blendnewyork…Fashion.Art.Style.Inspiration.Love

Clothes.ie is a new online fashion blog which aims to bring you the latest and greatest from the world of fashion in Ireland and further afield. Clothes.ie exists to connect the fashion community in Ireland – if you’re a fashion blogger, PR rep, designer, or if you run a fashion shop, own your own fashion label or just love to read anything related to fashion, then you’re in the right place.
 
They manage a fantastic fashion directory which lists fashion shops and businesses throughout Ireland – so that you can find your favorite store, whatever your taste is.

They also hold fashion-related competitions and write product reviews of the brightest up and coming Irish designers out there.

Why not get involved and start sharing your views on Clothes.ie today!

http://clothes.ie/
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In addition to being one of Woody Allen’s best films, “Annie Hall” also changed women’s fashion. When Diane Keaton donned a casual, menswear-inspired look, stylistas of ’77 shouted, “chic!”

“Flashdance” may not be a masterpiece, but this fan favorite made Jennifer Beals’ leg warmers, leotards and oversized sweatshirts become a definitive look of the ’80s.

As Eliza Dolittle in “My Fair Lady,” Audrey Hepburn’s costumes were amazing — they certainly don’t make hats like they used to — but they still don’t compare to the simple elegance of her black sheath dress and bejeweled up-do in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”

Marilyn Monroe never hit the big screen without looking sensational, but her white dress in “The Seven Year Itch” might be the single most iconic fashion piece in film’s history.

Love it or hate it, Carrie Bradshaw’s style is all her own. Her wedding dress in the first “Sex and the City” movie, designed by Vivienne Westwood (not pictured here), sold out in less than a day.

Fashion Campus NYC, organized by the New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and Parsons The New School for Design, provides next-generation fashion and retail management talent with exposure to opportunities on the business side of the industry. The event will feature a keynote address by the acclaimed fashion designer Rachel Roy.

“By exposing hundreds of students from around the world to the range of career options in the fashion industry, Fashion Campus NYC has already proven itself to be a great success,” said New York City Economic Development Corporation President Seth W. Pinsky. “In this way, this program, along with our other fashion programs, will help cultivate the next generation of New York City-based fashion stars, ensuring that we remain the global leader in this important industry.”

Fashion Campus NYC offers professional education and networking opportunities to some of the most promising and ambitious summer interns in New York City. Its aim is to educate these young professionals about the variety of business-focused career paths available to them and to introduce them to influential figures in the City’s fashion industry. In so doing, the program seeks to inspire talented students to pursue post-college careers in New York’s fashion industry, thereby maintaining and enhancing the City’s position as a global fashion leader.

“Fashion Campus NYC has demonstrated the strong interest among young professionals for more opportunities to network and explore the business side of the fashion industry,” said Parsons Executive Dean Joel Towers. “Through our work with the NYCEDC, Parsons is extending one of its core values- providing students with the means to pursue successful careers in design, and supporting those industries through a strong talent pipeline.”

The first annual event in July 2011 was an overwhelming success, with nearly 200 students from more than 90 universities and 150 companies attending the event, as well as fashion industry representation from more than 25 New York-based companies.

The 2012 Fashion Campus NYC includes “Backstage Pass,” a panel discussion with young fashion business professionals working in finance, sales, product development, merchandising, marketing and buying; “Ready-to-Work,” a networking breakfast that will provide students with unparalleled access to industry leaders and hiring managers; and “A Tailored Approach,” breakout sessions by career path with career services and industry professionals . The weekend will conclude with a keynote address by Rachel Roy, a talented American designer who launched Rachel Roy New York in 2005 to create clothes for the modern woman.

Fashion Campus NYC is an initiative that resulted from Mayor Bloomberg’s FashionNYC2020, a strategic study to examine the challenges facing the fashion industry and designed to help the City build on its competitive advantages to maintain its status as a global fashion capital. The industry chairs for FashionNYC2020 are Richard Darling, CEO of LF USA; Diane von Furstenberg, Chairman and Founder, Diane von Furstenberg Studio L.P., and President, Council of Fashion Designers of America; Terry Lundgren, Chairman, President and CEO of Macy’s, Inc.; Andrew Rosen, CEO of Theory; and Kevin Ryan, CEO of Gilt.

New York City’s fashion industry employs 173,000 people, accounting for 5.7 percent of the City’s workforce, and generates nearly $2 billion in tax revenue annually. In addition, the City is home to one of the world’s largest wholesale fashion markets, which attracts more than 500,000 visitors a year to its trade shows, showrooms and retail stores. Fashion Campus NYC is one of six initiatives resulting from FashionNYC2020. These initiatives address the industry’s challenges in two ways: by further positioning the City as a hub of innovation for emerging designers as well as specialty and multi-channel retail, and by attracting the next generation of design, management and merchant talent. Following the successful launch of Fashion Campus NYC in 2011, Parsons and NYCEDC also launched Fashion Draft NYC in February of this year, bringing 25 top college seniors from universities across the country to network and interview for management-track positions with some of New York’s leading fashion companies.

Students interested in attending this free program are encouraged to register online at Fashion Campus NYC website, starting on April 16th.

Van Mildert is synonymous in the North of England with fashion, innovative product and lifestyle. Catering for both men and women, their stores offer fashion across many platforms to the style and image conscious. They have made it their goal since 1996 to encapsulate all that is new and exciting within the fashion industry and showcase this product under one roof alongside some of the strongest and most relevant collections in the world. All stores offer a wide variety of collections to suit our broad clientele and are spilt across sections catering for young fashion, branded fashion, concept design, and premium sportswear.

They have many great brands in their stores – with Stone Island being one of them. Stone Island is a classic Italian sportswear label founded by Massimo Osti. Established in 1981, the success of the brand is largely due to their research and innovation both in the construction and details of the finished garments and in exclusive materials developed through a tight co-operation with specific fabric producers. Taking inspiration from military uniforms and workwear, garments are highly technical making extensive use of experimental dyeing and printing techniques.

Van Mildert was established in 1996 as a men’s and women’s fashion boutique in picturesque Durham City. Retailing from an old 17th century Gaol, the Grade 1 listed building on Elvet Bridge leads to the cathedral in the heart of the city. The store certainly has character and “Bob” the “tour guide” even used to bring the city’s many daily visitors to marvel at the store, shocked by the retail space they had created. Van Mildert was certainly new and exciting, retailing in a space with so much character and history. This lifestyle store was one of the first really directional independents. Back then Margiela, Dries Van Noten, Comme Des Garçon, Helmut Lang and Costume National were only available inside of London, but now the North East had its own fashion lifestyle store – a haven for the fashionista. Books from Atlas littered the old shelves, home accessories from Atomic brightened up the display cases, and furniture from SCP was used daily by customers shopping to the latest sounds on Rough Trade. Local artists exhibited their work in store and sculpture installations from art students and the region’s designers all had a price tag, adding to the lifestyle concept. Customers from as far as London would spend an afternoon in the store with some of the most experienced and passionate staff who still feature in the industry today.

Over the last 15 years the North East has seen some of the strongest and most visionary fashion retailers in the U.K. The area is well known for its product led customer and is often compared to Manchester in their forward thinking mentality. Innovative, conceptual, cool, but overall fashionable and aspiring to wear the best clothing available. These ideals and core values are what still drive them today. Check them out here http://www.vanmildert.com/

If you and your pup have a love for fashion, it would only make sense to hang your miniature clothing on hangers that fit the same size.

Check out this cute dog bone hanger from the Hanger Corporation:

Desc: Natural lacquer dog bone hanger with super chrome hook and 2 inch drop euro clips for doggie sweaters. Shaped to fit small dog clothing without damaging the garment, these hangers are super cute – just like your little best friend.

To see more hanger styles of all kinds, check out this website:
http://hangercorp.com/

{video portrait of founder and CEO of blendnewyork}

An Inferno Concepts Picture
Starring: Christine Abbate
Film & Edit: Thomas DeJosia
Music: Caza

Excuse me, is there somewhere I can charge my dress?

That’s the question fans of CuteCircuit, a fashion tech company, will be asking if they party a few hours too long in one of its outfits. Last week, CuteCircuit launched its second ready-to-wear collection of dresses and tops embedded with LED lights. The clothes recharge via USB, and some items, like the “K-dress,” have controllers that allow wearers to pick the color and pattern of their lights.

The UK brand’s slogan is “future fashion now,” though it tries hard to keep up with current trends. Designer-artist team Francesca Rosella and Ryan Genz, who formed the company in 2004, have made custom couture dresses for Katy Perry. In 2010, they made a “phone dress” with a SIM card and antenna sewn in the fabric. Last month, they debuted a haute couture gown at a party for watchmaker Breitling, made with Swarovski crystals and 10,000 LED lights, meant to evoke the aurora borealis, or northern lights.

The ready-to-wear clothes sold on CuteCircuit’s website are a bit more accessible. A black t-shirt minidress speckled with crystals costs 210 pounds, or $332. CuteCircuit is currently talking with retailers about getting its clothes in “fashion forward department stores,” according to PR director Marina Delgrano.

LED lights, which use less energy and last longer than normal incandescent bulbs, are becoming increasingly popular both in homes and for creative projects. The lights are expected to take up 60 percent of the global market share in the next 10 years. Artists and designers have put the lights on shoes, sculptures, makeup, and wine charms, among other products, according to the Elemental LED blog.

Now could be the right time to re-illume electric fashion. In the ’90s, everyone from TLC in their “No Scrubs” video to Kimmy Gibbler on the TV show “Full House” to every cool kid in middle school with L.A. Lights sneakers rocked the trend. Not that this was even where it started — people have been dreaming about putting lights on clothes since the early years of electricity. In the 1930s, British news show Pathetone predicted women would be wearing lantern hairpieces by the year 2000. Katy Perry, take note.

(see original post here)

WHAT IS RAW?

RAW: natural born artists is an independent arts organization that hand-selects and spotlights independent creatives in visual art, film, fashion, music, hair & makeup artistry, photography, models and performing art.

RAW’s mission is to provide up-and-coming artists of all creative realms with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity so that they might be seen, heard and loved. RAW educates, connects and exposes emerging artists in 22 artistic communities nationwide through monthly showcase events. Join us in celebrating the work of these artists.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

RAW events are multi-faceted artistic showcases. Each event features a film screening, musical performance, fashion show, art gallery, performance art and a featured hairstylist and makeup artist. These artists are all local, hand-picked talent who have been chosen to feature at RAW. 

RAW events feature a cash bar for cocktails while you enjoy the night. Dress code is cocktail attire, so dress the occasion and get ready for an artistic circus of creativity!

PICK UP A TICKET HERE

The Metropolitan Museum of Art – Now Until August 7, 2011

I think the title “Savage Beauty” very much epitomizes the contrasting opposites in McQueen’s work. As you enter the exhibition, you’re faced with two mannequins—the two mannequins that I think represent many of the themes and ideas that McQueen revisited throughout his career: polarized opposites, whether it’s to do with life or death, lightness or darkness, predator/prey, man/machine…. Read More (Andrew Bolton, curator of Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty)

About the Exhibition:

The exhibition, organized by The Costume Institute, celebrates the late Alexander McQueen’s extraordinary contributions to fashion. From his Central Saint Martins postgraduate collection of 1992 to his final runway presentation, which took place after his death in February 2010, Mr. McQueen challenged and expanded the understanding of fashion beyond utility to a conceptual expression of culture, politics, and identity. His iconic designs constitute the work of an artist whose medium of expression was fashion. The exhibition features approximately one hundred ensembles and seventy accessories from Mr. McQueen’s prolific nineteen-year career. Drawn primarily from the Alexander McQueen Archive in London, with some pieces from the Givenchy Archive in Paris as well as private collections, signature designs including the “bumster” trouser, the kimono jacket, and the three-point “origami” frock coat are on view. McQueen’s fashions often referenced the exaggerated silhouettes of the 1860s, 1880s, 1890s, and 1950s, but his technical ingenuity always imbued his designs with an innovative sensibility that kept him at the vanguard.

The exhibition is organized by Andrew Bolton, curator, with the support of Harold Koda, curator in charge, both of The Costume Institute. Sam Gainsbury and Joseph Bennett, the production designers for Alexander McQueen’s fashion shows, served as the exhibition’s creative director and production designer, respectively. All head treatments and masks are designed by Guido.

Located in the Iris and B. Gerald Cantor Exhibition Hall, second floor, the exhibition is free with Museum admission. See Plan Your Visit for Museum hours, directions, and admission information.

The Romantic Mind

“You’ve got to know the rules to break them. That’s what I’m here for, to demolish the rules but to keep the tradition.”
—Alexander McQueen

McQueen doggedly promoted freedom of thought and expression and championed the authority of the imagination. In so doing, he was an exemplar of the Romantic individual, the hero-artist who staunchly follows the dictates of his inspiration. “What I am trying to bring to fashion is a sort of originality,” he said. McQueen expressed this originality most fundamentally through his methods of cutting and construction, which were both innovative and revolutionary. This technical ingenuity was apparent as early as his graduation collection from the Fashion Design MA course at Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in London. Entitled Jack the Ripper Stalks His Victims (1992), it introduced such iconic designs as the three-point “origami” frockcoat. In his first collection after graduating, entitled Taxi Driver (autumn/winter 1993–94), McQueen launched his “bumsters,” pants that sat so low on the hips that they revealed the buttocks. Indeed, McQueen was such a confident designer that his forms and silhouettes, such as the “bumster,” were established from his earliest collections and remained relatively consistent throughout his career. Referring to his early training on Savile Row in London, he said, “Everything I do is based on tailoring.” McQueen’s approach to fashion, however, combined the precision and traditions of tailoring and patternmaking with the spontaneity and improvisations of draping and dressmaking—an approach that became more refined after his tenure as creative director of Givenchy in Paris from 1996 to 2001. It is this approach, at once rigorous and impulsive, disciplined and unconstrained, that underlies McQueen’s singularity and inimitability.

REBECCA KELLY BALLET invites you to its Design-into-Dance party in its SoHo Studio.

Meet our choreographer, hot dancers, talented designers, artists and fellow dance aficionados! Enjoy wine and refreshments, tap your dancing feet to a Euro beat! Test your fitness walking up 4 flights to see a genuine Soho-Boho loft!

WHEN:  Thursday March 10, 7-9pm

WHERE: 579 Broadway (between Prince & Houston) – 4th floor.  Subways R – W – B – D – F and No.6

HOW: Advance credit card tickets 212-431-8489, $30/person, $50/pair; $35 at door if any.

CONTACT:  Craig Brashear:  212-431-8489

for more information, visit RKB: Performance

Women’s Designer of the Year: Rodarte.

The rest is here:
CFDA Finale