Brian Reyes and The Search For The Spring Dress

Meh, I'm still wandering around looking for spring/summer dresses that I like.  There are millions of dresses out there and I always feel like I need to see what's out there before I really decide anything.  There are so many great designers out there that don't get much press even though they make wonderful things that I'd absolutely love to wear.  I have no idea why they get largely ignored, but it means I end up spending lots of time cruising around the 'net looking to see what I can find.

One of the designers that is a great new talent but gets kinda forgotten is Brian Reyes.  He's an American designer that shows at New York Fashion Week.  He occasionally gets featured in magazines but not with any regularity.  That's pretty disappointing considering he makes some cute, wearable clothes.  He's one of the few designers that isn't afraid to use print and color and I totally love it.

In his Spring Summer 2010 show he had a whole series of dresses in a shagreen print.  Shagreen is the textile from stingray leather, it has a kind of pebbled/mosaic print.  Its a really beautiful natural material and I've never seen that reinterpreted as a fabric print.  Not only is the print of these dresses cute, but the cut is too.  They're cut to be flattering and young, perfect for spring.  They look like they would be great on a young woman, I like that they are sexy without being revealing.

It seems that some of the other prints in the runway show are inspired by the Rorschach test.  Designers are always doing prints like that but what makes this ink blot print so cool are the colors.  The colors just make me smile, they are fabulously youthful and spring.  I love this dress, only I want to make it about 3 inches longer (or, since I'm shorter than the model it would hit at the spot I want) and then put a contrasting belt over it.  That is exactly the kind of things I like to wear.  I know I probably shouldn't say this, but that print looks great for disguising random food and coffee stains and like if it was a really hot, sweaty day you wouldn't be able to tell.  Probably not what most people think when they are looking for a dress, but lets face it, its reality.

Brian Reyes is a wonderful Columbian-American designer who is making beautiful clothes for young women.  I know, these dresses aren't really for everyone because not everyone wants to wear bright ink blots all over them, but they certainly fill a void in the fashion world.  I'm excited to watch how his career progresses, we can't have enough designers that aren't afraid to take risks with color and print!

Pictures from Style

A Sad Show

Lets be honest, New York Fashion Week this season was a disappointment.  Sure, Fall/Winter wear is always a drag, but this year it was even more so.

The really depressing part wasn't even the clothes.  It was the shows themselves.  While many designers DID put on shows, a good many simply threw parties and had their models walk around to showcase the clothes.  *SAD*  Sure, the economy is in the tank, but that means that the world needs a fantasy, a show, something to make them forget what is going on.  Instead, the designers decided to hide in their studios and only invite their friends.  

For instance, Vera Wang Lavender Label didn't bother with a show this year.  The clothes were great, wearable and flattering.  But, instead of the world getting to see them stomp down the runway, victorious over economic dread, they hid away at an exclusive party.  The dress pictured is very nice--flattering, flirty and young.  But, I'll always wonder what it would have looked like on the runway, crowd staring, model stomping, music pulsing.  There is something magical about that runway moment, and a tragedy that this year was without it.

Picture from style.com