Tagged: lace
Banana Favorites: Couture Shows Spring 2015
Laces, sheers and shades of pink, powder blue and yellow dominated the Couture shows this year. Still with two months of winter ahead, I have Spring all over my head. The couture shows are always exciting to watch. These were Banana’s favorites:
CHANEL
Flowers for Spring, groundbreaking? YES. At least the 300 that decorated Chanel’s Couture show this year. In terms of decoration and ambiance, hands down this one won. Even though I have mixed feelings about the dropped waist, they worked in this collection when combined with ultra embellished (flower ones that is) pieces. Chanel hasn’t been in this list for a couple of seasons now. I was so blown away by everything in this collection, I’d say Karl made quite a comeback.
DIOR
I had to watch this collection two times in order to like it. At first the 70s psychedelic print (not shown in these pictures) threw me off but as I re watched it I noticed the other looks were so beautiful, they made up for that hideous print. The very ladylike, DIOR ish dresses with cutouts paired with patent boots and the last ones with the color stripe skirts were my favorite looks.
GIAMBATTISTA VALLI
WOW. This was my #1 collection this season. Valli delivers nothing but protuberant elegance in such a magical way. His love for tulle and florals won my heart. This collection is nothing but perfection… no need to say more.
ELIE SAAB
Classic Ellie Saab. Elegant laces and sheers. Beautiful gowns. We’ll be seeing this ones a lot on the red carpets this year.
VALENTINO
Inspired by Shakespeare and other romantic novels, the creative directors were feeling enchanted when making this collection. Quotes from Dante’s Inferno were printed on some dresses which was really cool. The last dress with the clouds embellishments is truly a dream come true.
ZUHAIR MURAD
This collection did for me what Ellie Saab’s. It’s not out of this world. Nothing ground breaking but yet so beautiful that makes it impossible not to like it.
Bananas’ Favorites: Spring 2014 Couture Shows
Last week designers presented their Spring 2014 Couture collections and we were loving it! Personally I prefer Spring collections and even better COUTURE SPRING collections. These were my favorites:
GIAMBATTISTA VALLI
On my top 3, definitely. I always like how he plays with structure and feminine silhouettes. The mix of pastels and bright colors was so cool and even though I’m tired of the color mint, that mint long sleeve dress is to die for!
ELIE SAAB
If I was a celebrity the Fashion Police team would probably say that they’re sick of me wearing Elie Saab on red carpets. But those gowns!!!! Lovely, just lovely.
ZUHAIR MURAD
Sexy necklines mixed with delicate fabrics. This collection was like being a floral, lace, golden dream.
CHANEL
Sending all models wearing delicate pieces with sneakers was a risk that in my opinion paid off. Finally something different on the runway. That last look on Cara Delevingne was so cool!
CHRISTIAN DIOR
This collection reminded me of Alice in Wonderland (Tim Burton’s) and anything that reminds me of Alice is a win for me. Burton’s Alice btw because one of my favorite things from that movie was Alice’s wardrobe. It was playful but sophisticated. Two of my favorite looks were the black jacket with the green shoes and the white graphic crop top with the skater skirt.
VALENTINO
Valentino needs no explanation of why it’s on my favorites list, does he? When I saw that first dress I thought I died and went to fashion heaven. I mean, music + tulle on a dress? IN LOVE! Of course that dress was my favorite from ALL! The collection reminded me of Adam and Eve’s garden. Animal prints and shapes were very present in it. Also, lots of tulle. Oh, Valentino.
What were your favorite collections? Did they made the Bananas’ list?
Luis Antonio S/S 2014 “Rockoco”
I’ve had the pleasure of working with Luis Antonio for the past few months, so I sort of had an idea of what the show was gonna bring and I kept telling my friends that it was gonna be beautiful and very creative. It did NOT disappoint!
It was incredibly fun and exciting being involved in the process to create a collection with Luis Antonio!
It sounds like I might be biased, but to me this was one of the best shows I’ve seen this season. The collection was titled “ROCKOCO” and it was inspired by one of the most fabulous, coolest and extravagant queens in history, Marie Antoinette but in modern times. Someone edgier, younger but still romantic and regal. The collection had about 60 looks including gowns, separates, a special tshirt line (designed in collaboration between Luis Antonio and Noxiuz) and menswear. The show was a fundraiser for the Fundación Alas a La Mujer and featured shoes by Novus and accessories that were provided by Bella Moda Boutique and I gotta say: I WAS IN LOVE WITH THE CROWNS!
The use of laces, silks and acrylic paint to give designs a modern yet romantic edge blew me away. I really enjoyed the pieces in which he used acrylic paint and made Rorschach-style prints on shirts and dresses. Another really cool thing was creating a beautiful, delicate, ornate piece and then splattering it with neon paint. It was incredibly fun and the result was gorgeous. I also liked was how the rundown for the collection sorta mimicked Marie Antoinette’s life.
My favorite looks where:
– The lace collage bralette modeled by Yalimar
– The short neon brocade dress modeled by Alejandra
– The short paisley dress with lace fringe modeled by Adrianna
– The fuchsia brocade bralette and pencil skirt
– The fuchsia long sleeve cocktail dress
– I LOVED ALL THE TULLE PIECES (That was my favorite group from the show)
– The pearl necklace tee with the chantilly lace skirt modeled by Melanie
– The safety pins sleeve shirt modeled by Xavier
– The Rorschach style shirt B&W shirt modeled by Alberto Which I know own! Thanks Luis ❤
– And, OF COURSE, the final gown modeled by Ann La Place. It is SO STUNNING and has been featured in countless magazines already.
Runway images provided by Luis Antonio and shot by José Perez Mesa.
PRHFW: David Antonio
The first show we attended the second day of PRHFW was David Antonio.
A couple dancing tango (a bit cheesy and expected in my opinion) opened the show. I personally love spring/summer fashion better than fall/winter because of the fabrics and specially the colors so the fact that it was an all black collection already threw me off but the entire collection was kind of, BORING!
Some of the things I liked were:
- The mix of fringe and lace in the second look and the lace dress that came after.
- The polkadot retro looking sheer dress with the round glasses (this was my favorite).Very chic.
- Not a big fan of turtle necks but the long sleeve loose turtle men top looks cool (or maybe it’s the model,ha!)
- The feather skirt with the sheer blouse. Styled differently would have looked even better.
What I didn’t like:
- The head turbans
- The sheer blouse that came after my retro favorite outfit had a weird looking fit.
- The oversized tunics over pants (last week I read Buzzfeed’s “20 early 2000s forgotten trends” and these reminded me of one of them)
- The cowl neck men top (actually this one reminds me of the 2000s trends too)
Overall this collection look way too contemporary for my taste and was kind of boring and expected just like the tango dance. Some of the pieces are pretty by themselves but the styling and head turbans made them look dull.
ALL IMAGES BY ARNALDO JAVIER J. PLEASE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, LET ME KNOW!
San Juan Moda: Sonia Santiago
We’re almost done with our coverage of San Juan Moda!
It was a very hectic week and we got to see some great shows, like SONIA SANTIAGO’S S/S 2014 presentation.
I have to say that I think this was the best show we saw that week. BY FAR!
Santiago’s designs have a very feminine and romantic quality to them and make the woman wearing them look very sophisticated. Miss Universe Puerto Rico 2013, Monic Perez, seems to love her designs as we’ve seen her recently wearing a few looks from the collection.
Everything about this collection looked so delicate and pretty. Her work with laces and beading was gorgeous, especially in the gowns near the end of the show. They’re perfect for galas or red carpets.
I loved the gown with the black striped top. The concept was really cool and it looked amazing. Both blue gowns with the lace on top were beautiful, especially the second one that gave the illusion of the lace being freestanding. The crowd loved that one, I thought the model looked a little too wide in the shoulders. The greyish gowns were spectacular! I loved how the lace created a stunning bodice in the first one and I though the beaded/pearled top from the second one was one of the best tops in the show.
The one thing I disliked were the hats. I get the feeling that she was going for but it was just too much. It did work for some, but when the millinery was smaller. I think she should’ve let the garments speak for themselves.
What do you think? Which piece was your favorite?
ALL IMAGES BY ARNALDO JAVIER J. PLEASE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, LET ME KNOW!
San Juan Moda: Marcos Carrazana
Another day, another show. This time I got to see MARCOS CARRAZANA’S “MAGNOLIAS” S/S2014 which was quite interesting.
Like OF ATELIER’s presentation, it opened the show with the newly crowned Miss Universe PR 2014, Gabriela Berrios and closed with current Miss Universe PR 2013, Monic Perez. Now, let’s talk about the fashion itself.
Carrazana’s designs completely wowed you one moment and would leave you scratching your head the next. The best pieces from the show? The beautiful color blocked skirts. They made a statement! The tops paired with them worked great and the colors were stunning. It was a great choice to open the show with one of them.
Kudos to Marcos for using the crop tops! Midriffs are very in now and he used the trend to his advantage. He also played with some very interesting prints, although not as successfully. Some looked like pajamas or old lady mumus 
The only print that really worked was the tropical green one. I especially liked the look with the matching top and bottom modeled by Melanie Rivera. The other that I liked was the white with lots of colors and birds, but to me that only worked in the long dress with cap sleeves modeled by Desiree Abrahams . I LOVE THAT DRESS!
You know what I HATED?! The flower things attached to some of the pieces. They looked like loofahs! It belongs in the bathroom for a reason!
Another I didn’t get? Those lace bibs on the printed dresses. They looked crazy, matronly and UGLY!!
I kinda liked the gold brocade fabric pieces, they looked very pretty but I had 2 problems with them.
1) They looked totally out of place with the rest of the collection
2) They sorta reminded me of some pieces Luis Antonio did for his “Addicted to love” S/S 2013 collection.
The lace pieces were cute, nothing completely innovating or different enough to be stunning. I did like the last red lace gown with the beaded details. That looked gorgeous. I also liked the lace crop top with the pants. Really nice guipure fabric!
As for the strapless fuschia gown modeled by Gretchen Capó, I thought was pretty and sexy, but there is something about the fit in the boobs that looks weird to me.
The white lace top with the gold siren skirt looked so gorgeous and chic. It was one of my favorites. As for the closing gown, modeled by Monic, It was pretty, but I was left waiting for the wow factor.
What do you think? Do you think I’m overreacting about the loofahs or the prints? Sound off in the comments!
ALL IMAGES BY ARNALDO JAVIER J. PLEASE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, LET ME KNOW!
San Juan Moda: OF Atelier
Last week the first edition of San Juan Moda was held at the El San Juan Hotel & Casino.
San Juan Moda was a new attempt at a joint fashion week amongst some of Puerto Rico’s more established and new designers starting on Sunday and running through the whole week. It showcased high fashion, ready to wear and accessories designers. It also scouted models from the top agencies in the country to walk the shows.
The first show I assisted was the OF Atelier presentation on Tuesday.
Let’s talk about OF ATELIER’S “ENCHANTED RENDEZVOUS” collection. The show had a very interesting styling, some Frida Khalo-esque flower crowns, which at times didn’t really go with the pieces. As the show went on, both Monic Perez (the current Miss Universe PR) and Gabriela Berrios (the newly crowned Miss Universe PR 2014) featured prominently. The latter opening the show and the former closing it.
As for the garments, some of them were beautiful with intricate detailing like the black sheer gown with beading and some, to me, fell flat, like the blue dresses.
Some of my favorites were:
- The striped gown with the tulle overlay. I kinda hated the cut on the bodice!
- The marigold short pantsuit. The fit on the chest cutout could have been better
- The white sheer lace top with the blush colored skirt One of the best
- The pastel romantic floral number with the draped skirt
- The pumpkin colored cocktail dress. It was giving me a very 40’s vibe
- I kinda really like the light gown with the blue lace tiers now that I’m looking at it in pics. What do you think?
- The Orange ball gown worn by Ann La Place Loved the statement! Hated the fit on the bodice.
- The beaded top with the crazy tulle skirt in white LOVED IT!
- The closing garment I wish they hadn’t sent it down the runway with the crazy tulle bolero! Wanted to appreciate the details!
Now, things I didn’t particularly like:
- The ruffled tulle bolero/jacket thingies. The black was the least bad of them all, HATED the colored ones.
- The lace top and bottom set with the striped fabric underneath and the side tail hanging.
- The yellow lace pieces with the printed silk pieces on top Crazy mismatch!
- The dark floral dresses with the tulle. Especially, the one with the tulle coming out of the boobs! OMG!
- The mint colored dress. It looked SO out of place!
- DID I ALREADY SAY THOSE CRAZY TULLE BOLERO/JACKET THINGIES?! They were cuckoo!!
Overall, I really enjoyed this presentation and thought it was one of the best ones during the week. Do you agree? Disagree? Do you think I’m as crazy as the tulle on the show? Sound off in the comments!
ALL IMAGES BY ARNALDO JAVIER J. (EXCEPT THE REALLY GREAT ONE AT THE END BY KARINA MARGARY!) PLEASE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, LET ME KNOW!
Ecliptica S/S 2014 “Paradis”
Last Friday night we had so much fun at Ecliptica’s presentation for their Spring/Summer 2014 collection titled “Paradis” at the Museo de Arte de Puerto Rico. This was one of the events of the fashion season in PR!
Although the night started off a little rocky with a sudden storm that made getting into the museum a bit difficult, it continued to be an overall success. The cocktail was hosted by Bailey’s and had these delicious frozen drinks. One too many and you’d end up a little TOO crazy, if you know what I mean.
The show featured printed motifs with little birds and tropical foliage , lots of sequins and, of course, one of the designing duo’s specialties, lace. It started with these blue pieces that were nice, but not my favorite, but when it got to the printed and lace pieces, I was stunned.
A definitive crowd pleaser was the long sleeve mini sequined dress. This was what their show was about, a mix of cool patterns with the girly appeal of sequins and the sex appeal of a mini dress. Everyone loved it. I preferred the gown version of it.
I really liked the loose, boxy shirts and sequined skirts. They gave the show a modern, young, edgy feel to it. But I’ve gotta say that Michelle and Norein excelled in the bridal segment of their collection. The beading, lacework and construction in these gowns looked gorgeous. I think my favorite was the one with the tulle layers. If I was a girl, I’d love to get married in one of these!
I liked the tropical print a lot, but it reminded me a little bit of Givenchy’s Bird of paradise print. Still the girls used it in different ways so it was not too reminiscent of it. The only thing I didn’t like that much was the sheer panels in the skirts that gave the illusion that the bottom layer of the skirt was floating by itself.
Overall, the Otero sisters gave a great show with gorgeous and exciting pieces. The show was accessorized with pieces by Alberto Torres and the look was achieved by a group of talented people including Javier Scalley in the styling, Lio Maldonado in hair and Makeup by German Mirabal.
The lightning for the runway was not the best so some of the pictures came out a bit “half lighted” (IDK if that term exists, but w.e. I just made it up!) but here they are so you can decide for yourself which are your faves.
ALL IMAGES BY ARNALDO JAVIER J. PLEASE, IF YOU WANT TO USE THEM, LET ME KNOW!
Mrs Carter Tour Outfits
This past Saturday I was lucky enough to watch Beyoncé live when her Mrs Carter World Tour made a stop in Puerto Rico.
Even though Alfon HATES her, I love her and I gotta say so does a lot of people and friends including my sister and some of my best friends with whom I saw the concert. We all know her music is awesome, her dance moves are sick and she’s a great singer but what stunned me the most, apart from the visuals, were her awesome costume changes.
Ranging from Emilio Pucci to Givenchy, Queen B gave us fashions to die for.
Here are some of the pieces she wore in PR.
Let’s start with my fave, the GIVENCHY outfit. An awesome cape that revealed a skintight bodysuit that could not fit her better was finished with some great booties and the accessory to kill all others, the hat with the ears. I WANT IT!
Another set, another skintight costume. This one was a lacy/brocade long sleeve gold number by RALPH & RUSSO. It reminds me of the decor in french palaces like Versailles.
One of my least favorites was the blue, Swarovski encrusted bodysuit she used 1+1. The one thing I loved about this VRETTOS VRETTAKOS creation was the way it sparkled when the lights hit it. SOOOO SPARKLY!!
Another of my favorites was this DAVID KOMA 2-piece outfit. The pattern for the top was inspired by brass musical instruments and it was paired with a patent leather half peplum skirt. This to me is one of the most wearable in real life and I feel like my sister would totally rock it.
One of her mist romantic and flowy outfit changes came courtesy of ALON LIVNE
At first I thought this fringed cocktail dress with the thigh high boots was by Balmain, but upon closer inspection, and some research, I found out it’s by EMILIO PUCCI. Same as the green leopard printed fringe dress that I loved.
And finally, she debuted this white ensemble in Puerto Rico so we can say we got something special! This was the outfit she chose to open the show and show us that she indeed had some hair to do her majestic hair flips, but does anyone know who the pieces are by?
Did you enjoy the concert?? What was your favorite look? Are you as bummed as I am that she didn’t perform “Grown Woman”? Sound off in the comments!
Making of Luis Antonio’s “Rockoco” S/S 2014 Promo
A few weeks ago I had the pleasure of working on the production for the promo shoot of my friend Luis Antonio’s S/S 2014 collection “Rockoco”.
The planning for the shoot started a some weeks before where we secured hair, make-up, location and talent.
For this shoot, Luis Antonio wanted to showcase looks from his upcoming collection just as a teaser. And what a teaser it is!
The day before the shoot, Luis Antonio asked me to help him paint the dress and shirt that the models would be wearing and I have to say it’s one of the most fun and creative things I’ve done in my professional live. It was SOOO MUCH FUN and it turned out STUNNING!
The morning of the shoot I picked up the gorgeous accessories provided by Luis Antonio’s collaborator for his runway show, Bellamoda Boutique and headed to his atelier where we got the looks and accessories packed up and headed to pick up the shoes at Galeria in Plaza Las Américas. Then we drove to the gorgeous landmark in VSJ, the Antiguo Casino de Puerto Rico, where the models, hair, makeup and photographer were getting ready.
Even though we had a few really insignificant setbacks – like we wanted big hair, but ended up with beautiful windswept locks– the shoot was a complete success and our models, Perla González and Kenneth Davila really gave us what we wanted. Of course, apart from their tbeautiful genes, they had the help of Emmanuel Agosto doing the makeup and Cristobal Berrios, from Cristobal Salón, doing the hair and being oulor photog for the day.
Here are some pictures from this awesome shoot and the final product. You can also see more pics in Luis Antonio’s Instagram and you HAVE to see this awesome video I uploaded to the Fashion Is Bananas’ Instagram
I’m dying to see what Luis Antonio’s “Rockoco” S/S 2014 will look like. I guess we’ll have to wait til November 5th!
Remember, remember the 5th of November. – (Alan Moore. V for Vendetta. 1982-89)
And PS -Try to see me in one of the pics! haha
FASHION IS BANANAS 