Trendy Mexico City...

On my recent trip to Mexico City, I did the obligatory visit to malls and boutiques. As usual, all malls have pretty much the same type of department stores and boutiques.

There are two main department stores that dominate most malls in Mexico City; Liverpool is one of them and it would be the equivalent of our Macy's; the other one is Palacio de Hierro, which carries better brands, is the combination of Nordstroms-NeimanMarcus.

There are many independent mexican designers that have boutiques in these malls; as well as, the more affordable stores that are similar to Forever 21. Very prominent is Zara, they are all over the place, and includes Zara home.

The prices are the same as in United States, I was with the idea of seeing less expensive articles, but that was not the case; I was surprise.

I loves L...

The above mood board was inspired by the great photographs of Luis Francisco Cardenas Sarre...you can follow his work in facebook and soon to be digital portfolio...

The I loves L bridal collection, borrows from the bohemian JCrew bridal look to the classic Calvin Klein style. Simple silhouettes, with flowing silk fabrics; these gowns are all ballerina length and easy to wear. The collection is characterised by its craftsmanship, simplicity of line and femininity.




Some of the techniques used on the garments are: hand beading with fresh water pearls, reverse applique, hand sewn pleating and smocking. All fabrics used are silk dupioni, silk charmeuse, silk chiffon, with the exception of a very innovative silk/hemp weave that has a great hand...(all from Dharma Trading Co.).

Humor....

So very true...

The Vault Couture...

When you are overwhelm by your own luxurious wardrobe, you must go and ask assistance of the "Vault Couture", a London base company that specializes in solutions of wardrobe cataloging and organization; as well as services such as repair of and delivery around the world of specific luxurious clothing items.

Mounissa Chodieva, the founder of this company, has turned this idea for the most wealthy clients extremely trendy. It even has an iPad application that her clients can use in case of need. There is however, a flat initial fee of 2,000 pounds for cataloguing up to 100 items. Other services run up to 10,000 pounds (platinum service) that not only catalogues your wardrobe, but stores it adequately.

Miss Chodieva claims to have all sorts of clients from Russian to Middle Eastern; moreover, men are increasing as clientele. So now you know...if you need assistance with your wardrobe...2,000 pounds will do for the first assessment!

Zapotec textiles...

The Zapotec people are located in the heartland of the State of Oaxaca, in Southern Mexico. The Zapotecs are the largest indigenous group in the State of Oaxaca. Their traditional textile production has a combination of the indigenous motifs and color with the Spanish (European) influence.

They not only produce all kinds of crafts like, black pottery, wood carvings, but also, the very famous wool rugs of Teotitlan del Valle (one of the many villages in this region).

Missoni missed its "Target"

On September 13, Target launched its late edition of Missoni products and apparel...



It was an inmediate success; although, this success had great and bad news at the same time: when the doors opened at the different Target locations, it looked like a "Black Friday". Merchandise disapeared from the shelves and racks...a great success; but, at Target.com the site crash due to the overwhelming demand.



Another problem that Target.com has, is that they have not been able to fullfil all the orders placed. Many customers have compleined that Target has charged their credit cards and not received their merchandise; others, asked for refunds that have not been credited to them.


This event shows clearly how successfully Target has marketed the Missoni brand; and even thought they had problems, the overall feeling is of success.

10,000 years ago...the first fashion designer?

Although the oldest pair of surviving shoes are 10,000 years old (in the photos), anthropologist and researchers have come out with the conclusion that humans have worn shoes for over 40,000 years...how did they came to this conclusion? Well, they studied the bone structure of early humans, comparing the size and thickness of the leg bones and toe bones. They discovered that when early humans walked without shoes their bone structure was thicker and stronger...but a change occurred, and these humans started having thinner bones, thus it is assumed that part of this change had to do with the fact that humans were wearing some sort of protection on their feet.

An interesting fact, is that as soon as the human population grew, some could spend more time in the production of shoes and garments. This population explosion, lead to ornamental activities in clothing and shoe wear; and some sort of division of labor was established: a sector of the population was engaged in producing this kind of "fashion"...our first fashion designers?