SIS by Spijkers and Spijkers Catwalk Fashion Show MBFWA SS16

“She loves me she loves me she loves me. A love from outer space. Take a ticket to ride this space express. Meet the girl in the star dress.” The music had set the tone right away. Although it was not exactly a star dress, there were many outer space dresses indeed to be seen tonight. Colourful and shimmery sleeveless dresses with space shuttles or soft PJ-like shirt-dresses printed with spinning planets and galaxy creatures. Truus and Riet Spijkers are not the first one this fashion season flirting with rocket science (remember Prada’s quirky sweaters for men emerged with rocket ship motifs?). They got their main inspiration from Margaret Hamilton, the female engineer who took the Apollo 11 to the moon. “Astronauts that have been into space and have seen the earth from above got enlightened. It happend to Wubbo Ockels as well. They suddenly seem to realise how beautiful the earth is and we should take better care of it.”  And how to take better care of it with lots of love. We need cupido’s arrows (seen on the dresses and tops) to feel the love and passion. “Love and passion gives direction to our lives and fuel our hearts.” And it also fueled our love for fashion again, pampering us with beautiful daywear summer suits, easy-going skirts and flared trousers. Probably clothes that NASA wouldn’t approve before going up in space, but at least it got us dreaming of outer space. And although the show had already ended, we couldn’t help but keep dancing on Jamiroquai’s Cosmic Girl.

Caribbean Fashion Spot Catwalk Fashion Show SS16

“Keep calm and be Caribbean.” That’s how not to loose your head in the fashion madness, because there is quite some to worry about when it’s your first time to show on the Amsterdam Catwalk. “I’m so glad you didn’t fell when you turned around in those high heels”, Ms. Ray sighs from relieve afterwards. She’s one of the six designer labels of the Caribbean Fashion Spot Catwalk that was featured earlier today: Atelier Doré (Suriname), Beatriz Rodriguez (Puerto Rico), Charu Lochan Dass (Trinidad & Tobago), Gigliola Designs (Aruba), Heather Jones International (Trinidad & Tobago). They aim to provide women of today in the Caribbean with updates about the latest fashion. “They are not only beautiful, but they are all amazing young women that are working hard on their dreams! Diversity always rules and includes”, they announced a few days ago on their Facebookpage.

And yes, we spotted a lot of beautiful young women. And yes, there was quite some diversity on the catwalk as well. Starting out with Atelier Doré showing enormous silver and gemstone jewellery, featuring the tropical nature of Surinam. What followed next seemed to be the Miss Caribbean contest where there was no room for unpretentiousness. Cause if we can learn one thing from those ladies: if you have it, flaunt it baby. There was an overflow of long maxi-dresses, some off-shoulder others with a deep cut v-neck. Lots of ruffles, dainty lines, sequins and subtile shimmers. We counted several jumpsuits, some see-through or with high slits on the side and an open back. The flowy materials made it sometimes hard to see whether it was a dress or jumpsuit. Of course there’s no tropical fever without a bold colour scheme, so we got bombarded with bold pink, red, aubergine, yellow, green, blue and white.

This was not a show to give you an update on what to wear next season or how to be on trend. Although, we spotted one translucent white lace dress that could be perfect material for the ‘the rise and rise of naked dressing’ trend (how to look good naked without really being naked) as lately seen on Beyoncé, J.Lo and Kim Kardashian. Women with flaunting as their middle name. But no, this show was rather one to celebrate fashion and fun. Perhaps all those flower prints could cause some pollination of this cheerful Caribbean fever in our Dutch audience, so we can also keep it cool during these hot summer days.

Judith van Vliet x Chris van den Elzen LAB Fashion Week Amsterdam SS16

Deep ocean diving is something we normally do under strict surveillance. But Dutch designers Judith van Vliet and Chris van den Elzen took us 14000 feet deep in just a split second. No wetsuit or snorkel needed. Just your eyes, to admire and explore life beneath the waves, with its mind-blowing creatures lightening up the darkest waters and also, hopefully, our feeling of responsibility. “With this collection we wanted to show people how incredibly beautiful the ocean is, with its colours and interesting creatures like jellyfish, plankton and algea. The oceans are the lungs of our world, so we should take good care of it. But we don’t seem to realize their importance, if you look at the heavy pollution that’s going these days. There’s not enough attention for this huge world problem.” So the designers took a good shot at it.
It was translated into a colour palette of different shades of blue, black, whites and coral tones. Liquid lines and light,transparant fabrics resembling the fluid water. We saw some skirts and vests with scaly structures. Simple plastic strokes were made into abstract coral-like adornment. The models’ faces were painted with bold blue tones and soft sparkles on their eyelids reaching over the eyebrows combined with a semi wet hair look. Normally ending rock bottom is something we would avoid by any chance. But this time it wouldn’t have been so bad to stay a little bit longer below the surface.

Monique Collignon Couture Catwalk Fashion Show Amsterdam SS16

Dutch designer Monique Collignon and her deep-fried pizza food regime, it was the talk of the day as run-up for her ‘ultimate comeback’ on the Amsterdam catwalk. But not tonight. The front row was packed with fancy ladies, some famous faces emerged tentively towards their seats and some journalists were patiently waiting while staring at the huge backdrop. One that was soon to be filled with close-ups of mesmerizing earthy tones and minerals, an interesting starting point for a collection called ‘Earth Delight’. It was yet another show that was a shoutout to nature’s most hidden treasures but in a theatrical eighties meets Jerry Hall manner. Big, bigger, biggest.

The show was opened by Dutch model Ovo Drenth, slowly and confident walking down the runway wearing a blossoming black dress covered with lots of shimmerings. Soon followed by more floor-sweeping dresses, fancy skirts and classic silhouettes. All ultra feminine, alternating between soft lace, embroideries and a sea of ruffles. Not to mention the Swarovski-embellishments, sometimes all over, sometimes as small details. The contrast of lightness and weight was as well in the fabrics as in the colours. The final look was a huge white dress with sparkling details, that made some women trembling from excitement.

The clothes may not be very appealing and affordable for the regular fashion crowd, but it’s exactly what a real Collignon woman would ask for. And as Collignon summoned us to take good care of our planet and stop the pollution, what better army could she wish for than this impressive line-up of stunning ladies.

Hot List: 21 shades of…

Summer officially starts within a week. You can see and feel it in everything; nature’s buzzing, festivals are popping up, Nike running sessions all over and the gym and yoga classes are overbooked (of course we do our exercises too. Promise!). But if you haven’t yet started with building your ultimate summer wardrobe, why not start now? Beach ready or not, the streets are craving for some new season fashion highlights too. Your shades may not be the starting point, but consider them to be the cherry on the cake. Picking the right pair is as significant a style marker as finding you the right pair of shoes for your first date. And maybe even more important: no summertime Instagram photo feels complete without a striking pair of sunglasses to get that double-tap from your followers. So choose wisely when it comes to size, colour and fit. Oh, and before we forget: leave your modestness at home, it’s gonna be a bold and quirky SS15.

1. Keeping it fresh on hot summer days – Classic white frames

2. Saturdays’ hangover – Oversized, yes please!

3. Feeling your Dutch roots – Orange fever

4. Cultural weekend break – Powerful frames

5. Late summer nights – Ombre-effect

6. Aviator attitude – Hot child in the city

7.  Bold red – Why only a red lip when you also have red sunglasses?

Model Focus: Rianne Van Rompaey

She exclusively walked the Prada and Louis Vuitton AWshows. Well, what more could a fresh faced model ask for? Rianne Van Rompaey aimed high, dared to be selective and is now taking the fashion world by storm. She may not have walked that many runways, but judging by her publications and campaigns the 19 year old Dutchie doesn’t even need that. Rianne graced the covers of iD magazine, Rika magazine and Vogue Italia. She was featured in British Vogue, Industrie magazine and Love magazine, to name just a few. Her strawberry blond hair and green penetrating eyes make this upcoming Paparazzi Model Management talent easy to remember and hard to forget.

Trend Report SS2015: Classic Duo

Some trends just never go out of style. Take the leopard print or the little black dress. Each and every season they make their appearance on both modern looking and more classical looks. The same goes for black & white, a classic duo that never gets old. Even though the summer season might be more about color and print many fashion houses opted for monochrome looks. A safe bet, you can hardly go wrong with. Lots of checks (Balmain, Sportmax, Michael Kors) and stripes (Marni, Victoria Beckham). Some floral prints (Anteprima), a few polka dots (Marc Jacobs) and a wild touch of zebra (Roberto Cavalli). Fringes at Fendi, mesh at Balenciaga and embroideries at Chanel; enough variation to make you stand out without wearing actual colors. Then again who could resist the ultimate minimalistic chic attire we were presented with at Avelon.. Black pants and a crispy white shirt; a match made in monochrome heaven.

Trend Report SS2015: Connect the Dots

It seems not so long ago that the likes of Marc Jacobs and Stella McCartney set a major trend with their black and white polka dot collections. Still, after a few seasons, the print is being re-introduced by the same Mr. Jacobs and some of his most talented colleagues. XL 3D polka dots at Junya Watanabe, detailed dots at Chanel and flamenco versions at Dolce & Gabbana. As Moschino, Westwood and House of Holland got extra playful. Marc by Marc Jacobs introduced his pastel shaded polka printed bra tops worn over blouses and T-shirts. Yet in classic black and white this print is at it’s best! Are we ready for a new fashion round of polka dot power?

Trend Report SS2015: Mismatch

No rhyme or reason at the runways of Dsquared, Jean Paul Gaultier and Vivienne Westwood. So it seems.. Their S/S outfits formed an polychrome mix of materials, colors and silhouettes. Fashion pieces purposely mismatched creating head turning ensembles. Perhaps a new way for designers like Rodarte, Marc Jacobs and Marni to achieve originality in a fashion world which repeats itself so often. Or an answer, possibly, to the sobriety and minimalism we’ve seen around for so long. Whatever the reason, streetstyle influencers are making it rhyme. Rocking busy printed shirts and eclectic skirts with outstanding sneakers, jaw dropping handbags and eye catching sunnies. No color too bright, no texture too structured, no silhouette too bold. More is more in this mismatch mania.

Trend Report SS2015: Cover up & Expose

The days mesh fabrics solely belonged to the sportswear department are over. For ss2015 it has been popping up in every kind of dress code. Giving the perforated technical material a seductive and sleek appearance (Altuzarra, Versace, McCartney). Creating a special structured and colored look when worn over demure tops on one hand (Westwood). Yet adding sexiness when cheekily revealing skin (Balenciaga). A playful game of light and shadow, cover up and expose, giving evening wear a surprising, flirtatious touch. That’s meshed up!

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