Designer: Julia Clancey Julia Clancey's parade of dresses, circumnavigated around every conceivable dress length, and enthusiastically referenced necklines that either paid homage to a woman's cleavage — through deep-v shapes/plunging cowl necks — or disposed of them completely to, instead, show off the sensuous contours of shoulders.
Each one beautifully crafted to the extent where, they exhibited the right amount of balance between flesh and design, Clancey proved, with each successive dress presented, that she had perfected the art of making glamorous evening dresses — for women with taste.
Flirty, sexy and down-right provocative, Clancey's "Diamonds and Pearls' collection encapsulated the shades and sparkle of the gems used for inspiration.
Spot on when it came to embellishment, Clancey's S/S '08 extravaganza, dazzled in all the right places.
Prominent Colours: Grey, White, Cream, Beige, Champagne, Pale Pink
Designer: Reem Reem's S/S '08 collection seemed to convey the confusion that is ever present in today's society. Technology advancements and evolution, has failed to deliver a mankind more tolerate and understanding of differences. Significant events in history are often referred to but key lessons ignored. Uniformity, patterns and logic are lost. It was as though the collection was a amalgamation of all things but, had no loyalty to one.
The result, references to the high-neck, lace blouses and bustles of the Victorian age; celebrated for the start of the industrial age but detested for its work houses and the exploitation of the poor. The hardships replayed through the diaphanous and distressed silhouettes layered thick or thin, had a survival element that would accommodate the savagery of today's streets. Teamed with fur white jackets that harked back to man's prehistoric years, the look was dragged into the dark edginess of today, through the ethereal soft and sexy movements of the layers beneath.
Encased with fleeting glimpses of a romantic sepia-toned theme, Reem's collection caressed through man's personal history, shouted some aspects of it yet retaining most of its mystery.
Designer: Steve J & yoni P Steve J & Yoni P took the theme of boyfriend dressing one step further by showcasing a collection that boasted creations for both men and women. A clever approach considering the recent taste in androgyny themed clothes and beauty products, that have blurred the distinctions between male and female sensibilities.
The female aspects of the collection (on which we will concentrate) took on a majorette quality of American High School bands, with all the kicks in skirt hems and the intricate frills in bodices, that showed off their adept talent at manipulating fabrics to produce sculptural and three-dimensional forms.
Their experimental approach to summer, juxtaposed body-skimming pieces with exaggerated shapes — e.g. on-view shoulder pads, that almost looked like the type worn by U.S. footballers — created layered dresses that were both voluminous and fitting yet never reaching the lowly lengths of the knees.
"Our ideas for this collection developed organically throughout the design process with each piece taking its own journey. When draping fabric, we find beautiful twists and new and unusual folds that turn our creations into more of an illusion than we imagined," explained the design duo.
Prominent Colours: White, Yellow, Red, Taupe, Blue, Navy Blue, Black, Brown
