Front Row Collectie Arnhem FW2012

We spotted a serious front row at Collectie Arnhem today. The editors of Grazia, Vogue NL, ELLE and Glamour were all there. And though the fashion week wasn’t even started yet officially, everyone seemed eager for a new week of Dutch fashion.

Amsterdam Fashion Week is Warming Up

 

Every body is getting ready for the openingnight of the 16th edition of Amsterdam Fashion Week. The first pictures are being taken, the first interviews and backstage the models are getting ready.

Cold Method Catwalk Fashion Show Amsterdam FW2012

On Tuesday night we all gathered at the Compagnie theater in the center of Amsterdam to see the brand new collection of fashion label Cold Method. In a large – yet still very crowded – theater room with an old skool backdrop of wooden boxes and activist poster the brand took us back to the late sixties.

Inspired by student’s revolutions of that period Cold Method showed a rough and raw collection, named The Gentleman Activist. ‘Cause even though those students were fighting against the authorities back in 1968, they did so in style; like gentlemen.

Head designer Dieter de Cock translated the activism of the student revolutions by expanding his range of suits (in tweed, woolen, corduroy). He showed how to wear those suits in combination with wax coats and fluff jackets. He also came up with casual chinos and corduroy 5-pockets worn with a shirt and a jacket.

His key items for fall turned out to be his field jacket, checked jersey cardigan and a woolen caban. A selection of gorgeous knits was added to the mix as well. And in stead of using a lot of black Dieter introduced shades of dark blue and grey combined with seventies shades like ochre, burgundy and navy blue.

Besides the regular male models two famous Dutch faces, singer Jim Bakkum and actor Patrick Martens who are often spotted wearing Cold Method, made their appearance on the runway too. Together with the show area, the theme and the strong collection that made up for a special Cold Method night. After the models had left the stage we went on it to celebrate Cold Method’s new collection and the fact that the brand turned five this year. Hurray!

Jacob Kok Preview Amsterdam Fashion Week

Jacob Kok will show his fall/winter 2012/2013 collection on Friday 27 January at 02.00 PM. He spoke with us about his brand new collection and his plans for the future.

Title
“The name of my collection is Schat Zoeken (Treasure Hunting). I began with the idea of minerals and crystals and eventually I added the world of mineworkers to it.’

Inspiration
“My inspiration for this collection is a result of the winning collection I showed on Project Catwalk. There I designed clothes with stone details and I thought it would be nice to start from there. The mineworkers theme is very visible, since I used many work clothing details. Also, I added some sort of treasure to every look…”

Materials
“The treasures in the collection can for instance be a special fabric. I developed my own fabrics at the Audax Museum of Textiles in Tilburg , which represent my treasures. The clothes might appear pretty normal; it’s the fabrics that make it special. Besides those new fabrics I also used recycled ones, so there’s a real contrast between old and new. I, for instance, worked with blankets movers use when they want to protect the furniture.”

Colors
“Overall the clothes look quite dusty. Even if I used colorful fabrics; they still have this washed out feeling to it; as if everything is covered in dust.”

Stress
“I was actually planning on coming up with about 20 looks, but as fashion week is approaching I think that number might diminish to 15 or 17. There’s still a lot to do, so I’ll definitely work till the very last hour. I have really panicked about this, but now I am planning on just doing the best I can and not stressing out any more.”

Goal
“With this collection I am not planning on impressing buyers and press, like others. I just hope my knowledge of fabric and the way I work with it will get noticed. It’s not my goal to create a new collection every six months and sell as much dresses as possible. I would love to just work together with an established fashion brand. For instance, a collaboration like Peter Pilotto and Kipling; I would love to work on a project like that. I don’t even have to work with clothes necessarily; I think I am much better in creating accessories anyway. I don’t see myself as a fashion designer, yet more as an art director.”

Sage & Ivy Preview Amsterdam Fashion Week

Fashion brand Sage & Ivy will show it’s fall/winter 2012/2013 collection on Friday 27 January at 05.00 PM. Designer Alexia van Engelen spoke with us about her brand new collection and her exquisite show location.

Amsterdam
“We have new agents in Russia and Canada which we’re very excited about. Yet even though we’re focusing more on the international market right now, we did think it was important to show our collection in Amsterdam. Not as much clothes will be sold here, but the press in Holland is very positive and uses Sage & Ivy quite a lot.”

Time
“This time we’re more on schedule than with previous collections. Especially since we’re going to Paris a week before our show a lot had to be done. We even had to make two new winter collections of around 20 looks, instead of the one we’re used to. Our agent in Russia needed one fall/winter collection as well; so we’re doing twice the amount of work.”

Show
“Our fashion show will be held in an old mirror studio in Amsterdam. In this studio old mirrors from the 18th and 19th century are restored. It’s an old workspace with concrete floors and raw walls on which over 200 mirrors hang. It’s a very special space. It feels very French to me; almost as if I am in Paris.”

Inspiration
“The collection is called Pelgrimage, which also was my inspiration. I thought of a strong woman making a long journey. The previous Sage & Ivy collections were always very sweet, yet this one is much more raw than what people have seen before. I had enough of the soft shades and the light fabrics and wanted to show another side of femininity. A tough, raw side, almost like an armor.”

Materials
“This raw look & feel gave me the opportunity to work with different materials. I used tulle decorated with patent paint; raw but still soft. I made skirts and evening dresses out of fake fur done in a jersey way; very soft but still rigid.”

Colors
“When I was in Paris to look for fabrics I ran into the perfect deep green fabric. I knew right then I really wanted to work with it. So with this green shade as a starting point I have been collecting the rest of the color palette. I used deep blue, black and nudes; all shades which work really well with the specific green.”

Changes
“The silhouette of the clothes is more tight than before. And even though I paid a lot of attention to details, they are less obvious. I think this collection is more grown up, just because I’m getting older as well. I feel really good about showing this part of me. In my opinion the Sage & Ivy brand becomes more balanced like this.”

Bas Kosters Preview Amsterdam Fashion Week

Our third preview is about Bas Kosters, who will show his fall/winter 2012/2013 collection at the openings-night on Wednesday 25 January at 09.00 PM. He spoke with us about his brand new collection and the amazing show he is planning to hold.

The show
“During our fashion show we’re not only presenting a new collection. We are also launching the second edition of my own magazine Extrakak, a new song and a new video. Last year’s show was not your average fashion show, but for us it was a big success. We probably won’t be able to exceed that show, but we’re definitely trying to build a party just as big within the boundaries of the Amsterdam Fashion Week.”

Side-Projects
“Like always we’re working on many different projects at once, yet it’s those extra projects, like making a magazine, that give me extra energy and get me inspired. So, although it’s quite busy at the moment I love doing such a variety of things. Besides, I have seven interns which can help me out to get everything done in time.”

Stress
“I am pretty confident everything will work out right and in time, so I am not really stressed. The days of working nights to finish off the collection are behind us. Now we just start working a little harder and longer several weeks before the show, so there’s less pressure. Yet we probably will still  work the weekend before the show.”

Amsterdam
“We’re very excited to be part of the Amsterdam Fashion Week again. Especially since the ‘International’ has been left off and it’s more about the fashion than the event. I am also very glad Carlo is now on board. It’s thanks to Vodafone that we can participate. Otherwise we would probably not have showed during fashion week, since we’re trying to focus a bit more on the international market. Luckily Vodafone and us turned out to be great partners. They’re more than just the sponsor, so we’re already talking about doing more projects together.”

Best Part
“The great thing about holding a fashion show is experiencing the moment in which everything falls into place; it’s something magical every time. I also very much enjoy looking back on the photos and videos afterwards; it’s so rewarding. And we work with a fantastic team, great models, good make-up artist and very talented music producers so working with these people is already such a joy.”

Theme
“The theme of the new collection is called ‘1, 2, tree’ and has everything to do with the contrast between life in the city and the longing for nature. We try to combine those two in a visual and a conceptual way. For instance, we’ve created two monsters city versus nature. One is evil, impatient and arrogant, the other is sweet, loving and fragile. Those two metaphors will be visible in our new prints.”

Colors
“We worked with off-tones, black, deep-blue, but also with ‘non-colors’ like mustard and petrol. In the colors, as well as in the materials you will clearly see the contrast between city influences and nature. That’s all I can tell, the rest you will have to go and experience yourself!”

Photography Jeannette Huisman@Team Peter Stigter

ELLE Style Awards 2012 – Guests

Pearls, feathers, headbands, flapper dresses, hats and slick suits; oh my, the twenties definitely revived Thursday night during the ELLE Style award show. All guests, hosts, members of the jury and press really made an effort to stick to the dresscode and look as twenties fab as possible.

Where you present at the ELLE Style Awards or are you just curious how everyone interpreted the Roaring Twenties theme? Check out our image gallery below with all pictures of the arriving guests.

Claes Iversen Catwalk Fashion Show ss2012

After having traveled through all four fashion capitals in the past few weeks, last night the fashion circus arrived at it’s final destination: Amsterdam. It was Claes Iversen’s show which brought Dutch celebs and fashion professionals together at Zuidpark on Thursday evening.

Inspired by a small group of women, who seem to have everything in the world Claes came up with a whole lot of elegant dresses, duo colored pants, sheer skirts and detailed blouses.

Crosses seemed a big theme in the show, in which models walked on a cross-shaped catwalk. They were used as embroideries on skirts, short jackets and long evening dresses, varying in shape and color.

A poppy print (in white and orange/red) was used in many of the couture-like designs as well. It beautifully mixed in with the rest of the color palette (many whites, cardinal, cyon).

Huge (filled) shoulders and large bows (on the models’ chests) gave the designs a more structured look.

Going through Claes’ Tweets of the past few weeks we learned not everything in the design process went as smoothly as the designer had hoped. But on Thursday night, when everything just came together, there was no sign of all of that. I was just a perfect presentation of a graceful, beautifully made and positive spring/summer collection.

 

 

Jan Boelo Backstage Video Show SS2012

The show of Jan Boelo set the stage on fire. His rock’n roll punk-inspired-collection seemed perfect for a summer festival. Backstage the atmosphere was rockin’ too, with models getting their dark make-up and chain-decorations.

Outsider at AIFW SS2012, part 2

Photographer Nick Helderman is new to the world of fashion. He knows his way quite well in the music-scene, but is still an outsider to the wonderful, glamorous, intoxicating, exaggerated world of fashion. Peter Stigter invited his talented colleague to experience the Amsterdam International Fashion Week and try to capture his vision in images. Today, part two.

Nick Helderman  lives in Amsterdam. He published in Het Parool, Glamcult and OOR. In 2010 he was nominated for the Popview/Lex van Rossen Award. You can look at his portfolio here.

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