A Cantoire Experience

On December 4th, 2010, I heded down to TheArc Theater in Southeast Washington D.C. for a special show designer Carlos Reaves invited me about a month ago. For some reason, the date of the show just seemed forgotten in the back of my mind, but he reminded me a few days prior to the show via facebook, and also reserved two front-row seats for me and my photographer Matt Statler. Though I strongly dislike that less-celebrated, run-down section of D.C., I only intended to make this trip for the sake of fashion. The first time I met Carlos, I was still in high school, oblivious of the majority of what fashion entailed, but I still knew what I had in front of me was pure talent. I vividly remember the day when Carlos showed up with two pieces in garment bags, I gravitated for a leather frock, I examined the garment and extended my sincere adulations. That was the only time I saw any glimpse of his work. Thus this was an apropos opportunity for me to finally witness the aesthetic behind his work. 

A few days prior to the show, Carlos's Facebook status updates consisted of him painstakingly sewing until wee hours of the morning, "It's going on 7 a.m., and I haven't been to bed yet. Preparing the final garments for my show on Saturday", or promoting the event, "Preparing a Christmas collection like you've never seen!!! Don't miss "Winter Praise Fest" concert", with details posted below.

As I walk into the capacious auditorium, I was greeted by a quadruplet of gospel singers serenading the audience. Their voices were powerful with a pinch of serenity. Then, a statuesque man, who appeared to be in his late 40s, wearing the most hideous pleated pants (pleated pants, among other things, are an abomination to society) walks into the stage, gets to the microphone and says a few words, and between his sermon he shouts, "praise the Lord!", and I'm left baffled. Then a few other performers came out and I noticed a pattern. This was a church event. I later whispered to Matt, "I should've read the flyer more throughly", he just looks back at me and chuckles. I was certainly not ready for a Sunday's Best episode, but I just went with the flow. At one point, I thought someone was going sprint to the stage and "perform" all these acrobatic moves, drop to the floor and wither as if the Lord had touched his spirit, but thankfully none of that occurred. One of the performers, Michael Hunt, stepped on the stage and sang his heart out, he later brought out his wife and background singers, all clad in black, who performed a few canticles just so beautifully that it truly touched my heart. It's also valid to mention, singer Lashawna Moore (see below), wearing a off-shoulder rusty golden silk dress with a wing sleeve by Carlos, who closed out the show with a ballad that gained her a well deserved standing ovation. 

Carlos Reaves presented a cohesive collection consisting on twenty looks that echoed the Christmas spirit, yet it was decisively artistic and impeccably constructed. Reaves seemed to have submerged into a pool of references for this special collection. It was obvious the Dior influence found on the movement of a zebra printed full skirt, and a soft wool nipped jacket. The sort of thing a bourgeois woman would wear on the south in the 50's. He even told me after the show that he drew inspiration from Alexander McQueen's fall/winter 2009 collection. That was evident in the  form the models walked; coming out from one end of the theater, making a rectangular shape, posing at each corner, and exiting very nonchalantly. The volumes and shapes he used were also reminiscent from McQueen's highly lauded collection. The origami-like shapes were certainly challenging to wear but somehow  they elicited an appealing silhouette. An off-shoulder grey jersey dress, a gorgeous sleeves purple shift, and a simple open neck dress with soft tiered layers were the stand outs. 

The first clutch of models came out with disheveled puffed wigs with a branch going right through it, giving an illusion of deer's horns. The rest of them were wearing what I initially thought were lampshades (as McQueen's collection), but Carlos later told me they were actually hats draped or stitched. The head pieces, which came in oval or spherical shapes, certainly bolstered the element of surrealism to the collection. I was also enthralled by the make up, which was done in glitzy, sparkling shades of silver and green on the eyes and lips. 

There were few evening options that demonstrated Carlo's deftly ability to play with proportions, but it felt as thought they were overly design. One of them was a strapless gown with a bodice in ivory silk and a skirt in red, with frills on the top, a rosette perched on the chest and a few tiered straps draped on the hips. As dramatic as it may have seen, the overall result was a conflicting juxtaposition of elements that potentially could have worked independently. 

The closing act, a white corseted gown with an olive, drab green skirt over a gigantic crinoline and something that can only be described as multiple orbital like straps stemming from the front and ending on the back was imbued by "the angel in top of the Christmas tree", Carlos told me after the show. As he was talking, the inspiration made sense. I was trying to picture the gown in an actual Christmas tree, a miniature version, that would sure grab the attention of any onlooker. I liked the grandiose attitude of the gown, and the movement while it walked across the stage.

I left the scene a few minutes early in order to avoid the seemingly church-goers, and headed backstage to talk to Carlos about the collection. I caught him on my way to the second floor, dispatching one of his models. He was wearing one of his creations that Raf Simmons would have envied. He seemed composed and graciously greeted me. As I was inquiring about the collection, I immediately noticed the sense of mission and dedication behind his work. He was so knowledgeable about his craft and answered my questions throughly, which is the only thing I can ask for any designer. During the show, I heard a bruit that Carlos was leaving for Atlanta, I initially thought he was leaving for a show, but I later find out he might leave all together. I couldn't ensconce a slight sense of forlornness, but at one point we all have to move on. If this change of location occurs, I can only wish Carlos much success in his future endeavors. 

Pictures by Matt Statler, check out a clip of the collection here. 

Fashion, Beauty And Lifestyle

On Saturday 16th I headed down to the Convention Center in Washington D.C. for the annual Fashion, Beauty and Lifestyle expo sponsored by CW DC50 and GWFCC. I woke up early, excited, and anxious to see what D.C. fashion business/boutiques and local designers have to offer once again. Since I'm part of GWFCC I had a commitment to be present and inform folks on this amazing organization. The expo was scheduled to start at noon, but I arrived a few hours earlier to get the downlow of things. The first scenes of the expo were a bevy of hispanic men in the process of installing a stage for a display of hair-styling by Beauty Spa Center and Alexandre de Paris. Around the premises, there were empty aisles of booths covered in red wine/burgundy colored curtains, displaying a rather small white sign with the name of each respective business, designer or boutique. After greeting fellow GWFFC member Brittany Wilson, I spotted my surrogate mother/The Boss Lady/producer of the show Maggy Francois clutching a clipboard, with a stare that suggested her mind was incessantly running everywhere. And that's understandable, orchestrating one of DC's most prominent events, including approximately 60 local business, one of the top photographers in the industry Nigel Barker and an array of ladies from America's Next Top Model such as Isis King, Bianca Golden and Jaslene Gonzales is not a paltry endeavor, but the expo was a success nonetheless. 

A few minutes from my arrival, I see Shannon and Clarita (See pictures above. I had to post both pictures because we look so good that it would be a waste not to, I mean I can't get enough of myself here). We were directed towards the GWFCC booth. We garnished the booth with a GWFF tripod, flyers, business cards, and there were even a few give-aways laying on the table. Throughout the event, all types of folks, with a very distinctive sense of style came to the table inquiring info, and I hope we successfully answered those questions. I'm glad most of them, or at least those inspiring designers and boutique owners, walked away with a sense of hope that D.C. one day will become a major fashion capital. 

Behind us there was a booth (see right above), which I can't remember their name, but I'm sure it was something kinky. Needless to say their table was covered in all type of erotic products, such as lotions, creams, feathered handcuffs and other things of that nature. I thought this was a family-oriented event, but I guess not (I received two other pictures that I would not post since I'm trying to remain PG for my younger readers). At one point I was envisioning a little boy walking pass this booth and he would start asking his parents all these questions. Daddy what is this for? Answer...priceless. 

One of the few designers (and a great supporter of De La Style) showcasing their collections at the expo was Kenny "KAS" Flannagan. I saw him earlier setting up his booth with the help of his assistants. There seemed to be a bit of a dilemma with the t-shirts brought to be sold at the expo but I was glad to hear the issue was resolved. He bestowed me a white tee (see above) that read "I'm a KAS Man" on the chest and a description of what a KAS man is on the back. I personally love the deconstructed pair of jeans on the front, festooned with actual pieces of denim covering most of the legs and miniature Swarovski Crystals on the edges. You can get your W.E.T tees here. 

If you read my blog before, then I'm sure you're familiar with Kenny's clothes. His offerings have a sense of sex-appeal, and create a desire to put them on. I have had the privilege to witness his creations walk down the runway    multiple times, but every time, it's a unique experience. At the expo he showed his classic, sharp-taliored suits, and come-hither short dresses, but he managed to introduce a new piece without straying away from his aesthetic. The last look was a spagehtti-string nude vivacious evening dress with the most beautiful beading I seen in recent memory. They sort of looked like fish scales, but the model only looked like a goddess out of the sea. It was Diana Ross, Tina Turner and Beyonce all in one. Unfortunately, I don't have the shot that I wanted of the dress, but hopefully I would see it graced the runway on Friday at NOVA Fashion Week. 

Out of nowhere, something shined in my vicinity. I spotted a familiar looking sneaker, but calling this a pair of "sneakers" is a complete understatement. Though these are the second time I spotted them on a feet of an stylish man, I certantly knew the name of the designer behind it. The Christian Louboutin's spiked high top sneakers were seen on new acquaintance Jarrick Jerrel (since you love me so much, you already know what I want for Christmas, just saying). 

One of the missions I set for myself when I go to these type of events is to meet as many people as I can. One of the ladies I met was the owner of "The C.A.T. Walk" Boutique, which specializes in new and consignment brands for women. Shuffling trough her racks I found some great pieces, such a fur cheetah-print bolero and a Just Cavalli LBD. I'm so glad I met Carolyn, she's fun, uplifting, convivial (you don't see that very often in the industry) and most of all, she cares about her business. I'm so looking forward to working with her in the near future.  

As I was walking around the premises of the expo, I spotted a booth with a rack of clothes that caught my attention. There was a hip factor to the whole display of clothes, they certainly were assembled to lure a specific market of customers. The sign placed at the backdrop read "Hush Boutique" then I get approached by a young lady, the owner of Hush, Tamara Lee. Not even the minute we started talking about her boutique I immediately sensed her love for it. I inquired about the selection of her garments, she responded amicably that most of the apparel she carries in the store are from L.A. designers. I think by the looks shown on the runway, the clothes are not limited to L.A. girls only, but I could easily envision any cool, hip, young girl in D.C. rocking clothes from Hush. Below two looks from the boutique, tres chic!

Indian/British Photographer and ANTM's judge Nigel Barker served as one of the host. Once Nigel popped on stage along with a lengthy camarel-skinned lady, the crowd conglomerated around the runway. It sort of looked like a scene from a Jonas Brother concert, only this time, it was a single child, much older, and his fans did not look like they just reached puberty. Nigel came out sporting a classic suit and brown silk tie, keeping the same image from the infamous show that arguably catapulted his fame. I could hear women, from all ages, yelling and cheering frantically as if they just seen Marcus Patrick stripping. This is the first time I seen Mr. Barker live, he certainly looked charming, but I would have never heralded he would have such welcoming reception in the nation's capital. 

The schedule was packed with a list of designers that I seen and a few other that I haven't. I was anxious awaiting to get my fashion fix. The first designer we saw was Natalia Sanz, a young American designer with Spanish roots. Whenever I'm about to see a new designer, I get these giggles in my stomach, I get anxious, and impatient. My standards are neither place high or low, I go in without any expectations. After watching her fall/winter abbreviated collection, I got a glimpse into what she's all about. At the end of her show she mentioned she was imbued by origami, and that translated into demure evening dresses in simple silhouette and smart detailing. The color palette was rich, without looking gaudy. There were deep purples, indigos, and neutrals in different shades of grey. The folds, pleats and sharpness of her collection echoed the feeling of an origami piece. After her show, I walked to her booth to talk to her in a more intimate setting. She expounded on the source of inspiration, "furniture and art", she said. The standout piece was a cropped tuxedo jacket in midnight blue, that alone speaks volumes about her aesthetic and her vision for the modern woman. I can't wait to see her S/S 2011 collection on Saturday at NOVA Fashion week. 

Natalia and I at her booth festooned with her beautiful creations

After Natalia's collection we saw an equally talented maestro. Tristan Blake was not a name that resonated with me, but after that day, I was enamored with his clothes. He opened up with a crisp terra cotta-colored trousers paired with a simple navy blue top with a keyhole on the back, this look heralded what was to come from Blake. The source of inspiration, which Blake told me later were, "different places in the Caribbean, especially St. Trope". He presented a hooded jumper, a tube skirt, a skimpy swimsuit, and a long-sleeve evening dress in a wavy, irregular print that was reminiscent of ocean waves, or even traces of wet sand at shore. There was a soft pink hooded jacket dress with gold chains delicately dropping from the pockets, and a beautiful deep v-neck navy blue summer dress. At the end of the show, the models came out with their hands up, swaying as the music played, there the festive, tropical and joyous attitude of the models reflected those of the clothes. I hope this would not be the last time I'll see from Tristan, there is definitely precious, raw talent to polish. 

Me, Nailah Seabron, and Tristan Blake backstage

After his show, I rushed backstage along with my photographer Matt to get a few words from the man himself. What I saw was something I was not expecting. This petite lady in a denim jacket was sobbing over Blake's shoulders, repeatedly saying, "it was just beautiful" (I would later found out it was Nailah Seabron, Tristan's marketing director). It was a riveting scene of a deep-felt human expression after seeing something profoundly touching. When a designer manages to touch people in an emotional or phycological level, that is suggestive of the talent this man possess. I hope to see more bonafide reactions like this after a collection is shown, only a few can pull that off. 

Sadly, I had a prior commitment so I had to abandon the scene. There were, of course, more fashion to be shown, but I wasn't able to see it live. Luckily, I've seen work from the remaining designers. One of them was Tashia Senn, trained at F.I.T and based in Washington D.C. presented her Fall/Winter 2010 collection. I adore Tashia's vision for the woman of today. Her designs seem to evoke a damsel with refine taste, but is not shy to walk on the edge. To me she's dangerous, seductive, and coquettish. This collection was the added touch of glamour needed for the day. I mean, the bow-neck pumpkin orange silk blouse worn with a black and grey striped lame (or sequin) skirt was the perfect option for a night-out, anywhere in the world. Another standout look, was a pale orange one-shoulder ruche frock with feathered hem, can you say fashion orgasm!?!

To close out the event, former Project Runway finalist, Korto Momolu made her presence felt at the expo. Unlike previous occasions, she showed a few looks that looked less afro-centric, and more mainstream without straying away from her aesthetic. The motif lame leaves-life prints evoked nature, as well as the draped sleeves on the summer dresses. For night she proposed a sexy black lame draped top and skinny black pants with two zippers on hip. My favorite look was an angelic white draped cocktail dress with an asymmetrical hem. 

This is one of those events where the burgeoning fashion community in the nation's capital gets a chance to connect and celebrate as one. It was a chaotic, yet rewarding event where at least if you didn't buy anything, you got to see the talent, passion and level of professionalism that exists here in D.C. 

See you next year!

Model, Jasmine Agnew walks backstage wearing a creation by Hush Boutique

Photos by Matt Statler, Vithaya Phongsavan and Vadim Zee

Street Glam

I'm not even going to apologize nor beg your pardon for the lack of entries. This past couple of weeks have been, say a bit crazy for me. I'm in the process of moving to Washington D.C. and I'm dealing with a list of additional things that I can't unfortunately share with you guys at the moment. Instead, I'm going to attempt to update at least twice a week, or even more often with more elaborate entries on a range of topics all concerning with fashion. And by that I'm not just talking about clothes. So please bare with me and remember your comments, love letters, e-mails are always appreciated...and if you can't get enough of me, stalk on twitter @jimmydelastyle

On August the 21st, I attended "Street Glam" show in Downtown Silver Spring, Maryland. The burgeoning fashion district, which has a 440,000 feet of retail, food and entertainment served as the perfect location to showcase the brewing design talent in the area. An elongated vivid red rug that from far away looked like a red carpet sprawled across Ellsworth Drive. An ample stage was placed right by the backstage area, composed of steel tubes and thick black curtains around it. Mounting a fashion show outdoors can be challenging, since Mother Nature can throw a fit a times, but thankfully, after sufficient days of showers, the sky was clear for Street Glam to proceed. 

As part of my team, I brought along Ashley Emerson of ashemPR, and we managed to get photographer Justin, who I never worked before, but managed to get the shots that I wanted. After the show he told me that was his first fashion show, I guess implying we popped his "fashion" cherry, seems naughtily adequate. I'm glad he came along and contributed to part of this post.

As soon as I get to the location, I noticed a sea of people strolling nonchalantly along the sidewalk, some shopping, or enjoying the great food provided by various restaurants around. I'm not a big fan of crowds, specially in a location that I'm not familiar with, but working in fashion, that feeling of unfamiliarity fades away. There was a VIP reception on Ceviche House, located on the second floor. I arrived a bit late, but I decided to check it out anyways. The ambiance looked relaxed, there was a bar supplied with drinks that I did not need to looked at, and plush seats on one side of the room. On one corner, there was a white back screen printed with "Downtown: Silver Spring" logos all over it. I spotted the stylish guests posing and getting their pictures taken by a couple of photogs. A man in a dark suit by the name of Lawrence O'Neal seemed to be shot constantly, I later learned he was hosting the carpet. I spotted Sheri Bolden in a pale grey paisley printed dress from PDB Group Venture, one of the leading sponsors of the event. After seeing there was not much going on at the reception, I headed down to get on my seat. Then I see producer Maggy Francois in a beautiful light lilac jumper (her new assistant Nate Leon overheard me saying I was looking for her, then he personally proceeded me to her, two days later, I see him on the train, dude is cool).

Schuntel, Lynice owner of DMVntage, Me, and publicist Ashley Emerson

The unmistakably riveting sounds of ticking clocks marking the hours is heard on the background as a model in an oriental inspired up-do is forced into the runway by an older man, she's laying in the runway and slowly starts crawling, another model in a satin red dress comes into the scene and helps the model crawling get up. They both walk in tandem towards the middle, but on their way there, out of nowhere, this young lady seating in a front-row seat gets up and walks towards the model in front and pulls out a lipstick and delicately paints her lips. As soon as she finishes, three male models clad in black sprint from the end of the runway towards the model in front, each holding three black large bedsheets, they proceed to hover the model and act as a wall, covering much of her from the public. Another woman in the front-row hands the model in the red dress a shiny folded garment. The model steps into the covered area and helps her partner get into what seems to be a dress. Moments later, the sheets fall and reveal the initial model in a traditional red kimono. One of the male models sprints back to the end of the runway with all the sheets, as his other two counterparts help the girl in the kimono putting her shoes on. She bows and they all walk out. If for some reason you can't envision what I'm talking about, then click here and watch the video. 

The intro (as well as hair and makeup was done by Lillian Buie) attempted to tell a story, but the concept was slightly bizarre and not accurately executed. The oriental theme had little to do with the overall mood of the clothes presented that day, it was such a stretch of the imagination. The unprecedented participants from the front-row just added a conflicting factor to the story, which was attempting to bring the spectators into the fantasy of the tale. It ended up looking as if the make-up artist forgot to apply make-up to the model backstage and blatantly managed to do it on the runway disrupting the flow of the performance. It would have worked better for a certain designer with a certain theme. 

Booshie Designs opened up the show with a collection mainly composed of flirty, bold short dresses. The first one that came out was a printed metallic pink mini with a puff of orange tulle on the back, the minute the model stepped out, she looked like a joke, there was nothing sophisticated to the dress, and the tulle just looked like an after-thought to the whole design. This brings me to something Nina Garcia said on a previous season of Project Runway; short, tight and bright is the cheapest way to look. But not everything was lackluster. The floral motif shown on a few of the dresses, especially one in electric blue with rosettes printed all over, added a touch of femininity to the collection. There were three outstanding looks, one was a deep purple off shoulder with black paisleys on the edges, a black silk top paired with a white and black polka dot knee-length skirt and matching bow head piece, and a sexy white and black cocktail dress with a red pouf coming underneath, vaguely reminiscent of Lacroix, but strongly seductive on its own. 

There were also collections shown by two emerging boutiques, Ksara and Metamorphosis. Ksara boutique presented a collection of classy, yet sexy cocktail wear. I thought every look has a sophistication level, that any women, no matter her background, coul wear. Besides all the palm printed day dresses, what stood out the most was the evening wear. The strapless champagne dress with an asymmetrical cut and black lace on the edges was a home run, and the last look, a draped black dress worn with a cinched belt, did not only looked casual enough for lunch, but if styled differently can be worn to a night out. Metamorphosis is a boutique located  on the heart of Silver Spring, Maryland. I never been there, but according to their website, they offer an array of one of a kind hats, jewelry, and of course apparel. The first offerings from the boutique did not galvanize any interest to see the rest. The first dress was a cheaply rose printed day dress, and the next look consisted of a printed blouse with frills cascading down the neckline, worn with a vintage-looking dusty yellow-green cropped jacket with ruffles detailing on the collar. Just the clash of the two colors did not only lack sophistication, but looked fairly outdated. However, there were some signs of vitality on the rest. The reminding looks were decisively color-muted, it was a black parade of young women attempting to dress like their mothers. And that can go either way, depending how mothers dress these days. A faux leather inset tight pants worn with a corset like top, with a belt looked young, modern and fresh. And a black, slouchy trousers worn with a sleeveless top with frills on one side and waistline was one of my favorites, though it was identically reminiscent of what Raf Simons did for Jil Sander last fall, the look was polished and had a sense of ease. The major problem of the collection was the styling. The chains of pearls and those obnoxious hat pieces just aged the models, they just looked discordant with the modernity of some of the looks. 

Part of the show were two nationally known established businesses. New York & Company and Menswear House. I been to MH (Menswear House for short) just once, it might have been for an event one of my friends had to attend and I just went along as a sidekick, expecting nothing out of the ordinary. I remember seeing the whole two-level store filled with suits on mannequins on the foyer, shirts, ties and all kinds of shenanigans a middle age men would find in a store titled "Menswear House". I vividly remember perusing on the second floor and I noticed on the back, there were two lonely leather jackets, I tried the black one on, looked in the mirror and I noticed it looked a bit big on me, but I couldn't help but feel a bit like James Dean. I only needed a pair of aviators to complete the look. But that's a story for a different entry. I was expecting ill-fitting suits, but MH showed a batch of suits that looked fortuitously dapper on the hunky male models. There was a dark blue peak lapel two-button suit, a simple grey notch lapel suit, a nicely cut waistcoat worn with tailored pants and bowler hat, and a smoking black suit worn with a white shirt and silk ivory tie, the last one being the right option for a red carpet event. A vintage tee worn with a black leather jacket, jeans, and a waist-belt just looked so lackluster, it had no business on the runway.

New York & Company showed a fall collection decisively targeted for a young women's lifestyle. There were looks for the office, lounging, and going out at night. There was a lovely printed top, black skinny pants, and a classic trench. A light tan dress with frills cascading down the middle and around the hem worn with a cardigan seemed like the perfect solution for a work attire. I liked the nonchalance of a cotton grey top and leggings paired with a cardigan for hanging out at home, or even maybe a casual Friday rendezvous. My favorite (see below) was a black fringe dress, slightly reminiscent form Jil Sander for last fall/winter, but there is no denying, it's a sexy lil' piece. 

Minimal chic was perhaps what Elizabeth St. John had in mind for her line dubbed "Amore". She showed all kinds of flirty dresses, most of them featured a clean and simple silhouette in shades of pink, chocolate brown, pale orange, bright yellow, metallic blue, and deep purple. The colour palette was slightly inconsistent, all those tones from every color family did not cohesively synchronized into a harmonious spectrum. However, the designs looked facile and unbridled, great options for a woman with no drama nor frills. Furthermore, the perverse dark beauty from Thembe Designs resulted in such a contrast from the rest of the collections shown that day. There was something delicate and feminine about a draped gunmetal grey gown, yet I saw something ghastly eerie about it. And that could also be said for the rest of the collection, a light grey suit jacket, with a black cami underneath, festooned with a black rose on the chest, and a black and white printed draped gown with an exposed back. There was enough substance behind it that made one mentally search for an answer to such dichotomy. 

It's a common believe that the last act is the best one yet, and that was clear once the models came out. The last two designers to show were Kwab Asamoah from Kustom Looks and Kenny Flannagan. Kwab Asamoah, specializes in affordable made-to-measure suits for men and women. And by affordable I'm talking about suits from $700 to $2,500 according to his website. The suits he presented were precisely tailored, in a range from tan, silver and black. The cut of the pants were moderate compared to the tailored shorts he presented worn with a fitted two or three button jackets, tube socks and oxfords (according to the website, the suits are cut by master tailors in Bangkok, Thailand). The keen attention to the fabrication was visible in every look (you can even check out his extensive resources on fabrics on his website). His women's pieces which included a creamy peach cocktail dress, flared pink pants worn with a sleeveless ivory top with frills adorning the neckline, and an array of waistcoats worn with knee-lenght pants did not looked as strong as his menswear. 

Mr. Flannagan, is a designer that I'm quite familiar with. I seen his designs graced the pages of various magazines and I had the opportunity to attend his runway show for his opening of his boutique "House of Kas" at the Harbor. In this opportunity Kenny showed a batch of edited looks from his W.E.T line (with exceptional taste). Most of the looks he presented were also presented on his show at the Harbor, but that did not take away the fun, flirty, seductive and sexy spirit of his clothes. In addition, I thought the styling of the looks, this time were much polished and sophisticated since the last time I saw them on the runway. He opened up with a beautiful long sleeve camel colored dress with a satin bow adoring the neckline followed by a black fitted tee emblazon "I'm a KAS women" on the front worn with dark denim featuring a "K" on the back-pocket. One of my favorites men's look was this dark suit which at one point looked like denim and silk, casually worn under a white tee. (Sidenote: When one of the models came out wearing an unbuttoned shirt exposing a chiseled physique, women and some men in attendance went a bit bunkos. At one point, I thought somebody in the front row was going pull out cash out their pockets and make it rain). 

With designer Carlos Reaves, Ashley, and PDB Group's Sherri Bolden

After the show, as usual, it was pandemonium, people trying to take pictures, some were trying to get out, and others trying to get backstage. My team and I headed backstage, spoke to a few of the models, took some pictures, said a few words, and headed out. I'm glad I had the chance to attend the show and witness the bourgeoning design talent here in the DMV (DC, Maryland, Virginia). Let's hope next year I don't wait this long to wrap it up. 

Ashley and I walking out, check out that strut.