D.C. Fashion Week 2013, featuring the spring and summer 2014 collections of designers from around the world kicked off its nineteenth cycle at the Woolly Mammoth Theater on Monday, Sept. 23, with an eco-friendly designer showcase. Innovative works, including dresses made of up-cycled cork screws and dolls by Isagus Extroversions, demonstrated how ordinary materials could be transformed into extraordinary works of wearable art.
Recent Howard University graduate Michelle Gibson of Simply L3ve shared her love of graphic prints with her simple, but sophisticated pieces designed to meet the fashionista in any woman. Gibson debuted her collection earlier this month at New York Fashion Week and it was received equally well in D.C.
"Gibson's eye for detail is amazing. She understands that real women need to be able to transition from day to evening, sometimes to after-hours meetings and need wardrobes that are fluid enough to meet those demands," said Jocelyn Marley, 30. "In an 'I'm every woman' world, Gibson knows how to meet a tremendous need."
Marley was among the eager-eyed future designers who rushed to D.C. Fashion Week to see how their own eye for design matched up with their favorites.
Fashion Week founder Ean Williams proudly shared that, in an effort to be more eco-conscious, the event used digital communication as much as possible — resulting in D.C.'s Fashion Week having more Twitter followers than its New York counterpart.
The popularity of the event was evident following Williams' collection preview at Madame Tussauds Wax Museum.
"I was tweeting and going berserk over Williams' 2014 Corjor International Collection," said fashion blogger Diamond Rays. "There are several dresses that would make the woman wearing them stop people in their tracks and swoon. They were absolutely flawless."
Celebrity makeup artists Derrick Rutledge and Lindsay Ebbin, celebrity hairdresser Barry Fletcher, fashion show producers Harvey Star Washington and Glynn Jackson were on hand to offer advice to the audience and aspiring models and designers.
The highlight of the week included designers from the Emerging Emirates Designer Showcase, who gave the audience a front-row seat to a world of fashion that is rarely shared. The beauty, style and sophistication of designers Abeer Alsuwaidi and House of Fatam, who are clearly committed to showing that modesty can speak volumes in the fashion world, gave a voice to Muslim women.
That commitment continued on Friday at the National Press Club where the Haute and Modesty Fashion show — a first for D.C. Fashion Week — featured notable designers Cover Me Beautiful and Sabika Seattle who produce clothes that women of all faiths would love to covet.
Emerging designers from national colleges and universities were featured as well. Crowd favorite Corjor International ended the show, with Ean Williams, stating as he often had during this year's event, "This is a place where we can share our talents and differences with love, respect and style."
Williams and D.C. Fashion Week have proven that the District is a hub for international fashion. For more pictures, videos and more information on DC Fashion Week 2013 please visit www.dcfashionweek.org.
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