Nashville Fashion Week: Day 1

Nashville Fashion Week is now in full swing. No more anticipating- it is here and I’m loving it!

So, day 1. The event was held at The Pinnacle Building downtown, which I had never been to before. As it would be, getting there was a nightmare. I’m pretty sure Nashville had it in for me that night because it took me over an hour of sitting in stop start traffic before I finally arrived. Of course, by the time I made it there all the Pinnacle parking was filled, I didn’t have any cash (and got a scolding by a nearby parking attendant for not having my checkbook with me), and parked a few blocks away. After trekking to the location, I picked up my pass and took the swanky elevator to the 22^nd floor where I was greeted by tasty hors d’oeurves and an insanely beautiful view of Nashville from glass windows. Seriously, the location for the fashion show was perfect.

I grabbed a glass of communion size wine (oh, memories of Sunday services at the Catholic church..) and chatted with some local guests. Hypnotic beats filled the air as guests mingled with one another, complimenting each other on fabulous outfits. The seats were organized in several long rows with the Nashville skyline serving as the runway background. I ended up sitting next to the girls from Sleeveless and had some great conversations with Jessica Maros about store merchandising strategies and Sleeveless’ upcoming events. The show was supposed to start around 7:30, but ended up beginning around 8:15 or so.

(My camera is weak, so apologies for unoriginal photos for this post. However, preview photos can be seen here and I'm sure in the upcoming days about a million will be available.)

The first collection shown was Jamie and the Jones. Now, I saw these girls when they debuted their looks at their O’Moore graduation show and took home nearly all of the awards. It was great to see their creative pieces on the runway again. And of all the designers shown that night, Jamie and the Jones were hands down my favorite. Their collection was whimsical, precisely constructed, and most importantly, wearable! I could imagine myself wearing most of the pieces to work (I mean, hey, I’m a fashion teacher.. I can get away with a lot!!), out to lunch with my girlfriends, or on a casual date with my boyfriend. Loved these looks!

Jamie and the Jones

Next was the Akiko collection presented by Posh Boutique. As detailed in the NFW booklet, “A collection inspired by art, vintage prints and embroideries, Akiko Cook’s designs have become favorites with celebrities such as Christina Aguilera, Selena Gomez, Tori Spelling, Amanda Bynes and Ashley Tisdale.” Personally, this wasn’t my favorite collection. It wasn’t my really my style. However, there were a few dresses that would be good for work including the black and orange dress pictured below.

Akiko

The Loretta Jane collection presented by Hemline Nashville, again, not really my style. This collection “is a burgeoning ready-to-wear line emphasizing quality fabrics for a customer with both a playful spirit and sophisticated eye for fashion.” There was a hotttt LBD that I did fall in lust with, though.

Loretta Jane

Before I tell you about the next two collections, let me take a break. Have you ever been to a fashion show before? What is fashion show etiquette? Well, me and my friends sit quietly in our seats, admiring and judging the runway looks, possibly making side comments to each other. Maybe a little “Ohhhh… I love that dress!” or possibly a “Oh, no.. those pants are not cute.” Ok, whatever. But what I’m trying to say here is that you pay attention!! I’d say a good 15% of the guests there that night had absolutely zero interest in what was taking place- the models were just a backdrop for conversations about Nashville scandals, who was divorcing who, and even a little you-won’t-believe-what-she-said-to-me! It was weird. I’ve never been to a show like that. At one point I turned around from my seat and saw a good twenty people just standing around in the corner of the room, sipping wine and chatting it up. And speaking of chatting it up, man, some of those audience members were Chatty Cathy’s!! I guess there was a lot to discuss, I just found it interesting how loud everything was. Eh, it was worth a comment.

Ok, so the next collection was Sylvia Heisel, presented by Project Artisan. These clothes “embody both classic luxury and high-style global modernism.”  While some of these clothes didn’t mesh with my personal style, I appreciated them. There was a black powersuit I would love to wear one day when I’m conducting a meeting just to really emphasize my role as a fashion educator and I loved the charm of a white button up with a long black skirt. There was, however, one look I absolutely did not enjoy. There was a white shirt with jeans and a draped silver belt that seemed too dated to be considered fashionable. With that being said, I did like the silk fabrics utilized in the collection.

Sylvia Heisel

The last designer was Kevork Kiledjian, presented by Gus Mayer. I guess with an artist for a mother and a Lanvin couturier for a father, this designer was born into the industry. Oh, and I’m pretty sure after birth instead of being wrapped in a soft blue cotton blanket, they just laid him in a sea of leather. The entire collection was a homage to leather! And some of the black leather dresses made me wish I rode in a biker gang of fashionable ladies that no matter how wild and windy the road got, we’d always be fabulous with our siiiick digs, red lipstick, and spiked heels. So enough about my fantasy..  While I did enjoy the black leather (and lace) dresses, there were a few looks sporting purple leather, including one purple suit that looked like something Samantha Jones would have worn in the Sex and the City 2 flashback. I wasn’t really a fan of the purple. But the black dress… me-ow!

Kevork Kiledjian

Check out this great behind the scenes video by Allister Ann found here. 

So, that’s my wrap up for Day 1 of Nashville Fashion Week. This week is outta control busy and it may take me a few days to get all the event reviews and comments on here. I did just get back from Day 2 runway shows, though. Just a hint… T. Rains.. omg. I think I died from fashion overload!

Good night and I’ll see you tomorrow!

photo credit: The Tennessean: http://www.tennessean.com/apps/pbcs.dll/gallery?Avis=DN&Dato=20110329&Kategori=SHOP&Lopenr=103300803&Ref=PH