Saturday 31 October 2009

Celebrity Skin SS2010 show at AXDW


Quite appropriately titled iMMortaL ExtRaVAganZa, the Celebrity Skin by Dimitris Strepkos and Eleni Mparla Spring-Summer 2010 show was spectacular to watch.

The show started with the projection of footage from a photo-shot. The model was so perfect, we could cry.

And then, the show started...

...and quite a goth-glam iMMortaL ExtRaVAganZa it was!

However, several people I talked to after the show, were left quite puzzled as to whether these clothes can be worn in real life.
I say who cares?
Does anyone question Alexander McQueen's extravagant shows full of probably-unwearable-in-real-life clothes? No, because they ARE a show. I think that's what the Celebrity Skin duo tried to do here. Create a feel for us, give us an insight on what they're trying to channel for next summer, allow us see their vision and their skills.

I say me likey!

PS1 Me likey the press kit CD too! Hand-packaged along with loose black sequins in black tulle and fastened with a safety pin, for that extra punk factor. Rock on!

PS2 I tweeted this pic above as I was waiting for the show to start. You can follow me on twitter to see all my runway tweets!

[All pictures mine. Do not use without permission.]

Front row of Angelos Frentzos at AXDW


[click to enlarge]

Friday 30 October 2009

6th Athens Xclusive Designers Week


We still haven't caught our breath from FWA, and AXDW is already here! Visit the official site for more info and don't forget to check out this video.

The shows start today, so we'd better hurry up!

I have to say, one of the things I'm really looking forward to this time, is the Open Forum.

The invitation above reads:
The interaction and give-and-take between fashion and architecture are the main points of focus of the 6th Athens Xclusive Designers Week, which starts on Friday October 30th 2009 and supports the 1930's Modern Movement Architecture in Athens.

With common interests, like design and aesthetics, the Greek Society for the Environment and Cultural Heritage and Athens Xclusive Designers Week
are inviting you on
Monday, November 2nd at 14:00
to an Open Forum on the subject of
Fashion and Architecture.

Speakers:
Alexandros Tobazis (architect)
Ekaterini Katsampe (ETOAA chairman)
Giannis Tseklenis (fashion designer)
Konstantinos Tzoumas (actor)
Katerina Chatzikonstantinou (architect)
Can you guess how excited I am?

French Bird


Just two days ago I ordered two brooches from Naked Tile's Etsy shop...

...and today the postman came!

Yeah, I know that apart from the image inside, they're identical, but I wanted them both.
I'm a greedy girl, what can I say?

Thanks Natalie, they're amazingly cute.
Gonna show them off in an outfit soon, me thinks.

Thursday 29 October 2009

Fashion Week Athens SS2010 - Overview

So, Fashion Week Athens ended this past Sunday. You've probably already read all my other FWA posts and I guess you're a bit tired of the whole thing by now (like I am), so let's wrap it up!

Due to my recent traveling schedule, I missed the two first days, namely Thursday and Friday. But when I did get myself down to Gazi last Saturday, the image that greeted me was this:

The cataclysmic rain had flooded the courtyard of the Technopolis building complex and the FWA people were anxiously trying to pump the waters out and make the place fashion-worthy once again.

A wet fashionista is an unhappy fashionista - no one wants that!

Anyway, things were a lot dryer inside the hair-and-make-up room. And waaaay crazier. Those MAC make-up girls sure know how to yell right next to your ear. Ouch.

And then there were the shows... I myself only got to see the Next Generation show on Sunday as I was either absent or running around backstage, so I'll have to base my opinions on the photos I borrowed from the kind people over at JGK.

It's not hard to observe that the dominant colour of the season was white. It was widely present in almost all the collections and I loved the innocence and pureness it evoked.
[Giannetos - Ugo Zaldi - Victoria Kyriakides]

Other than white, pastels were major too, but in a more subtle, non-kitchy palette and combined with black details. Très chic!
[Katerina Alexandraki]

I have to say, I was very happy to see that all three of last year's newcomers each had their own proper show, and with great success and acceptance from the fashion crowd.
[Dimitri Zafiriou - Dimitris Petrou - DElight]

I specially loved Dimitri Zafiriou's styling.
So retro-modern!
[Dimitri Zafiriou]

And the way DElight use block colours by sewing their pattern pieces together will never cease to fascinate me.

[DElight]

But if I had to choose one outfit to wear all summer long next season, it would be this simple skirt and white top ensemble. Pure summer perfection!

[Samantha Sotos]

That's what I thought of the actual clothes.

But overall, this FWA left me feeling numb. As I said before, I had expressed my initial concerns in this post, published on October 13th. That was 10 days before the opening date and even then only a handful of people knew it was going to take place! Trouble in Paradise did cast some light on the situation, but still... I really hope this time the HFDA will take advantage of the six month break till the next fashion week in March, and get rid of their inner problems once and for good. It would be a shame if Greek fashion continues to suffer because of such silly reasons.

If you still feel hungry for FWA scoops, one of the most thoroughly researched reports on this FWA - both on the shows and the organizational drama - was that of fellow blogger and fashion insider Alecca Rox. You can read all her posts on this year's FWA here. Other Greek fashion/style bloggers who covered the event were Shopping Therapy, Fashion Paths, Stylesheet19, Life in Athens and reporting from backstage Queen B and The Soho Symposium.

A big thank you goes out to Alfredo Saltiel, the organizational mastermind behind the Julia Bergovich, Katerina Alexandraki and DElight shows. Without him, we wouldn't have got the chance to experience all this sweet madness that is the backstage of fashion week. And I have the feeling we're gonna start hearing his name a lot more often from now on.

Until next time... or AXDW!

[Alfredo, QueenB, Lopi]

[all catwalk photos in this post by JGK and further edited by me]

Wednesday 28 October 2009

Dagritzikos and the DElight octopus



Yes, this is the actual backstage of a fashion show. In Greece, having shameless fun while doing something stressful is an accepted way to cope. Not that we need an excuse...

As soon as it was nicely firm and fattened up, off it went:



(QueenB wrote a pretty nice post about what went down)

Tuesday 27 October 2009

Fashion Week Athens - New Generation

[photo by jgk - edited by me]

The New Generation show, featuring 22 rookie fashion designers, was the one that on Sunday night, closed Fashion Week Athens Spring-Summer 2010.

We all fell in love with that mustard jacket that won newcomer Evangelos Kavathas a trip to the Inditex headquarters in Spain.
(concerning that, please, read the UPDATE in the end of the post)


QueenB, Hari K and I were so jealous when we heard that! It's like going into Willy Wonka's chocolate factory, people. Without the freaky incidents and the Ooompa Loompas, of course.
[photo by jgk - edited by me]

The big award however, went to Cathreen Mal and her black-and-white futuristic dress. She will be flying to India, to participate in an international competition searching for new talent in fashion.
(again, go to the UPDATE in the end of this post)

Seeing Cathreen's name on the screen rang a bell.

I k*n*o*w that name, I said to myself.

Turns out...

...we both participated in last year's Fashion Week Workshops!

[Cathreen-Lopi-Penelope-Sappho]

For those who weren't reading Fashion Architect back then (post is here for anyone interested) the workshop was a fusion of architecture and fashion, inspired by the construction of food, and was quite appropriately titled FOODWEAR. Our team of four ended up producing two dresses. Cathreen was working hard as a stylist back then, but despite her heavy schedule and many responsibilities, she was always a total sweetheart and really fun to collaborate with.

She must be thrilled now! I'm really happy and excited for her, she totally deserves every success!

[photo by jgk - edited by me]

UPDATE: Oooops! Looks like I made a mistake! The awards were the other way round, meaning Evangelos Kavathas will compete in India and Cathreen Mal will get to visit the Inditex headquarters. Many thanks to reader FashionVictim who noticed it and kindly informed me in a comment. Sorry!

Monday 26 October 2009

Backstage DElight at Fashion Week Athens


Once again, the dream team of QueenB, Hari K and me, was behind the catwalks of Fashion Week Athens. This time, we played secret helpers to my favourite girls of Greek fashion, Evi Retziou and Daphne Iliaki of designer duo DElight.


I was responsible for dressing model Christina.


The DElight girls, supervising Kordula's make-up.


Evi perfecting the fit on the model.


Loved the hair. Double bun - simple but fun!


Mandatory make-up touch-ups.


The friendliest model around, cutie Ismini. We all loved her!


The whole concept of the collection, including the black embroidery on the clothes and the invitation's graphic design, was inspired by the kaleidoscope.


The models all lined-up and ready for the finale.


This is all I saw from the catwalk. Being backstage means no actual show for me.


And to those who were wondering, this is how unglamorous but oh-so-exciting the backstage of a fashion show is.

It was hard work, but dare I say how lucky I was?

Sunday 25 October 2009

Backstage Julia Bergovich at Fashion Week Athens


Thanks to my dearest blogfriend Her Majesty the QueenB, Hari K from Soho Symposium and I found ourselves helping backstage at the Julia Bergovich Spring/Summer 2010 show at Fashion Week Athens.

Here's what went down:

QueenB taking care of the line-up.


Arranging the outfits for the models to wear.


Mandatory touch-ups.


Rehearsing dog-catwalking.


Before the finale.


Yet someone has to tidy up the shoes afterwards!

xari_queenB_lopi
Hari K, QueenB and yours truly.
Thank you girls! We rocked!