Franzel Amsterdam 'Street Chic' @ MBFWA

Eric Franzel presented his Franzel Amsterdam Spring-Summer 2016 collection 'Street Chic' at the 23rd Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam.

A collection for men and women, mainly in black, dark blue and whites.
The collection is defined by a purity that is reflected in every design, creating a sensual look but also a tough one.
The outfits were completed with the jewellery by Marlous van der Toorn, with her MvdT collection.

Franzel Amsterdam is a label that leaves the first name of the designer out because it doesn’t want to be to personal. A label that concentrates on designing for the new of all ages.

Taxibeat meets Sun of a Beach Towels: Beach please!

Sun of a Beach & Taxibeat brings summer to Athens with free towels.

On Friday, July 17th, a great Sun of a Beach gift comes to hundred lucky persons with the touch of a button.
The gift exists of a luxury beach towel from the collection of Sun of a Beach, inspired by the most beautiful beaches. And the winners, besides the beach towel will receive together "Sun of a Beach" cartes postales and a large bag, well-designed and practical, suitable for the beach.

Beach towels of the Sun of a Beach in Greece are made of 100% cotton combined with colorful printed cotton fabrics. This series of premium beach towels are designed by Elli Rountou and Melina Pispa.

Each collection is inspired by the most beautiful beaches in the world - from the austere beauty of the Cyclades until glamour of Capri, the intensity of Rio, and the waves of California. Each towel is made of pure cotton, which are lightweight, absorbent, very soft and durable.

But how does it work tomorrow:

The Sun of a Beach towels will come to the city center on Friday, July 17 from 12 o'clock at noon and for a limited time.

One hundred winners will acquire them for free.

What must you do to become one yours:

1. Open Taxibeat app and look for your own Sun of a Beach towel, pressing the "Beach, Please!" It will appear top right on your screen.
2. Search for an available vehicle near you. Once the driver accepts your call, you see him approaching.
3. When you reach your destination you will collect your Sun of a Beach towel.

The action will last until stocks are exhausted. The demand is great, so if you do not find immediately an available driver, try again!

Beach please!

Katy Perry to star in H&M's Christmas 2015 Campaign

H&M announced that international pop icon Katy Perry will star in its Christmas Holidays 2015 Campaign. Katy will feature in a global TV and print campaign that celebrates the season in true H&M style, full of joy and togetherness for the Christmas holidays. It will debut in November 2015.

"H&M was one of the places where I first began cultivating my personal style. I have continued to love integrating H&M pieces into my wardrobe throughout the years. One of the reasons I love the holidays is being able to dress cozy and cute, which H&M executes so well for every budget. I can’t wait for you to see the world we created with Jonas Åkerlund and Dan Jackson," says Katy Perry.

"We are so thrilled that Katy Perry will star in our campaign this holiday season. We love everything about Katy, from her incredible talent and energy to her playful sense of personal style," says Pernilla Wohlfahrt, H&M's Head of Design.

Katy Perry is a global superstar who was the first artist to surpass 75 million digital downloads, and the top Twitter star with 72 million followers. She is the only female artist to have five Billboard No1s from the same album ("California Gurls", "Teenage Dream", "Firework", "E.T." and "Last Friday Night"), and the only artist ever with two videos ("Roar" and "Dark Horse") at over 1 billion views on Vevo. She is currently on her Prismatic World Tour through Europe, Asia and South America.

Source: Press Release H&M

Susana Bettencourt's knitwear @ MBFWA

Susana Bettencourt presented her spring-summer collection at the 23rd Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam to the press and fashion crowd.

Susana is known for her handcrafted knitwear.
Her collection was all about traditional lace techniques and the translation to the digital age.
The first model appeared in raw materials, showing a lot of skin. Further more in the show the models wore digital jacquard, showing her creativity and workmanship.
She presented unique bobbin lace dresses as well as digital jacquards and prints, showing that handcraft is still appreciated in modern times.

See for yourself!

About Susana Bettencourt
Susana Bettencourt was born in the Azores Islands and already at a very young age she fell in love with bobbin lace.
She studied at Central Saint Martins and the London College of Fashion.

Her goal is to explore the synergy of new technology and the digital with traditional craft, as well as the synergy with her two homes, London and the Azores.
Traditional lace techniques by Susana Bettencourt

The designer started in February 2011, showing her first collection at London Fashion Week and at the moment she is already represented in the iconic stores of  Luisa Via Roma and many more platforms.

AM \ WESTEN Spring-Summer 2016 @ MBFWA

Annemarie Westen debuted at the 23rd Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam with her womenswear label AM \ WESTEN as part of Vodafone Firsts Fashion LAB.

Both the show as the new collection showed surprising elements within a world of contrasts.
"We have consciously chosen for a classic, minimalist show to create a certain feeling," says Annemarie West - designer of the label.
"In our designs we play with contrasts of hard lines in combination with smooth materials."

It was the first time that AM \ WESTEN showed a collection during the fashion week.
"The show at Fashion Week was a special recognition in our efforts to establish ourselves as a fashion label. Not only for ourselves but also towards our retailers and customers. We are very grateful. "

The AM \ WESTEN Spring-Summer 2016 collection offers a new perspective on the previous four collections of the label. For the collection, the designer has the dutch summer kept in mind.
The collection is characterized by long silhouettes and the use of leather and silk combined with beautiful, quality viscoses. In the collection are also shades visible - in addition to the characteristic black with a touch of white elements. The specific language of AMWESTEN hereby remains intact flawlessly: a timeless collection that accentuates the power and elegance of the female body.

About AM WESTEN
Annemarie Westen is the designer behind ready-to-wear label AM \ WESTEN. In a world where the cycle of confection is getting shorter, Annemarie Westen harks back to craftsmanship in the design process. In this process, the label with subtle changes in the standards we are used to. AM \ WESTEN is characterized by simplistic design, a sophisticated portability and exciting contrasts between powerful silhouettes combined with pure materials like silk, cashmere and wool.

About Vodafone Firsts Fashion LAB
Vodafone Firsts Fashion LAB’ inspires visitors with upcoming talent and their interpretation of fashion collections, -textiles and -presentations. Vodafone Firsts Fashion LAB is a breeding ground where promising designers freely express their creativity.
In the Vodafone Firsts Fashion LAB young designers have the freedom to experiment with textiles, the collection composition and the way of presenting. For them, Vodafone Firsts Fashion LAB is a chance to shine on a professional catwalk in front of a national and international audience. The shows offer visitors (on location and via live streaming) an insight into opportunities that are out there in the fashion and creative industries, for those who dare to think beyond the beaten track.

Temporary Fashion Museum opens in Rotterdam in September 2015

What would a museum about fashion in the Netherlands look like? From 13 September 2015 until 8 May 2016 Het Nieuwe Instituut in Rotterdam will be transformed into a Temporary Fashion Museum, exploring the phenomenon of fashion in all its surprising forms with an extensive programme of exhibitions, installations, performances and events.

Photo by Johannes Schwartz

Many Dutch museums include fashion within their collections but there has never been a national fashion museum. Over a period of eight months Het Nieuwe Instituut will explore the possibilities of such an institution by transforming itself into a fashion museum. The entire building will be utilised for this temporary experiment.

Innovation in fashion contrasts starkly with other disciplines in which innovation is viewed as synonymous with technological progress. Fashion has found its own model of renewal by using the past as an endless source of inspiration for the future. Reason enough to allow the past, present and future to be interwoven in the Temporary Fashion Museum. In contrast to the conventional model of a museum, which conserves objects and thus freezes time, the Temporary Fashion Museum will approach time as fashion does: as a fluid and flowing phenomenon and a source for speculation.

What is the current state of fashion? What issues preoccupy designers right now? How do they speculate about the future? Which issues determine current developments in fashion? In addition to exploring the fashion design and production process the Temporary Fashion Museum will also examine the role of the user. It will give visitors an opportunity to engage with fashion in different ways: from debating about and reflecting upon on essential issues to trying on and buying clothes.

Seduction

Het Nieuwe Instituut’s freely accessible entrance area will have the allure of a seductive perfume department in a luxury emporium. This will be a showcase for the latest trends. Penny Martin and Jop van Bennekom (editor of renowned fashion magazines The Gentlewoman and Fantastic Man) present their ultimate selection from the thousands of garments that make up the autumn-winter 2015 collections. The selection will change in the beginning of 2016 with the start of the new fashion season. A monthly changing expo-in-expo, installed by leading stylists, designers and fashion photographers, will highlight the constantly shifting nature of fashion. A series of spaces will focus on the fashion consumer, including a fabric shop with quality textiles, a fitting room for high-heel shoes from sizes 28 to 48, and even a cloakroom where visitors will have their jackets ritually removed. Visitors will also be able to touch and examine clothes and in some cases try them on and buy them.

Reality and alternatives

The Temporary Fashion Museum will also explore the occasionally shocking reality of the fashion system. The negative social and ecological impact of clothing production is the starting point for an examination of the usually unseen darker side of fashion. Fashion designers Alexander van Slobbe and Francisco van Benthum respond to this theme with their project HACKED, in which they use the existing production chain of the fast-fashion industry to create new opportunities for designers and consumers alike. Under the name Van Slobbe Van Benthum they set to work on the remnants and overproduction of this sector. They will present the findings of their research in an extensive display with critical commentary.

Memory

The notion of time and history as fluid will play a central role in the Temporary Fashion Museum. It will present a purely speculative history of 65 years of Dutch fashion, curated by Guus Beumer and fashion journalist Georgette Koning. From how our collective love of the bicycle has influenced the silhouette of womenswear to how the Provo movement introduced white into the fashion palette. Marjo Kranenborg presents a hall of fame of timeless fashion icons as red lipstick, the white shirt and the trench coat. Surprising archives give an insight into fashion’s malleable memory. Ranging from the highly personal in the form of the haute couture outfits of Swiss collector Eva Maria Hatschek, to the collective in the form of the ultimate vintage store with unrivalled pieces from (Dutch) fashion history assembled by Ferry van der Nat.

Frans Molenaar

Queen Juliana

Source: press release

Lila Nova represents Greece @ Bulgarian Fashion Awards 2015

Athens Xclusive Designers Week ensures the Greek representation in Bulgarian Fashion Awards 2015! Fashion designer Lila Nova represents Greece among 27 nominees from all over Europe.




The international fashion week of Athens, Athens Xclusive Designers Week (AXDW), loyal to its mission to support, enhance and export Greek fashion, constantly expands its partnerships' network with international institutions in the fashion sector and promotes Greek designers abroad, even in this difficult juncture for Greece.

As part of AXDW's cooperation with leading fashion institution globally, and specifically the European Fashion Council, the Greek Fashion Week assured the nomination of the Greek fashion designer, Lila Nova in the 11th Bulgarian Fashion Awards 2015 among 27 nominees for Europe.

The Bulgarian Fashion Awards, which take place under the supervision of the National Fashion Chamber of Bulgaria, have institutionalised an annual "Fashion Week" Prize Fund since 2011, dedicated to the 11 finalists from all over the world, and its distribution is based on an open vote to the public, while the names of the 11 finalists are included in the Exclusive Designers List for fashion styling in Bulgarian Music Awards.

For 2015, the prize corresponds to € 110,000 and ensures a long-term funding program of the winners' shows in the Bulgarian Fashion Week and international co-operations between European Fashion Weeks, in which there are 24 countries, and among them, Greece with Athens Xclusive Designers Week.

Furthermore, especially in 2017, the international winner of the Bulgarian Fashion Awards 2015 will be positioned with a very innovative way in the International Fashion Museum, in Plovdiv, where robots representing the winner and a model of its collection, it will sign autographs for the public.

It is noteworthy that this year's Awards are named EIRENE by the name of the Greek goddess of Peace, Irini, while the Greek nominee, Lila Nova, is competing along with great names of international fashion such as Ann Demeulemeester, Agatha Ruiz De La Prada and the Acne Studios!

The vote for the 11 finalists began on 13rd July and the 11 finalists were just announced:

Among the 11 finalists are Ann Demeulemeester, Atelier Pantelis Panteli, EYMERIC FRANCOIS - MAISON DE MODE, Thomas Rath, Makány Márta, Gianni Molaro, NARCISS, Miguel Vieira, Liliana Turoiu Studio, AGATHA RUIZ DE LA PRADA and Acne Studios.

Last day @ MBFWA: Alexandra Frida, ARREY, Franzel, María Clè Leal & Oilily

The last day of Mercedes-Benz FashionWeek Amsterdam was characterised by a versatility of shows, including the 'Catwalk Exchange' show by Spanish fashion designer María Clè Leal.

The collection by ALEXANDRA FRIDA hosted by the Vodafone Fashion LAB PRO, reflected her passion and love for adventure in comfortable, sensual and feminine designs.

Alexandra Frida

The show by ARREY in the Gashouder expressed exclusivity, confidence and liberation. The outstanding craftsmanship and the refined technical usage of fabrics blew the audience away.

ARREY

Franzel Amsterdam gave a new meaning to menswear demonstrating Eric Franzel's vision of the modern man.

Franzel Amsterdam

Playful shapes and silhouettes prevailed on the catwalk during the Mercedes-Benz FashionWeek presents María Clè Leal Catwalk Exchange Show. The Spanish designer came all the way from Spain to present her work that amazed the audience, among them Sunnery James and Doutzen Kroes.
See my review on the show here.

María Clè Leal

Fun and colour filled Oilily's catwalk show, displaying an uplifting collection complementing the summer nights by creating an exciting synergy. See my review here.

Oilily

Mercedes-Benz FashionWeek Amsterdam closed spectacularly by the Elite Model Look presents Future Generation, where three upcoming designers presented their collections on the catwalk.

Future Generation Montes

Source: press release FashionWeek Nederland

Oilily Spring-Summer 2016 Collection @ MBFWA

Dutch fashion house Oilily presented during the 23rd Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Amsterdam its spring-summer 2016 collection to the press and fashion crowd.

Oilily is known for its colour combinations and cheery prints so this show was a joyful presentation on this rainy afternoon in Amsterdam.

The salon was decorated with white flowers and coloured by led lighting creating a pleasant atmosphere.

The handbags and necklaces were a joy for the eye. Especially the flower necklace with glass and bright colours.

The sandals with socks are still a fashion controversial combination and to be honest not my favourite 'trend' but Oilily didn't hesitate to show it. It was part of the concept 'Little girls grow up' and at the finale ladies participated who grow up with Oilily in their childhood: Friends of the brand.

Anne Fay Kops, lead singer of the tropical base act Cookachoo brought to us the longing for a hot summer.

At the end of the show the guests were treated with a glas of Prosecco .

About Oilily

Oilily has been a hallmark of creativity in the cupboard of children and women wear since 1963.
In the early years the Dutch fashion house spent a long time fighting the establishment.
Back then Oilily's collections were simply too colorful and imaginative for the general public. Yet, despite the initial hesitancy, over the last 50 years Oilily has grown into a distinctive lifestyle brand with many fans worldwide. Virtuoso use of color, spectacular combinations of materials, unique blend of cultural influences, humorous details and high quality has brought Oilily a multitude of fans around the world.