Phoenix Fashion Week 2015 at Talking Stick Resort kicked off on Thursday night with the lifestyle fashion category. We saw everything from swimwear to resort wear to street wear, and overall, I was quite impressed with the quality and taste level of the fashion shown. I have to admit, some designers surprised me with their offerings, and I gravitated towards the newer designers over the more established brands. Phoenix, we have new faces of local fashion. And you better pay attention to them.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Emerging Desginers
Months of blood, sweat, and tears (especially tears) go into getting the emerging designers ready for Phoenix Fashion Week. Thursday night, the lifestyle designers delivered the culmination of their work, and it didn’t disappoint. For the emerging designer portion, I can honestly say it was the best set of lifestyle designers I have seen thus far. It seems as though these designers really took to heart the feedback they were delivered during Shop Garment District to produce a set of fashion shows that entertained and engaged the audience. Style blogger Angela Christensen of Never Nola put it best when she turned to me and said, “Well, it looks like I have some shopping to do!
Charmosa Swimwear
Charmosa Swimwear began the shows with her new Fireball collection (complete with a fire breather, so what more can a girl really ask for?) I absolutely LOVED her fringe swimsuit cover ups (who else needs one of these in their summer wardrobe?!), and high-waisted two piece designs. I was also quite impressed to see her expansion into men’s suits as well. It seems Neide Hall has found her stride and identity as a designer and I can’t wait to see what’s next for her.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Photos courtesy of Almanza Photography
Haute Body
When Haute Body took the stage, I was expecting more workout basics like we saw originally from her. However, I was impressed to see that she expanded into more fashion oriented pieces to serve the clientele that insists on wearing workout clothes outside of the gym. At least these ladies will look fantastic in Haute Body’s mesh coverup shirts and one piece jumpsuits. There were also a few metallic pieces in the collection for the workout enthusiast who also loves to rave on the weekend…. I’m sure there’s a market there somewhere.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Although I will never be a workout clothes as everyday outfits fan, I will give credit where credit is due. Haute Body has created a line of stylish, well fitting, and extremely functional workout clothes. Gym rats, shop now before this designer gets so big you’re paying a Lulu Lemon price tag.
Photos courtesy of Almanza Photography
Lily V Designs
Lily V Designs actually blew me away. Where I expected too much color and pattern, there was good styling and a clear identity of her customer. Local fashion expert Dustin Hoyman said he could see these clothes hanging in Urban Outfitters and styled exactly as they were on the runway. The ponchos and Aztec pattern were perfectly on trend, and the crowd was eating up these pieces. This designer has come so far since the beginning of Phoenix Fashion Week, and I wish her nothing but the best as she moves forward in her career.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Photos courtesy of Almanza Photography
Medium Apparel
Medium Apparel also delivered a great show, complete with techno dancers all clad in Medium Apparel. I absolutely love the brand’s new expansion into cut and sew. Some of my personal highlights from the show were their striped shirts, floral accent sleeves, and amazing bomber jackets. Each of these looks was modern, cutting edge, and extremely wearable for many men. Medium Apparel is evolving into a streetwear brand that has legs to grow into a national phenomenon when they find the right marketing and PR to push it forward.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Photos courtesy of Almanza Photography
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Lifestyle Designer of the Year Winner: Charmosa Swimwear
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
I couldn’t be more thrilled that the Designer of the Year competition is now categorized so that designers are competing against others in similar categories. Now, instead of gowns competing against streetwear, we have some common ground to judge the true merit of the designs and business development. Major props to Phoenix Fashion Week for taking this step in developing their Emerging Designer Program.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Established Designers
As good as the emerging designer shows were, the highlight of the night was without a doubt the resort show from FIDM student, Marly Kluge. Although I was significantly less impressed with the preppy looks from Devereux and golf fashion from Elevée, the established designer portion redeemed its title with Kluge’s incredible show.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
This show was everything you would expect from a designer – well made, consistent, well styled, and interesting. I could see these pieces all selling extremely well in stores and resorts. She chose an interesting color palette, and told a story through her show. Marly Kluge showed Phoenix what it actually means to be a fashion designer. Bravo darling.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
My personal favorite pieces included her fantastic swimsuit, her kimono wrap dress, and her pink moto style jacket. I can feel my wallet shrinking already. Definitely keep tabs on The Paradise Place designer by following her on Instagram @paradise.place.
Photos courtesy of Almanza Photography
The FIDM Debut designers have been my favorite runway shows the past two years (see last year’s collection here). This school clearly educates their students on everything from garment construction to color choice and consistency to show production. I hope we continue to see more from FIDM in the future at Phoenix Fashion Week.
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Overall, I was pretty impressed with the first night of Phoenix Fashion Week 2015. I am looking forward to two more nights of exciting fashion. Be sure to join us live by following Couture in the Suburbs on Snapchat and Periscope – @SuburbsCouture.
P.S. Still need tickets to Friday and Saturday night’s shows? Shop here now.
Thank you to our incredible sponsors, Crush Boutique and The Sparkle Bar for helping the Couture in the Suburbs team look our very best this week!
Photo courtesy of Almanza Photography
Please credit both Almanza Photography and Couture in the Suburbs when sharing photos from this post.
