Fashion in Detroit, Day 2
The second day of Fashion in Detroit was much more exciting. I don't know if it was because it seemed fuller, as most people probably had an easier time getting Friday off work than Thursday, or it was just that everyone finally let it sink in overnight that we finally have a large scale high end fashion event in Michigan - and it's looking really great for our city. The mood was full of excitement and joy, and the rain had let up by the time we got there, just in time for the Femilia Couture show, presented by designers Fotoula Lambros and Emily Thornhill.
I was most excited to see this show by these two very talented local ladies, who are quickly becoming the darlings of Detroit, as everyone seems to be raving about them these days. I was dying to see more than just photos online, as sadly I missed their collection preview party last month. The anticipation proved worthwhile. What came down the runway were beautiful and quite glamorous pieces; ranging from silk jumpsuits, to a beautiful romper, followed by an array of flowing ethereal party dresses, elegantly constructed from environmentally friendly fabrics. A few of my favorite Femilia Couture looks....
Next up was the legendary Betsey Johnson. It was a great presentation full of energy and spirit, but I'm not going to lie - this show was highly suspect. First of all, winter coats in the Spring 2010 collection? And then when the models removed the coats and slung them over their shoulders, ....was that...a price tag? To be completely sure, I took another look at the Spring 2010 collection that Betsey showed in NYC and yeah...none of these pieces were in the show last night. But you know, after thinking about it, I think that's okay. This is Detroit's first event of this scale. And it was nice of Betsey's team to allow the use of her clothing, which probably drew more people in.... AND the show really was fantastic. I loved the styling on the models and they were all so happy looking. Whoever told them to rock the smiles, kudos to you! I loved the party dresses, and as always, her crazy mismatched fabrics still worked together in a harmonious cohesive way. Let's be honest, not much changes with Betsey Johnson party dresses from season to season - they are her classic signature and always reminiscent of days spent playing dress-up (at any age!) So really, as an after thought, I guess I can't be too critical that it wasn't exactly a 'Betsey Johnson Spring 2010 show"... I mean, maybe we can just say, hey, this was Betsey's show created specifically for Detroit. I mean, *we* know we rock the winter coats up until April here! A few of my favorites....
Last up was the Made in Detroit show. I was a little disappointed, in that I had hoped Kid Rock would make an appearance, but the show was so spirited and so Detroit, that I quickly forgot about that. The opening models were dressed in boy shorts, hard hats, knee socks and tanks (all Made in Detroit) and started it off with a little cat fight, which was pretty cute - Detroit Muscle! After that it was a mixture of cute little tanks, skirts, cargo pants - mixed with menswear that included jackets, T-shirts, jeans and collared button ups. As the show progressed, so did the fashion, and I was pleasantly surprised to see more 'fashion forward' pieces than I expected from M.I.D. There were some cool off the shoulder dresses, short flirtly little skirts - and my absolute favorite - a pair of high waisted jeans held up by suspenders worn over a Made in Detroit white tank top. One of the things that really made this show great was the styling, which was done by Rebecca Stevens (the lovely lady I mentioned last week in my "spotted on the streets" feature.) Rebecca is known for being *the* best fashion stylist in the city, and it shows. From the hard hats to the fedoras, the hair, the accessories - you don't really think about it until you see a collection that is a little skimpy on the styling, verses a fully styled collection - what an enormous difference it makes. (I secretly hope one day I can snatch up Rebecca to style a show for me!)
Here are some of my favorite looks from the Made in Detroit show.
Overall, the event seemed to be a stunning success. I hope they had enough attendees to make it all worthwhile. The press seemed to be fully represented however, which with fashion shows, is the #1 most important thing. I'm looking forward to the Fall 2010 shows in March, and hope I can be a part of it.
Kelly Tinsley is an Ann Arbor-based fashion designer who blogs about fashion and style for AnnArbor.com. You can visit her Web site at Kellylynne.com, email her at kellylynnetinsley@gmail.com, become a Facebook fan of her designs and follow her on Twitter.