Which crew are you? Frequin Producties at AIFW

Frequin Producties (the company of Louis and Barbara Frequin) is another crew behind the scenes at AIFW. A crew we can’t do without anymore, because they make the live streaming video happen!  Without them it wouldn’t be possible to follow this fashionweek behind your computer.

From left to right: Jeroen, Louis, Barbara, Wouter with Kim and Steffi in the front.

Which crew are you? Team Peter Stigter at AIFW

This edition of AIFW we would like to introduce the different crews behind the scenes. Without them this fashionweek would not work that smooth. No music, no food, no live stream video, no press-releases. Let’s start with our own crew: Team Peter Stigter.

From left to right: Joris Bruring, Peter Stigter, Tess van Daelen, Nick Helderman, Jetty Ferwerda, Jeannette Huisman, Inez Koopman, Jon Loek, Niels vd Top and Lisa Klappe

Preview AIFW – Quoc Thang SS2012

With his new collection of menswear (Quoc Thang has been making menswear for the past 1,5 years) Quoc Thang is about to head into a whole new direction. It will be his third time presenting his collection during Amsterdam International Fashion Week and he couldn’t be more excited.

AIFW
“Presenting my work during fashion week is a great way to reach a big audience. Perhaps it doesn’t directly result in making a lot of money, but artistically it’s the right thing to do.”

Adventurer
Thang’s new collection tells the story of an adventurer defying cold area’s in search of security and safety. “It’s called A Place Over There (Een Plek Daarginds in Dutch) and – like all my collections so far – it has something to do with the vulnerability and transitory of life. My inspiration comes from conversations, exhibitions and every day things. I always write things down.”

Shades & fabrics
“The new collection is pretty silent when it comes to color. We used multiple blues and greys and a touch of green here and there. The designs are made of fabrics like high tech nylon and wool. We also used a waxed cotton, which we’re very proud of since it’s hard to get.”

Changes
“Everything will be completely different; our strategy, our philosophy and the way we built up the collection. We used the 3 x 3 x 3 concept, based on the idea of a pair of pants, a top and a jacket.” It might sound somewhat vague right now, but according to Thang everyone will immediately be able to see the changes he made during the show.

Thang’s motivation to head into this new direction seems reasonable: “We noticed the big audience wasn’t really getting our collections when we showed them. We – and I think fashion in general – are ready for something new.”

And with just a few days ahead before the show Quoc Thang couldn’t be more prepared. “Our collection is completely ready, so we’re not worrying about time. I’ve done this a few times now so I now the ropes.”

Quoc Thang will present his collection on Saturday 16 July at 6 p.m.

Daily favorites in Paris

Friday was Lanvin-day. Besides Balenciaga, Celine and the Japanes designers the fashionworld is eager to receive the message Alber Elbaz has to tell. His connection with women is unbelievable, he can sense them and translate their needs into modern, urban chic. As he did yesterday. But the collection is not complete with the beautiful and strong jewelry from designer Elie Top. For summer he got his inspiration from bees, flies and butterflies. I’ll have to start saving money now, I guess.

Also: the setup of the Lanvin shows is giving me goose-pimples all the time. A dark, long runway with just one accent (last season a stairway to heaven, yesterday a line of poles) and models that seem to appear from the dark. Their long walk builds up the tension.

When I saw the pictures of Yamamoto I was struck by the faded colors in one outfit. The show seemed very Yohji with big dresses, draped and folded. But I loved the way he mixed the colors with his signature black.

And then Dior. It was a very commercial and upbeat show, and that’s what it should be if they want to sell. It seems Galliano is only allowed to push the boundaries at haute couture, and that’s a pity. Anyway, windbreakers and parkas never looked so sexy. And as a real Dutch girl I really liked that.

It’s goodbye to Milan

Three fashionweeks are over, one is still left. Tonight we pack our bags and tomorrow-morning we’ll leave for Paris. Wednesday the fashionweek starts with Rochas, Gareth Pugh and Dries van Noten, and the 7th of october it’ll all end with MiuMiu.

For now it’s goodbye to Milan, the city we enjoy the most. Not only because of those friendly Italians, but also because of the great food. We take two big shoppingbags of foodies back home.

Tess: sorting the invitations

Started the first day of the Milan Fashion Week by sorting our invitations. Loved the D&G invitation (floral printed, with some real seeds in it) and the one from Moschino, which was lemon shaped.

Dior Homme Catwalk Fashion Show SS2011

Kris van Assche seems capable of letting his severe, sartorial look go en soften it with lightweight and youthful tailoring. ‘Simplicity is the true luxury’, according to the designer. And so he presented sleeveless trenchcoats, lightweight linen parkas and paper-light jackets. Black, gray and sandywhite were his main colors. Low-slung trousers were tucked into sandals.

To add a different touch to his simplicity Van Assche used samurai references, like Mao-collars or V-shaped necklines similar to kimonos. Some tops reminded of Hedi Slimane’s first collection for Dior, with the sleeveless faux-wrap shirts. Those were wonderful and new and they still seem appropriate in their renewed version.

Prada Catwalk Fashion Show SS2011

The menswear summer-collection Prada sent out yesterday had a sporty marine-vibe thanks to all the blue & white, the navyblue fishermen-sweaters, the boxy bermudas, wide trousers and lots of keels. It reminded me of the sportsgear sailors wear during a storm or a windy day at the boat. It looked boyish too because of the oversized silhouettes, the multi-colored knitwear and last but not least the shoes with thick soles. You could almost hear them squeeze.

Prada played with proportions too, the slim and tight-fitted 3-buttoned suits contrasted with the boxy outfits and reminded me of early Raf Simons-collections. Not only because of the fit, also the way the models looked with their sharp faces and impeccable haircut and the Bauhaus-music.

This was the second collection that tried to bring bright colors back into menswear, orange, green, yellow, red and blue gave the collection an energetic feel.

In a review at style.com I read Miucca Prada was also inspired by simple uniforms like that of postmen and doctors and that she wanted everything as simple as possible in terms of fabrication, construction and silhouette. That’s why she used cotton (lots of denim too) and that’s why she landed on the idea of working-clothes.

Catwalktrends ss2010: showstopping shoes

The designers gave the models a hard time walking the runway to show the spring/summer collections. The shoes they had to wear often had eye-catching shapes and heights.

The shoes in the Jil Sander show had iron pins for heels. Donatella Versace used platform shoes. John Galliano’s shoes were extremely high and his stiletto heels seemed to be made of colored pearls. Chanel introduced a few clogs.

Some models in the Dsquared show had spikes all over their shoes. Viktor & Rolf embellished theirs with pink flowers, Vivienne Westwood decorated hers with wings. Matthew Williamson’s shoes had bows.

Next to the ultra high shoes we saw ultra-flat sandals (Issey Miyake, Anna Sui, Valentino, Lacoste, Etro, Armani, Chloe). Those sandals, snake leather and wearing socks in open shoes seem to become the trends for this spring.

Of course the Alexander McQueen shoes were real showstoppers. His shoes were high, had crazy alienated shapes and had reptile prints all over them. Gaga oehlala…

groupielove, the end

In his time away in New York, Williamson learned something about putting on a show. Honed by exposure to that city’s demand for brevity in design, his show in London was a much more focused, slim-contoured collection consisting of leather-inserted polished-linen sheath dresses, super-skinny pants, and paper-bag-waisted shorts.

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