18_can102607lettersi.. - California Apparel News

Bebe
Bebe kept it low-key when producing a fashion event Oct. 17 at the Social Hollywood
nightclub in Hollywood. The party was held to celebrate the Brisbane, Calif.–
based retailer’s Holiday 2007 collection, and it was a change from the company’s
last two splashy runway shows, held at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox
Studios in Culver City, Calif., where the exclusive Collection Bebe line, designed by
David Cardona, was shown. (Cardona recently left Bebe to join premium-denim and
lifestyle fashion house Rock & Republic.)
But for Bebe, low-key is still glamorous and sexy. At the Oct. 17 show, the 45 looks
featured evening and special-occasion dresses as well as separates for the retailer’s
upcoming “Dressed to Thrill” Holiday collection, which will bow in November. Collection
Bebe will continue to be distributed to select Bebe stores in the next month.
Bebe’s fashion show also represented a dream come true for 16-year-old Kate-
Lynne Pegg. She is living with immunity-deficiency syndrome, and it was her wish to
model in a fashion show. Bebe worked with the Make-a-Wish Foundation to realize
Pegg’s desire. Make-a-Wish raises funds to grant wishes to children whose lives are
endangered by terminal illness. The Bebe fashion show also served as a fund-raiser,
raising $16,000 for the nonprofit.—A.A.
Jordi Scott
New York–based designer Jordi Scott lit up the Vanguard
in Hollywood, Calif., on Oct. 15 with a fashion show
featuring her colorful neon Spring/Summer 2008 collection,
titled “Infamous Academy.” More than 500 buyers,
stylists and guests attended the line’s first Los Angeles
fashion show.
Since the line’s launch more than one year ago, music
has been an inspiration for designers Scott and Starr
Rinaldi. This time, the genres of new-wave and rave music
dominated. Club and streetwear looks provided fireworks
of color, from electric-colored spray paint on a pair of
men’s white jeans to a fluorescent yellow tube dress with
an airbrushed graffiti-style print. A childlike dress featuring
a multicolor heart print illustrated the schoolgirl theme but
showed a mischievous side in its short length, styled with
fishnet stockings.—R.C.
VOLKER CORELL
Juan Carlos Obando
Always a purveyor of quality and originality, Juan Carlos Obando surprised yet again for the showing of his
Spring 2008 collection. The Colombian-born designer presented his collection with an intimate luncheon on Oct.
16 at Craft restaurant in Los Angeles’ Century City district. Mannequins displayed the elegant 13-piece collection,
which was handmade by Obando. “For the first time I feel really accomplished,” he said. “I did everything by
myself—from draping to sewing and steaming,” he explained. Obando, an art director and fashion designer, tells
a story with each collection. For this collection he created a screenplay titled “La Fura” to illustrate the mythological
story of Persephone’s abduction into the underworld. “The whole idea is that you are the studio and I am the
producer and I am selling you a movie,” explained Obando. His collection is Persephone’s wardrobe, and each
ensemble portrays a different scene in the movie. The fabrics represent different textures and colors in the story
such as the sun, water and tree roots, which translated as knots decorating the necklines of dresses and shoulders
of jackets. Obando used his signature hanger dress as a model for each design and experimented with
different fabrics and colors. He expanded from silk and waxed cotton into lace, sequins and lamé. A black gown
was stunning in a cashmere lace with sequin and lace sleeves. A gold lamé hanger dress had vertical pleats
and a subtle sheen, and a black chiffon gown had a hidden belt and elegant draped back. Chic, yet wearable,
a black, waxed cotton coat had a wide collar that was elegant in its simplicity. Obando’s designs have won him
nominations for the Fashion Innovator Award for the past two seasons at the Los Angeles Fashion Awards. Still,
the designer remained modest. “I wanted to simply have lunch and talk,” he said.—N.J.S.
JOHN ECKMIER
VOLKER CORELL
Dina Bar-El
Sultry eveningwear was first and foremost on the runway for Dina Bar-El’s Spring ’08 show,
held Oct. 16 at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios in Culver City, Calif.
Known for her sexy silhouettes, Bar-El injected clean, modern looks into her dresses,
which evoked designs from the 1950s and the 1980s. Dresses were structured out of silky
fabrics and eye-popping colors, such as vivid oranges, husky blues, hot pinks, bright purples
and emerald greens.
Bar-El’s theme this season was “Trés Jolie” (French for “very pretty”), taken from her
recent walk down the runway at Paris Fashion Week right before Los Angeles’ fashion
extravaganza.
“I was so inspired by all the bouquets of flowers in every corner of the Champs Elysées,”
said the German-born Bar-El, who came to the United States when she was 18. “It reminded
me of all the colors I already had in the collection. So we decided to go with that theme.”
Bar-El employed satin charmeuse and silk chiffon for most of her creations, which tumbled
to the floor or grazed the knee.
Strapless gowns dominated the show, but there were also halter looks, ruched bra bodices,
off-the-shoulder numbers and deep V-necks. Goddess-like dresses were abundant, as well.
The show ended with a slinky oyster charmeuse and chiffon wedding gown that could
have doubled as an evening gown for a night out at a New York nightclub or a Hollywood
movie premiere.—D.B.
OCTOBER 26–NOVEMBER 1, 2007 CALIFORNIA APPAREL NEWS 21