Color on the Runway: Betsey Johnson

In this post I really wanted to cover Betsey Johnson's spring 2011 show because I loved the story behind it.  The looks had a flirty, sporty vibe and it appeared to be a fun show, which is uncommon in the serious world of runway shows. Even the models looked like they were having a great time!
The show started off with the sportier apparel, bringing to mind race-car drivers, cyclists, and skater chicks, with the two-way road printed runway only adding an extra touch. These looks evolved into more feminine frocks in black and white characterized by the sassy femininity that Betsey Johnson is known for. Soon color sprouted up in whimsical floral prints of every color. After the bright floral dresses, suits, and jumpsuits came Betsey's signature frilly and lacy confections with endless layers of tulle. If you think this show couldn't have more elements, then you're wrong: these dresses morphed into playful sailor-themed getup, though some were a little more on the costume side if you ask me, rather than channeling the youthful but sophisticated look of Betsey Johnson's designs. Last but not least were a series of neon highlighter-hued gowns that were intriguing and really caught my eye.
The entire show was brought together by silver tiaras, neon green eyeshadow and neon pink cheeks and lips, and choker necklaces proclaiming "Ride Me."
The idea of the show was "Le Tour de Betsey," a journey throughout the different areas of New York City, the black and white looks representing the Upper East Side, the sailor looks symbolizing Fleet Week, and the cyclist-inspired apparel striving to represent Central Park (and perhaps the many bike lanes installed by Bloomberg in the city).

Photos from nymag.com

This runway show was one of the most fun and exciting ones I've looked at for this "Color on the Runway" series and stayed true to Betsey Johnson's aesthetic, which is one that I greatly admire.

Visit betseyjohnson.com to shop.

Color on the Runway: Aquilano.RImondi

Out of all the colorful spring 2011 runway shows that I've looked at, I have to applaud Aquilano.Rimondi, designed by Italians Tommaso Aquilando and Roberto Rimondi, for having the most exciting color combinations. Not only was their show filled with bright prints and color blocking, but the way colors were put together was fresh and eye-catching. Standouts included punchy florals, an interesting art deco-style geometric print, and neon blazers and pencil skirts paired in a way that was quirky and fun.

Photos from nymag.com

Click here to shop.

Color on the Runway: Custo Barcelona

Ever since I first walked into Custo Barcelona's Soho store, I have been in love with their line of clothing. The brand was founded by brothers Custo and David Dalmau in 1981 and began as a collection of screen-printed T-shirts for men and women in Barcelona. Today, Custo is the sole designer and the popular international brand has expanded to include swimwear, dresses, leggings, coats, and pretty much every type of clothing known to man.
Custo Barcelona is most well-known for its signature one-of-the-kind prints collaged together with a truly dazzling color palette, so it seems almost like cheating to feature them in the "Color on the Runway" segment. But their spring 2011 show was simply fantastic, so I can't say no.

The spring 2011 show stayed true to the line's style with its use of print and color, mixing them together on skin-tight minidresses and bright cardigans. There were dresses and tunics that fluttered in the wind of models walking down the runway, heavily coated in colorful fringe. Feather-like texture was heavily present throughout, showing up subtly on miniskirts and in bold, voluminous, rainbow clouds on dresses. For an extra pop, the clothes were matched with platform sandals with chunky straps in colorful prints. Some models even carried fun, patterned totes. Every look was intriguing and playful, making it extremely difficult to choose which looks to feature here.

Photos from nymag.com

Menswear is generally bland in color and in silhouette, but in staying true to their signature, Custo Barcelona presented stunning pieces for their menswear line as well.

Photo from nymag.com

Overall, I really admire Custo Barcelona for staying consistent with their playful, colorful aesthetic, especially in this economic climate, where fashion designers have had to cut down on risk-taking in order to make enough sales to survive. Custo Barcelona is really the king of print-on-print, one of the newer and more difficult trends, and always manages to present new, exciting and whimsical clothing in a seemingly effortless manner.

Seeing these looks makes me want to rush right down to their store and buy it all!

Visit custo-barcelona.com to learn more or click here to shop online.

Color on the Runway: Alexandre Herchcovitch

After many months of seeing neutral palettes at the top of the fashion trend list, bright color and pattern from the spring 2011 shows kicked the grays, blacks, browns, and camels out of the picture. The new season was full of joyous, playful, and bright clothing. I'm sure I'm not the only one who was happy to see this; it's been quite a long time since there has been such a fun season of shows in the fashion world.

Inspired by this new burst of color, I wanted to feature some of these spectacular runway shows, which leads to my "Color on the Runway" segment, which will include multiple posts highlighting some shows that really stood out to me.

Now, on to the good stuff!

I didn't really know anything about Alexandre Herchcovitch and his brand before I saw his stunning spring 2011 runway show. Herchocovitch is a very young Brazilian designer whose brand is characterized by beautiful, modern silhouettes. His show included jewel-tones, playful geometric print dresses, soft pastels, and neon gradients. The silhouettes were interesting, modern, elegant, and creatively cut; the patterns and colors were intriguing without being distracting. Except for a couple of looks with shapes that were just a bit too strange for me, everything is sublime and totally wearable.

Photos from nymag.com

Visit Alexandre Herchcovitch's website for more information or to shop online (Brazil only).

Knock Your Socks Off Heel

Today I wanted to feature this wonderful pair of heeled oxfords. The shape of the shoe is classy and elegant. The different colors of glitter are stunning together without being overwhelming and the muted, silver ribbon laces add a beautiful and delicate touch.

Photos from modcloth.com

I'd wear this pair of shoes with solid-colored opaque tights (maybe cranberry, black, or navy) and a flouncy A-line dress or skirt.

One of the many reasons I love this pair of shoes is because despite how crazy they appear, from far away they appear a glittery silver, so they are in fact extremely wearable.

Unfortunately, for now I can only admire them from afar, at least until my size is restocked.

Visit Modcloth to buy.

Brand I Love: Suno

For my first real post on Girl Loves Color, I wanted to feature a brand called Suno. This line was created in 2008 by a guy named Max Osterweis and was inspired by Kenyan textiles. Although the brand features great silhouettes, the colorful prints steal the show and the majority of the products are created in Kenya by local talent.
So behind all the great merchandise is socially conscious manufacturing!
Below are some looks that really stood out to me:

Resort 2011
Photos from openingceremony.us

Spring/Summer 2011
Photos from fashioninquisitive.com

Loeffler Randall x Suno Collaboration (S/S '11)

Photo from blog.loefflerrandall.com

I especially am a huge fun of all their dresses, but I love how Suno's wonderful patterns make pants and shorts so fun. Yet despite their crazy patterns, the pieces are completely wearable.

Visit sunony.com to find a store near you and look through all of their collections. (I'm in love with the patterns of their Fall 2010 line!)

Welcome

My name is Maya and I'm a teenager who loves all things related to fashion.

Girl Loves Color is a brand-new blog that will focus on style and fashion, specifically all things bright and colorful. I'm planning to use this blog as a mechanism for putting down my thoughts and ideas about the subject. Basically, this blog is going to be like a fashion diary for me. 

Along the way, I'm going to focus on a few different things in this blog.

1. Petites - I'm petite myself, so I will post a lot about petite-friendly stores and brands and, of course, how to find jeans that actually fit.

2. Comfort - From the perspective of someone who has to go to school five days a week, comfort is pretty important to me. Of course, everything comfortable and cozy should also be chic and flattering!

3. Color - I'm sure the blog title gives this away. I love colors and patterns, and I'm always trying to inject a little more fun into my wardrobe. The fashion world always needs a good dose of color, and I'm planning on blogging about some great brands that really know how to use color.

That's just a little intro to my blog, and I hope anyone reading this will follow me or bookmark this page. And tell your friends to do the same! But regardless of how often you read Girl Loves Color, I hope I can provide you with fun things to read, introduce you to new brands, and help inspire your style.

So please join me on my fashion journey!

xo