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BY JESSICA SEDGWICK
Fashion Focus Chicago 2009 got off to a rainy start last Thursday. Fashionistas drenched their designer shoes as they stepped across the beautiful but slightly flooded white tent in Millennium Park. The show started 20 minutes late due to backstage flooding, but it was worth the wait. The opening show -- Macy's Presents the Designers of Chicago -- featured fabulous spring 2010 designs, all from local talent.
"I love the runway shows because they are open to the public -- people who love 'Project Runway' or who have never seen a fashion show and want to see what it's like can come check it out," says Melissa Gamble, director of Fashion, Arts and Events for the City of Chicago. "Everyone from industry insiders to buyers to other designers to people who are just interested in fashion."
The purpose of Chicago's fashion week is to spotlight the city's growing fashion industry, whether they are designers you can already buy at Macy's and Chicago boutiques or student designers who have yet to get their big break.
"We want to raise the visibility of the industry in the designers and independent retailers, and show people how much fashion and unique retail there is in the city," Gamble said.
Here's a breakdown of the three major fashion shows over the weekend:
MACY'S PRESENTS THE DESIGNERS OF CHICAGO
The opening-night show revealed spring 2010 as seen through the eyes of Chicago designers. Here's what to expect: eco-friendly fabrics in gorgeous pastel colors from Lara Miller, a flirty mix of floral, plaid and stripes from 5p1t (left) and men walking around in knee-high socks, boxers and button-down dress shirts that are not-so buttoned. OK, maybe that last part isn't true, but the crowd (including me) loved how the models wore ties and shirts from Lee Allison Co. (above).
GEN ART'S FRESH FACES IN FASHION
Gen Art is famous for inaugurating the careers of fashion labels (Shoshanna and Zac Posen), and Saturday night it spotlighted the brightest fashion stars of Chicago. C/Fan (at right) introduced a refreshing palette of pinks and purples, and Red Doll (above) stayed true to its name and delivered a beautiful V-neck and black belted red dress.
DRESS CODE
Friday night's show featured the runway debut of the top students from Chicago's fashion design schools: Columbia College Chicago, the Illinois Institute of Art-Chicago, the International Academy of Design & Technology-Chicago and the School of the Art Institute of Chicago. The students provided a fresh mix of spring fashion: from a Reconstructed punk T-shirt gown from Katherine Swanson of Illinois Institute of Art (above right) to a strapless, two-toned ruffled evening gown from Fraley Le of the International Academy of Design & Technology (above left).
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