Norisol Ferrari Spring 2013

Norisol Ferrari's first full runway show was a stunner.  She debuted at Mercedes-Benz Fashion week with a presentation last February with dramatic darker looks. The theme this season was classic Hollywood glamour. Legendary models like Carol Alt, Carmen Dell’Orifice and Alva Chinn swept down the catwalk to show all the ingenues how real women and real models work the runway...

 Carmen Dell’Orifice, at 81 is proud to be one of the oldest working models in the industry. She landed her first Vogue cover as a teenager in 1947.  Carol Alt was the reigning campaign queen in the 1980's as the face of everything from Cover Girl to General Motors.  A savvy business women, she was one of the first models to really merchandise herself as a model brand.  Alva Chinn was the groundbreaking African-American model who represented Halson in the 1970's.

The looks themselves have the expertly tailored silhouettes of the 1930's, 1940's and 1950's. Striking hats and cat's eye makeup with deep red lipstick help evoke iconic fashion eras like Dior's New Look and film noir femme fatales.

I had a chance to speak to the designer backstage. I love that she is bluntly honest about her philosophy and how working this hard leading up to the show isn't the most enjoyable experience. She was very adamant of how proud she was of her team and being amazed at the capabilities of producing a collection in New York city.  She designed this collection as a show of women being strong and feminine, that sexy didn't equal showing skin.  I believe the runway more than proved her point...

 

Watch Mdivani Monroe get the inside scoop with our backstage access:

Read more >>

NY Fashion Week Preview

Excited for NY Fashion Week yet? Just thought I would share some sneak peeks from fashion designers and their fashion illustrations for their upcoming runway shows.

Top, we have Custo Barcelona.  It looks for spring 2013, it will be a candy colored palette and of course, lots of texture!  Then we have Don O'Neill's sketch of a blue gown for Theia, and Norisol Ferrari's dramatic red dress.  Fierce and elegant.

In sportswear, VLOV looks like it is doing sedate but crisp suits for spring.  Jenni Kayne is working the variegated stripe and flirty skirts. Tracy Reese is rocking skinny pants and bright colored jackets with a high low hem.

Libertine has some bright colors and interesting silhouettes ready.  Rachel Roy's sketches show some flattering seaming details for spring and a continuation on the trend of color blocking.  Vivienne Tam drew upon inspiration from the 5 elements and Christian Siriano was inspired by the American Ballet.

Read more >>

Norisol Ferrari - Bespoke Punk Couture

 I met my new fashion heroine last week.  Her name is Norisol Ferrari.  She is a strong, Amazonian woman who makes no excuses for her super luxurious sable coats and makes no compromises in her quality and fit. She is often compared to Alexander McQueen, which she does not agree with, except to say they both are inspired by mens' tailoring and military uniforms.  Instead, she cites more historical references like Dior's New Look that she finds to be a muse, except she updates it with modern materials and some edgier gang references.  

She has very strong opinions on how many designers try to infantilize women.  She builds clothes for a woman's shape with an almost warrior-like passion.  Norisol has images of Frida Kahlo and Louise Brooks on her office wall.  She has trinkets and carved skulls from her travels and a wall of taxidermy to show her darker muses. 

Norisol proudly produces her collection with trusted artisans in New York.  She refuses to sell out or tailor her label to anything less than what truly inspires her, regardless of cost.  In this day of outsourcing and penny counting, her fashion manifesto is an career to look up to.

Read more >>