“I kept dreaming of a world I thought I’d never see, and then one day, something happened, something extraordinary, I got IN.” ~ Daft Punk, Derezzed
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It’s always a wonder where inspiration comes from ~ sometimes it’s a gesture or a silhouette, a color or texture juxtaposed. And sometimes it’s just an idea, a concept ~ a combination of sounds and light that are parallel, perpendicular, intersecting. That was the inspiration for the collection that Jake Wall and I did for the recent SUIT UP runway show at McCroskey Mattress Factory ~ TRON, Legacy. And a couple of other designers came in and completed the idea, along with a few dozen volunteer models, hair and make-up teams, and guests, creating a beautiful evening that is very much a tribute to all that can happen in a short amount of time where everyone comes together to give of themselves for a common cause. Below is a recap of that moment, that begins with Jake and I meeting at one of my favorite places to convene after a runway show ~ RN74. Having come here after two previous SNOW shows, I thought it would be fun to indulge in an amazing meal, created by Adam Sobel, that might in fact inspire a new collection for Deb Durant’s 50/50 LIGHT project ~ it’s where endings become beginnings become endings in a circle of inspiration that is continual, never-ending, and passionately relentless.
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“What we call the beginning is often the end. And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.” ~ T.S. Eliot
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Left ~ RN74’s chef Adam Sobel and I at Cochon 555’s Heritage Fire, with his goats on stakes behind us. Center and right, at RN74 ~ Grougere with quail egg and black truffle; spicy cantaloupe and pressed watermelon bite.
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How do you capture a moment ~ a moment of “sprezzatura” ~
“Practice in everything a certain nonchalance that shall conceal design and show that what is done and said is done without effort and almost without thought.” ― Baldassare Castiglione, The Book of the Courtier
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“to be cool, decisive, precise, yes, while the barn door hits you in the face” ― Frank O’Hara
Above ~ fitting Pernella Somerville… and seeing my baby doll dress on a body for the first time.
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“Anyone who’s afraid and does not search and give as much as possible to the world of pleasure is a totally ignorant person. We were put here for the joy of it. For the hell of it. And it’s all here now; nothing has been taken away. It’s a question of creating it.” ~ Diana Vreeland
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Above ~ the night after, with my dear friends Racheal Matthews and Joy Brace… in Oakland, listening to THE ORB ~ as in Little Fluffy Clouds, one of my all-time favorite English groups from the early 90s…
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A huge thank you to everyone that made this evening possible ~ with photography above by Julie Englemann for Kelly Puleio, Kat Fitzgerald of Mystic Images, Mira Musank of fafafoom (a majority of the images I snapped behind the scenes)… Also to Heather Freyer, Robin McCroskey Azavedo, Nathan Johnson, Mary Elyse, the many fabulous models who wore my dresses ~ Mellissa Gray, Hailey Bolton, Pernella Somerville, Arlice Hague, Rumiko McCarthy, Alexander Kouts, Jessica Sanches, Kareezia Younger, Lea Luellen, Shai’La Yvonne; the other designers who helped complete the show this year ~ Southavong’s Tony Sananikone and Mansoor Scott; all of my dear friends who came out and my amazing assistants who helped me with the collection ~ intern Christine Knobel, design assistant Joy Brace and my assistant designer Racheal Matthews… The hugest of all thanks goes to one of my favorite people in my world ~ Jake Wall. This wouldn’t have happened without you.. xxx
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“In the end all collaborations are love stories.” ~ Twyla Tharp
