Winde Rienstra en Gomes Esser Design Backstage AIFW SS2012

The second part of the LAB-shows was filled by Winde Rienstra and Gomes Esser Design. The handcrafted designs – and especially her shoes – were a favorite of the audience, while the futuristic creations of designers Aleyda and Denise of Gomes Esser Design also got a lot of admirers. We also went backstage to capture the tension.

 

Winde Rienstra & GOMES ESSER DESIGN – LAB Catwalk Fashion Shows SS2012

Winde Rienstra – 11:11

Winde Rienstra and Gomes Esser Design were next up at Amsterdam Fashion Week Lab. Winde really was the public’s favorite; everyone in the audience seemed blown away by her structured, handcrafted designs. Her designs were on the edge of clothes and objects and were not all very wearable, but sure painted a nice picture.

 

Gomes Esser Design – The perfection of imperfection

Designer Aleyda and Denise from Gomes Esser Design presented their work for the second time during AIFW. It showed their surrealistic and futuristic signature by combining lots of metal (jewelry and head pieces), leather and innovative solar panels.
There were male and female models and America’s Next Top Model participant Sara Longoria was one of them. She fiercely walked the show and is also the new face of Gomes Esser Design.

 

Roya Hesam & ZEM Backstage AIFW SS2012

Let’s take a look backstage at two LAB-shows that were held this morning in the Machinegebouw: Roya Hesam and ZEM, the menswear-label of Samira Algoe

 

Roya Hesam & ZEM – LAB Catwalk Fashion Shows SS2012

Thursday is one of the busiest days of the whole Fashion Week with a lot of LAB shows. We started off with ZEM and Roya Hesam, two upcoming designers, who both presented 10 looks.

ZEM – menswear

Designer Samira Algoe based her second AIFW- collection on classic beachwear for men. She used sun, see and beach as the inspiration for her clean and well tailored looks. Most items were made out of two parts (and two or more shades). The sheer silk cotton and the ultra-short pants appeared a little feminine, but overall the clothes felt pretty wearable. Sunny accessories were gave the collection a nice little extra.

Roya Hesam – womenswear

Roya showed her minimalistic but very feminine collection Facing Skills. She used airy fabrics and soft shades. Her dresses, jumpsuits and pants looked elegant and smooth, perfect for summer. There was a little boob flash here and there, but that didn’t spoiled the fun.

This was Boutyq SS2012

Before the AIFW takes over our blog, we would love to share the BOUTYQ-event with you. The fifth edition of BOUTYQ gave a reason to celebrate this great fashionevent. Despite the rain fashion-pro’s and -lovers arrived at the Dylan Hotel to watch the collections of Francisco van Benthum, Jeroen van Tuyl and Unconditional.

The collection of Van Benthum was inspired by Cuba and the tropics, which resulted in a modern/classic design in light fabrics and colors. The British label Unconditional presented mens- and womenswear with a street chic character. Jeroen van Tuyls clsed the evening with his tough yet classic menswear.

Preview AIFW – Jan Boelo SS2012

It will be Jan Boelo’s first time to show during Amsterdam Fashion Week and from what he tells us, it will be a show to remember.

Long Nights
With just a few days left until his show Jan Boelo and his team are working late every day. “I’m finishing the collection with three other people and I’m getting some help from friends and family. It’s usually not until 2 or 3 a.m. that we stop working and go to bed. But I’m making sure I have one more relaxed day before the show, so I wouldn’t be all tired and stressed out on Sunday.”

Jan’s collection (it’s the second collection he has made) will exist of men- and womenswear. “The biggest part will be womenswear, but there’s a small menswear section as well. All together we will present about 26 looks.”

Inspiration
“Those looks are inspired by the late seventies. It’s all about the rise & fall of punk and glam rock. There will be a lot of leather and chains. Almost anything in the collection will be shiny. The fit will be tight, but there are loose pants too and I stressed some of the shoulders. It will feel like Alexis herself (from Dynasty) walks into the room.”

Fabrics
“We got a special kind of denim from Italy and we had our leather custom made in an Italian factory. I personally went there this spring to make a selection of the leather I wanted to use.”

Rock ’n Roll
“Since I’m a big Rock ’n Roll fan; I translated this to the collection. Songs from bands like The Sex Pistols and Patti Smith inspired me. The soundtrack of the show is going to be very rock ’n roll too. It will be a pretty fierce mix, made by Tim Holland.”

Jan has already convinced Dutch rock singer/actress Ellen ten Damme of his talent (she wore his clothes to several official events) so we’re very curious to see what everyone else thinks of his designs.

Jan Boelo will show his collection on Sunday 17 July at 3 p.m.

Catwalk Fashion Show SIS by Spijkers en Spijkers SS2012

Tonight the Amsterdam Fashion Week kicked off with the SIS by Spijkers en Spijkers (their second line) fashion show. A great start of a week full of fashion!

Designers Truus and Riet Spijkers presented a fun, sunny collection which turned a big smile on our faces. They were inspired by the twenties and Olympic swimmer Zus Braun in particular. The swim details were visible through fun play/bathing suits and old skool bathing caps.

SIS was divided in day wear and evening wear and overall felt very playful and optimistic. Shades of rose, red, pistachio, amber and nautical blue were used in combination with white and black. The models looked feminine in jumpsuits, shorts, jeans skirts (with large pockets) and casual suit jackets.

Stripes were used in every possible way, a zig zag print came by and a ‘vintage’ fashion illustration formed the print on some of the SIS-tops. Multi-colored belts, sunny shades and cane hats added just the right feeling to some of the looks. Overall it was just a very joyful and wearable collection, exactly what a second line should be.

 

Preview AIFW – Pauline van Dongen

While traveling from London to Rome and Amsterdam she kept multiple To do lists in the past weeks just to make sure all preparations for her show would be done in time. So with just a few days until that show everything seems to fall in place just right. And Pauline van Dongen’s first Amsterdam Fashion Week fashion show is most likely to become a success.

The collection Pauline will be showing is called Kinetic Landscapes and tells the story of subtle changes in nature made by the power of water and air, which can only be noticed after many decades. Like the remarkable traces of waves and sand on rocks and stones.

“Through this inspiration the collection shows my sculptural signature and experimental approach of shape and materials. I used lines and waves to create movement in my designs as well. I find it fascinating that wind and air can create soft and fluent shapes on such large and solid parts of nature.”

“I was inspired by the natural phenomena ‘The Wave’ in Arizona and thus opted for shades of that specific place like orange, cobalt blue, white, grey and black. A reflecting kind of knitwear and a springy sort of pleated knitwear represent the fluent and reflecting aspect of water in my creations.”

But better than to speak about Pauline’s designs we should watch them. Preferable on the runway while they’re being worn by models. ‘Cause, Pauline says, “I love to see my work on a moving body in stead of on a static object. The woman body gives my designs their outspoken shape and volume.”

Pauline van Dongen will show her collection on 14 July at 8 p.m.

 

 

 

 

 

Preview AIFW – SIS by Spijkers en Spijkers SS2012

This upcoming edition of the Amsterdam International Fashion Week the twins sisters Riet en Truus Spijkers will be the first to show their  SIS collection. We spoke to the sisters about this new collection and what kind of story they will be telling during the opening event.

“We’re very excited to be part of the opening show this season. For us that’s even better than just doing a regular fashion show. It results in a lot of media attention, which is one of the reasons we decided to show during Amsterdam Fashion Week. More media coverage results in more requests for our collection and that’s always good.”

It’s only one year ago that Spijkers en Spijkers launched it’s little sister SIS, yet so far the new line is doing great. “We are getting applications for the collections from abroad as well. SIS is now being sold in countries like Italy, Japan and Australia.”

As for the new summer collection we can expect nothing but summery/sunny clothing. “The collection is sunny, optimistic and a little naughty. The theme is Bain du Soleil. Again it will have some twenties references, which we also used in our music. The soundtrack will be modern but with a definite twenties twist.”

Like in every collection the sisters chose a certain woman as their female muse for the collection. “This time Olympic swimmer Zus Braun gave the designers their inspiration. Due to that the collection has some slightly sporty details in it, but mostly done in a very feminine way.”

“The clothes will have a tight fit and come in colors like rose, pistachio, amber and nautical blue. There are some bright Au Bain de Soleil prints as well. We used cotton, crêpe de chine and some very comfy jerseys. It’s just a fun collection, so we’re very much looking forward to the show.”

SIS by Spijkers en Spijkers will be shown on Wednesday evening 13 July at 6.30 p.m.

Preview AIFW – Sage & Ivy SS2012

The Sage & Ivy fashion show is part of the official Amsterdam International Fashion Week program for the first time this season. Yet, as designer Alexia van Engelen tells us, the label is still giving the audience something different…

“When we were approached by the AIFW if we wanted to join the official schedule, we had one condition: we still wanted to be able to create our own little Sage & Ivy world around the show. We didn’t want to use just an ordinary, plain, white catwalk. We discussed all possibilities and are now showing the new Sage & Ivy collection near the pond of the Westergasterrein. This means the models are going to be walking on a catwalk build over water. We’re very excited”

And though the concept alone is already interesting, water has a special meaning in Alexia’s new collection too. “The collection is called hemisphere and is inspired by water. Yet not in an too obvious matter. You’ll see the water in reflections, the golden color it creates when the sun sets, the many colors that appear when the sun shines at it and the transparency of water.”

These diverse sides of water are brought to live in a two sided collection. “On one side it shows Greek influences like draping, braiding and lots of volume. On the other side you’ll see day wear with a seventies vibe (high pants and accentuated shoulders). Bianca Jagger really was the inspiration for this since she used to mix those two styles together in her impeccable looks.”

The whole Sage & Ivy collection consists of 24 looks, all handcrafted in small studios in Belgium and Germany (no longer in Morocco, like before). The fabrics as well as the colors of the collection breath femininity. “We used shades like light pink, light green, grey, gold and some degrade. All looks were made from materials like jersey, lace, chiffon, organza, satin, cotton and a special wool melange. There are many feminine pieces in the collection but in the show we will always combine a very feminine, elaborating item with a more simple and cool (almost manly) piece. Just wait and see…”

The Sage & Ivy show will be held on Friday 15 July at 8 p.m.

« Previous Page — Next Page »