique bodysuit has been soaking in a solution of bleach and water. Hoping for a miracle, Lazarus style.

Fab at the Fetes!

You heard it in the HauteCaribe documentary (www.hautecaribe.com) Trinidad fashion can not exclude the annual magic that is Carnival. Carnival encompasses many of the factors that contribute to the Caribbean aesthetic. The heat, the colour, the volume, the cultures, the sex, the beat-- it's all there.

As the interest in fashion and style has grown over the years, what we wear to the fetes and the shows have come a long way from the sneakers and denim cut-offs of the nineties past. I see women in stilettos and professionally done up-dos standing in the muddy grass at fetes! It is our time of the year! We want to show off our tight bods after hours in spin class and Zumba! Every weekend- and often weekday- we have a party where we rehearse our best wine for the road. Now with all these online media house photographers snapping pics of us at every event, and posting it to Facebook the next day- we have to look fab at every fete!

In the next few blogposts I'll provide you with some Carnival Style tips! The fetes have already begun, so listen up!

So you did not have plans for the weekend, but it's 9 pm Friday night, and your friend calls you with a comp for a fete tonight! Only problem now is, all the shops are closed and you have nothing new to wear!
Okay. Relax. The easiest way to put together an outfit is to combine staples and Accessorise!
Your greatest accessory this season is your makeup! Carnival makeup makes a statement. It's the one time of year you can go overboard with your creativity and re-create those out-there looks on your Pinterest boards. These are some looks that you should definitely consider!

Sparkle

It's kind of a must. Add sparkle to one (max two) parts of your face. You can apply gems or paint glitter makeup to your eyelids, eyebrows, lips or temples.

MAC and NYX have great products for face glitter. Still be careful to protect sensitive areas from receiving specks which will hurt and irritate your eyes!

Got this at www.favim.com

"Diamond eyes" by Jaumark Pierre http://www.facebook.com/makeup.by.JaumarkPierre

Colour

LOVE the coloured eyebrow look. Would keep the
tone of the hue similar to your natural eyebrow colour though
http://blog.mycosmeticbag.com/photo-looks/fotd-a-sugarpill-red-white-blue

from www.eyeshadowlipstick.com

http://www.facebook.com/facebyblaise

Eyelashes 

- A BIG accessory to Carinival Makeup. The options are endless. Just make sure the bring attention to the eyes, not overwhelm them. Also, get rid of them if they make you uncomfortable or bother you from blinking.

Bold lips

Whilst all that glitters might more suited for night events, or Mas itself, opt for a glowing complexion with bold accents for the day. Glitter does not stand up well to the heat anyway.

The Effective Simplicity of Adrian Foster

During my time at CAFD, I crossed paths with a charming fellow student, who was a year above me. Other students would talk about him and his work. It was clear that his potential was being marked by teachers and  closely observed by competitive colleagues. No one can deny that Adrian Foster has been blessed with  magical talent. By some work of the universe, he and I found ourselves in the same Contemporary Fashion History class. Naturally I gravitated towards him, and we sat together (also with seatmate Ricky B. Holla!), giving me the opportunity of getting to know more of him than just a fantastic illustrator and perceptive eye for design.

Adrian is like a cat. He is quiet and gentle. His delicate interaction with people make him like-able and easy to be around. Then there will be that moment where his company is caught off- guard by his passion, and his fierce love for fashion and art will arouse a startle. At only 23, Adrian has been recognised for so much. Aside from making waves at CAFD, he was awarded Designer of the Year by Enasha Photography, San Francisco in 2010.

I was able to ask Adrian some big questions, Naturally, he gave me even bigger answers!

How did you become involved in fashion?

Fashion for me started at a much younger age, unaware and uneducated about the industry or what I was doing. It was only then in my late teenage years I was introduced into fashion by a great mentor, now deceased. I remained with his teachings and experiences which help grew my interest even more. Now I’m studying fashion at the Caribbean Academy of Fashion and Design at UTT. I am now living my dream. 

What is your design aesthetic and who is your client?

ADRIAN FOSTER embodies “Simplicity that is effective” with clean contemporary lines and silhouette that accentuates the curves and valuable asset of a woman’s body merely to highlight her natural beauty. A sexual sophistication and minimal colour and hints of texture all to depict the simplicity of the design but effective and appealing to the eye. My target customers are young successful professional women who have very active social lifestyles.

How do you plan to affect, change and contribute to fashion in Trinidad?

By introducing a fashion brand to the Caribbean Market, the goal is to stand distinctively as a fashion designer brand name “of the Caribbean, from the Caribbean” My company is working towards changing the way islanders see Caribbean Fashion by providing a product and service that is of great value and quality which infuses a stylized ethnical Caribbean flare which can be appreciated by the many niches of the industry. It is therefore my company’s way of contributing towards the development of the fashion sector in Trinidad and Tobago.

What is your vision for the fashion industry in Trinidad?

I believe Trinidad and Tobago is entitled for many improvements for it to be a fully successful fashion industry. However in all due time it will. With that said, what I personally will like to see in the future is –

1.      A Fashion Association – by no means I am not trying hamper those that currently exist but, in my honest opinion Trinidad and Tobago is one country and I am pretty sure that we conduct one fashion industry which host many entities. Therefore why is there a need to have three and four Fashion Associations and most of which are not serving a purpose to help the problems and the developments of this fashion industry.

Furthermore, there are many sides to a fashion industry – fashion is not only about an image, design, or brand - it is also most importantly a business industry where buying and selling of goods and services are conducted.

Trinidad and Tobago needs to understand first that this is a business before we can even think about entertaining. This is where I believe a stronger Fashion Association can be introduce to conduct this fashion business in Trinidad and Tobago. One of the main responsibilities of Fashion Association is to develop a yearly plan of a seasonal Designer buyer’s month or week where during that season all design houses of Trinidad and Tobago and buyers/retailers come together where designers showcase their products to these retailers so that it is sold on retail. This is merely for those houses who wish to go retail.

2.      A Fashion District – the fashion industry in Trinidad and Tobago needs to officially take it’s place! We need a location which can house most of the high business of fashion; Caribbean Designer Brands mainly! Not sure if I can say “high end’ but quality retail stores which support Caribbean designer labels and so on.

3.      Production houses – Not all Fashion houses will be vertically integrated, but for few who wish to outsource production, I will like to see more fashion production houses setup in Trinidad and Tobago. Also it is the only way a real fashion industry will exist in Trinidad and Tobago.

I have to agree with Adrian. The fashion industry is a business. It may be fuelled by creativity, but it has the potential to feed our nation economically and sustainably so. Adrian is just one of the future entrepeneurs to be graduating from CAFD. Hopefully his colleagues share this type of thinking, drive and commitment. I'm ready to witness the game-changing result!

Adrian's Work was featured in the most recent issue of 6Carlos magazine