In review: Cliche's Avoid the Grey

Cliché hosted its annual fashion show "Avoid the Grey" on Saturday night at the Grainbelt Bottling House, and this year the local boutique decided to change things up. The "show" was more of an art installation, with models dressed in one avant-garde look by local designers housed inside peephole-laden boxes designed by local artists. While I love me a good old-fashioned runway show, it was a great concept - fashion as art. With the recent slew of overly-lengthy runway shows that seem to be more about quantity than quality, it was refreshing to see so much thought having gone into a show. Less was more, in this case. A minor criticism: it was difficult to get a good gauge of what was happening in the boxes with only the small peepholes to peer through. But nonetheless, the interactive feel of the event served only to make fashion more accessible and less intimidating.

Here are the individual looks, out of the box. Let's assess:

Kerry Riley of Needle & Black translated her love for patent leather into a skintight Latex look complete with her signature holster, this time rendered in stripes, which offers a great graphic element to the otherwise fairly basic design. The gold cuffs were a nice addition.

Rachel Blomgren is one of my favorite up-and-comers in the local fashion scene. She has a great way of merging a punky, West Bank aesthetic with genuinely impressive knitting skills and a great eye for color and pattern. I want those leggings NOW. The headpiece (or rather, "hand" piece) and doll head necklace are deliciously wacky. (Necklace by Lela Baumann of Chrysopoeia.)

Kimberly Jurek's contribution to the evening was a silk skirt inspired by traditional bomba skirts, which are designed for a traditional Puerto Rican folkloric dance. She updated it with the pops of neon, though with the addition of the fringed jacket, it looks more like a costume than true fashion. (Accessories by KR Designs by Kristi Relopez.)

As for Kathryn "V" Sterner's look, this is just plain weird. Apparently the "hoof hand" gloves are inspired by a lyric from a Devandra Banhart song, and the dress is made out of wallpaper - no wonder it looks so stiff. The makeup and the head wreath are making me think of Jesus Christ, and that's not good. (Head wreath by Cocoquette by Andrea Oseland.)

What a fun look from Sarah M. Holm. Love the juxtaposition of the soft floral and bow motifs with the "gun bustier" and black cage skirt. And it's perfectly constructed. It's no surprise coming from a designer known for injecting high-concept ideas into her work while still making it fashion (i.e., not a costume). (Bullet jewelry by Timmilynn Johnson of Sweet T.)

This was an intriguing offering from Danielle Everine. It's clearly in line with her latest work shown at the "Sashay Shantay" fashion-geared Art Shanty over the past couple of weeks - sort of an Arctic seafaring snow queen, with equal parts fashion and function. The black and shades of blue work gorgeously together. My one complaint is that it's overstyled - she really didn't need the antler necklaces (which are by up-and-coming accessories line KR Designs. And I do really like the antler necklaces on their own; I featured them in last week's issue of Vita.mn).

Yikes. This look by Carmichael Claith just looks ridiculous. It's clear she was going for some outsized proportions, but those pants make the model look like The Adventures of Frog & Toad.

Double yikes for this look by ArielSimone. Yellow lace with cutouts and rhinestones can never be a good idea. It's pretty draggy. (Accessories by Jen Scheffler of Realia by Jen.)

Killah look from Amanda Christine. That jacket is perfectly cut, and this is far edgier than we typically see from the typically more subdued designer (who is among the city's more commercially successful designers). The sheer red hose are a great touch. (Accessories by Timmilynn Johnson of Sweet T.)

Up-and-coming designer Gina Marie Landes of Gina Marie Vintage sticks pretty true to her subdued palette, chiffon fabrics and easy-fitting silhouettes in her boho/Grecian goddess look. (Accessories by Larissa Loden of Lefthand Originals.)

And to get a taste of the actual event, here's some video:



All photos by Marty Andreason except Kimberly Jurek's look photo by Sara Glassman.

Recap: Breakfast with Oscar

This morning, I styled an Oscar preview for the Aegis Foundation (hosted at Thom Pham's Wondrous Azian Kitchen) in anticipation of Aegis' officially-sanctioned Oscar red carpet premiere in March. After the nominations and fashion presentation, we dined on delicious dim sum, served to us personally by Pham himself.

[L-R: Designs by Carmichael Claith, Christopher Straub, Jenny Carle & Emma Berg with jewelry by Bionic Unicorn. Photo: Barb Teed, Twin Cities Daily Planet]

Barb Teed of Twin Cities Daily Planet was there to recap the event and took some pictures:

Attendees enjoyed an Oscar-worthy couture fashion show by local designers Christopher Straub, Emma Berg, Jenny Carle, and Carmichael Claith. The menswear came from the Minneapolis store Elsworth Menswear. Models walked to Rat Pack music and wore clothes in the theme of the film Breakfast at Tiffany's. Handmade jewelry was worn by designer Bionic Unicorn of Minneapolis. Vita.mn and l'etoile magazine stylist Jahna Peloquin created the fashion show look. All the hair was fashioned by Jennifer Gullickson from The Hair-e-tic salon in Minneapolis. Click here to read more.

[Dress by Jenny Carle with jewelry by Bionic Unicorn. Photo: Barb Teed, Twin Cities Daily Planet]

[Me styling a male model in clothing from Elsworth. Photo: Barb Teed, Twin Cities Daily Planet]

[Menswear from Elsworth]

SCENEaSOTA short films released

For the annual SCENEaSOTA fashion show held on November 6 at Loft2, local filmmakers Elijah Chhum and Wesley Meirick collaborated on a series of short films, which were screened in between designer segments. If you're anything like me, you were too busy chatting with your seatmates and getting drinks to fully appreciate the work that went into these films. Today Elijah released the films, which feature clothing and accessories from local designers and models from Vision, on Facebook.

The first film features models Karen O'Bryan, Elle Williams, Wesley Meirick, Elijah Chhum and Nick Patnode, clothing by Jenn Bratvold and Britta Feuerhelm, and jewelry by Carrier Pigeon and Ann Lambrecht.

C'est as nous (It is ours) from Elijah Chhum on Vimeo.

The second film features models Ashlee Williams, Jonathon Sargent and Gail Lewis, clothing by Kathryn V and Jenny Carle, and accessories by Timmilyn and Tasha Rae.

Tentation (Temptation) from Elijah Chhum on Vimeo.

The third film features menswear by Raul Osorio with Freedom from Doubt bowties and womenswear by Carmichael Claith with Bionic Unicorn jewelry, with models Alice Walker, Joe Laue, and Wesley Meirick.

Abstract- Untitled from Elijah Chhum on Vimeo.

Part four features womenswear by Frances Zerr with Ruby3 accessories, and menswear by Kevin Kramp with Ferociter accessories.

Prendre (to take) from Elijah Chhum on Vimeo.

SCENEaSOTA previews

I'm very much looking forward to SCENEaSOTA tomorrow night at Loft2. Tickets are still available at Cliché, so be sure to pick yours up today.

[A look from Kevin Kramp, photo by Amy Gee]

Here's my (original, full-length) writeup for Vita.mn:

In its third annual edition, the SCENEaSOTA fashion show is set to continue its forward momentum for another year. Bolstered by an impressive lineup and perhaps an even more impressive lookbook (helmed by Voltage art director Chris Larson), the production of this year’s show is leaps and bounds from its humble beginnings, on a makeshift runway in a tiny bar only two years ago. It comes on the heels of September’s “Pale Rider,” an MNfashion-produced runway show featuring Raul Osorio and Danielle Everine that decisively raised the bar for locally-produced fashion shows. With its mix of up-and-comers (Britta Fueerhelm, Jenn Bratvold), returning designers (Jenny Carle, Kathryn V., Carmichael Claith), and more established names (Kevin Kramp, Raul Osorio, Frances Zerr) – coupled with some noted accessory designers (Carrier Pigeon, Ferociter, Ruby3) and Vision models – it’s clear the show owes a great debt to Voltage. In this case, rock and roll is traded out for some film segments by Elijah Chhum and additional visuals by Ken Hannigan. (8 p.m. Show at 9:30 p.m. Sat. $10-15. 21-plus. Loft2 (above OM), 401 1st Av. N., Mpls. 612-870-0420.)

Here's my writeup for Secrets of the City and l'étoile magazine:

In its third year running, the show that is all about homegrown talent is back with another fresh crop of emerging local fashion designers. If the lovely lookbook (art directed by the fantastic Chris Larson) is any indication, this year's SCENEaSOTA should be a smashing success. This year, producer Maritza Ramirez is throwing in some additional multi-media elements - audio/visual design by Anthem Heart and film segments by Elijah Chhum - that are sure to be a nice match to the fashions hitting the runway. This year's designers include fresh faces (Britta Feuerhelm, Jenn Bratvold), SCENEaSOTA vets (Carmichael Claith, Jenny Carle, Kathryn V.), Voltage alumni (Raul Osorio, Frances Zerr) and established designers (Kevin Kramp), with new accessory collections from the likes of Ruby3, Carrier Pigeon, Ferociter, and Bionic Unicorn. Drop in early to schmooze with other fashionable guests, sip on a cocktail, preview the designs in a pop-up shop, and mingle with the designers before the runway event. Afterward, stay for a bumpin' afterparty with DJs and dancing. Tickets are $10 general admission or $15 seated and available in advance at Cliché. Doors open at 8pm and the event is 21+. For more info visit Facebook.

And check out the SCENEaSOTA lookbook while you're at it: