By Alexis Guerra 

WesFeld Winning Design #1

Although it’s always fascinating to see the elite of the fashion field achieve and execute greatness, it is always important to recognize that every great designer had their start; that pivotal moment where they were defined to the rest of society as possible future style icons in the world. This is where design and fads are born – through the creativity and ideals brought to us by bright young minds that are sitting at the precipice of the style evolution, just waiting to get in and change things up. 

I got to see some of these brilliant minds at work when a good friend invited me to the Gen Art New Garde Fashion Showon February 10th, marking the very start of Fashion Week. The event was hosted by Molly Simms and presented by the company Plastics Make it Possible. 

Plastics also sponsored the “Plastics Make It Perfect National Design Competition”, where there were over 160 design submissions to create looks made only from plastic recycled or raw materials such as nylon and spandex. 

More than 15,000 people voted on their favorite looks and the winners received a grant of $10,000 to expand on their line. 

Four up-and-coming collections were displayed throughout the night at Chelsea’s Drive In Studios, a two-story loft-like layout fully equipped with open bars on each floor bearing specialty cocktails created exclusively for the evening and even boasting a “muddle your own Patron Mojito” section. 

The looks shown that night came from the four following lines: 

Gar-De 

Sophomore 

Nomia 

WesFeld Winning Design #2

Wes Feld 

(Incidentally this design duo comprised of Daniel Feld and Wesley Nault were participants on Season 5 of the popular Bravo/ Lifetime show ‘Project Runway’)

What made this night fascinating and unique was that unlike the typical mainstream fashion runway shows, we, as the public are generally used to guests who are allowed to wander and peruse the styles at their own leisure, as models theatrically pose in avant-garde type gallery settings more akin to what one would expect at a Museum. It was a welcomed change and a breath of fresh air, not to mention an aesthetically pleasing visual experience overall. 

Plus there were plenty of “fashion-ites” to rub elbows with, including Whitney Port from MTV’s ‘The City’, controversial reality television couple, Alex and Simon Van Kempen of the ‘Real Housewives of New York City’ and ‘Project Runway’ Season 5 runner-up, Kenley Collins, just to name a few. 

The featured looks were a fun blend and balance of both feminine and masculine features. Nomiawas a collection that offered up cool, classic pieces with an edgy twist in a variety of solid blacks and neutral silhouette-skimming looks. Broad paneling and odd zipper detailing were truly a hot commodity as well as the asymmetrical cut of the mini dresses shown. There was even an armored shoulder pad dress (a trend that music celebs Fergie and Rihanna have already tackled.) to add to the quirky line. 

Gar-De was a perfect sea of lovely layered plush grays, chunky knits, soft denim blues and salt and pepper-colored sweaters, shawls and fur vests. It had an urban industrial vibe that I instantly fell in love with. 

Sophomore had more of an all-American feel to it with its youthful crisp bright whites, bold pops of color and flattering feminine necklines. Bordering slightly more on the ‘Gossip Girl’ collegiate look that’s become so popular of late, this line was fun and hip but with a touch of the Upper East Side. 

The real show-stopping duo was that of WesFeld, whose designs were a flawless combination of whimsical subdued color palettes and textured flouncy frills. The models looked positively lavish in the subtle gray and rose-colored hues as they haphazardly struck poses against ladders and other inanimate objects. There was also another play on edginess as the collection debuted a playful, posy-colored onesie complete with treacherous shoulder spikes, which made for a tongue in cheek display of femininity. 

In the end, it was WesFeld who tookhome the prize for the ‘Plastics Make It Perfect National Design Competition’ with their winning designs and breath-taking configuration of two of their striking gowns; one modeled slightly after a conch shell and the other created to resemble the exo-skeleton of a seahorse. Even more fascinating was that both these looks were constructed from such materials as woven interfacing plastic boning, poly-organza, poly-satin piping and even “peek-a-boo” mesh ruffles. It was romanticized elegance at its finest and all completely comprised of plastic! If this is the look and future of fashion then WesFeld is doing something very right! 

All in all, the night was a fabulous introduction to a slew of talented new designers and eye-opening looks. My only qualm with the entire experience was the unfortunate blizzard that occurred throughout the duration of the evening, however it sure didn’t stop the over 1,000 people who came out in droves to show their support for the event (with many of them dressed to the nines and looking ever-so-chic in doing so!). Let the record show that nothing…nothing, can come between New Yorkers and fashion week. 

To see more of the looks shown that night click here: 

Looks 

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