Parsons Fashion Show - Part One

My alma mater, Parsons School of Design held its fashion show for the class of 2013 last night.  The evening honored Patrick Robinson and attracted other Parsons alumni like Proenza Schouler. The first batch of designers here were all about a technique.  They took high tech and classic treatments and created a mini collection around it.

Sharon Yumen Wang above was about making sculpture out of pleats.  He used wide, sharp pleats and wound them around the body in different ways to in a grey, black and white palette.

Francine Frolich incorporated digital printing and laser cutting.  She took architectural forms and used them as motif and almost like armor when worn on the body.  I'm not sure how comfortable they were to wear, but I can say I haven't seen this on a runway before.

 Connie de la Cruz from the Domincan Republic also used digital printing.  He then took the printed fabric and manipulated it with bold solid colors for an easy sportswear look.

This collection by Jasmine Plantin was all about thick, woolly embroidery contrasted with sheer, light fabric.  The dark, natural colors and the swirled patterns looked a lot like an elevation map to me.  While the silhouettes were very simple, the looks were very effective.  It's hard to make embroidery look masculine, but this group made it work.

Stay tuned for more graduate work!  Good luck to all of the designers!

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Pratt Fashion Design Graduate Show 2012

Last Thursday night, the fashion industry's top mentor gathered in the front row to cheer on the design talent of the Pratt Institute's graduating class. Champion to all of NY fashion, Fern Mallis was honored at the event, with Calvin Klein handing her the award. Stan Herman, Hamish Bowles also chatted up their favorites to the industry and family crowd.

The evening started with a video of testimonials of designers who had been inspired by Ms. Mallis. She was one of the founders of 7th on 6th (now Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week), founding board member of DIFFA and a warrior to bring International awareness to American designers.

The design student's collections on the runway showcased a diverse vision of style. A few favorites:

Dana Hurwitz brought the use of mixed media to elegant heights with fur and vinyl. Kelsy Carleen Parkhouse brought a quaint homestyle look to her collection with quilted details in updated fashion silhouettes. Beatrice Weiland showed she knew how to brand a collection. She used urban silhouettes and bold, graphic prints with her name incorporated into them for her group. Kate Wilkoff's sophisticated collection was a study in dressmaker details. She used delicate pleating, trapunto stitching and light as air carwash fringe for an elegant evening look. Meredith Lyon took a strong social message and managed to communicate it in a witty, but chic collection. Her PSA against smoking used strategic graphics and a great cigarette print. She gave new meaning to cigarette pants, seamed like actual cigarettes, while maintaining their signature silhouette.

See the rest below:

Photos by Mariana Leung

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