Going big
After having presented his previous collections in the afternoon Jan Boelo will hold a big evening show in collaboration with phone company Sizz during upcoming Amsterdam Fashion Week. And so Jan is going big with his collection too this season. “We’re creating about forty to fifty looks this time, twice the number of looks we did last year”, says Boelo. “Of course it tougher, but the number of team members working on the collection is doubled too and we’ll get some extra help the coming weeks, so we’ll manage. Since I only want to show the strongest looks we eventually might edit out about five of them during the styling process, but for now we’re just creating enough options.”
In the navy
The theme of Jan’s spring summer collection will be military, inspired by an editorial in French Vogue. “I’m showing all kinds of variations of the uniform. The army and the navy will be big themes in the show. The runway show will be a triumph, after battle. This means besides uniforms I will present garments men and women wear when returning home after war, for example leather long johns. All designs (in shades of sand, army, navy, red, white, blue, silver and gold ) will be slightly destroyed and the models’ hair and make-up too will look a bit off, in line with the theme”, Jan explains.
Seks & wax
The pieces will have a slightly different fit compared to last season, yet there’s no doubt they will still breathe the same amount of sex and rock. Jan: “The military jackets will be extremely tailored, T-shirts will be super tight, yet pants will be slightly looser and there is a focus on the shoulders. You’ll see my signature leather and jersey, plus I’ve used a special wax fabric for some of the coats and jackets. I will even present a sweater knitted out of chains, we are working on right now.”
Shine on
Jan already has a famous clientèle of mainly artists (Caro Emerald, Daily Bread and Ellen ten Damme) who wear his designs on stage. And it seems he inspires them as much as they do him. “The fabrics I use work really well on stage, since they’re often very shiny. It’s the stand out pieces (his metallic pants and baroque jackets from previous collections) that are selling the best. In Paris (where his designs are sold at Le Vestibule) a selection of Jan Boelo jackets was even sold out in four days. Jan: “The great thing is that even abroad mostly musicians and performers, people I’m inspired by, buy my designs.”
Celebs
And oh my do stars love Jan Boelo. Ever since his first fashion show he has had a star studded front row, something he never would have imagined. “I’m only 24 years old and I am actually just starting out. Sometimes I can not even believe some of the famous Dutch artists would actually come to my show.” Looking far ahead with his career is thus something Jan doesn’t do. “It’s hard to plan things, but of course I would love to expand. I would like to sell my clothes in London, Italy, Germany and Scandinavia, but time will tell if that will happen.”
Friday the 13th
For now Jan is finishing up his collection and is excited about the show. “I’m showing on the same day as Bas Kosters and Spijkers en Spijkers, so it will be a great day even though it will be Friday the 13th. I’m looking forward to putting on a great show together with them. ‘Cause I feel making Amsterdam Fashion Week a success is something you do together.”
Jan Boelo will show his Spring Summer 2013 collection on Friday 13 July at 09.00 PM
