The Ukrainian Fashion Week once again was the focus of media attention last week. Every autumn it gathers young and well-known designers to share their ideas and present new trends for the coming seasons.
Most of the guests were local celebrities, so the atmosphere of the shows was not unlike a pretentious party. However, it didn’t rpevent the rest of the visitors – myself included – from admiring the newest collections of several designers.
This year’s Ukrainian Fashion Week coincided with a number of other high-profile events, including the Kyiv Jazz Festival and Asian movies screenings. I had to play around with my schedule in an attempt to fit everything in, but still did not manage to see it all.
I left the less interesting performances that happened during the Fashion Week out of my schedule, and made sure to visit the brightest ones, created by Olena Dats, Victoria Gres, Olga Gromova, Oksana Karavanska, Nota Bene & Karavay, Lilia Pustovit, Lilia Litkovska and Andre Tan. Although their previous fall/winter collections were much more interesting than the newest ones they presented, they were still worth seeing.
Spring and summer are still a long way away, but fashion fans are already flipping through catalogs and consulting designers in order to be ready to create their own original ensembles. Besides, you can always find ways to demonstrate parts of your new collection at parties even in the middle of the winter.
A game of colors and fabric
Plain bright colors on a white background surrounded by fluff and frills –this is one of the main trends of this season’s collections. According to Ukrainian designers, next year’s fabrics will include light chiffon, tulle, silk, and satin – fantasy and luxury combined.
Olga Gromova’s show was more than stunning and seemed to be the brightest one of all. Set in a surreal atmosphere that looked like it could have come out of Alice in Wonderland, models on the catwalk wore light fairy dresses and walked past huge white mushrooms, chairs, tea cups and giant hands.
The collection’s highlight, flounces made of light fabric – organza, silk, and tulle – were ordered by Gromova and specially manufactured in England. Their fresh colors – amethyst, cobalt, indigo, cream, lemon, and flax-blue – created weird combinations, while the exquisite cuts of the dresses added yet another touch of extravagance. Gromova’s clothes look like they were created for parties and special occasions – definitely not something for everyday wear.
The garments designed by Andre Tan, who has already opened several shops outside Ukraine, were also a carnival of colors and textures. However, critics argued that his spring/summer 2008-2009 collection was made carelessly.
Tan used his favorite deconstruction technique and complex cuts to make dresses look seductive and airy rather than solid. During his show, some of the models were made to sit on the catwalk cutting fabric – an action that was supposed to symbolize his trademark style.
Silk and lustrous satin add mildness and exquisiteness to lines, but at the same time they don’t make evening dresses fluffy and pretentious. His bright colors are combined in a restrained manner, giving garments a chic shine. Tan dedicated his new collection to the legendary French designer Yves Saint Laurent, who passed away this year.
Colorful satin was also used by Anna Bublik. Frills, though not as abundant as Gromova’s and looking heavier, became one of the main accents in her collection. Another emphasis was on plain silhouettes and white color to help bring out the bright ones. Bublik used a mix of violet, pink and green hues that formed Oriental flower ornaments in her collection.
Traditionally Ukrainian
Another popular trend in Ukrainian fashion is the use of traditional motifs and techniques. Embroidery featured prominently along with vytynanka, traditional delicate applique. Apart from an ethnic touch, the techniques introduce mild and romantic moods to the collections.
Olena Dats introduced a characteristic collection with many national elements. She offered original dresses made of white, blue, green silk, cotton and flax that should be worn to brighten up the everyday routine.
Her collection contrasted with the work of Gromova and Tan, whose clothes need a special atmosphere. Dats introduced a particularly interesting detail in her collection, a black Slavic decorative ornament. It seems to be catching on and is expected to feature prominently in the next season, so you can start introducing it to your wardrobe.
A designer from Lviv, Oksana Karavanska, hasn’t merely offered individual folk details but based her whole collection on traditional Ukrainian motifs. The images she worked with were taken from the paintings of Maria Prymachenko, a Ukrainian genius of primitive art, who has lived all her life in Bolotnya village in the Kyiv region and is a self-taught painter.
Prymachenko’s depicts fairy-tale plants with fantastic lions lurking among them, as well as other creatures that became symbols of Karavanska’s performance, showing up anywhere from invitations to accessories. All models on the catwalk had lion make up on; the clothes were decorated with fantastic embroidery, some of which gave her dresses a whimsical tone. Even a long flowing cocktail dress gained a bit of a hippy look due to a bright embroidered detail on the back.
Punk city
Lilia Litkovska, who has always created extravagant collections, tried to shock the audience this season as well. She advises wearing slim satin trousers with long cardigans, geometrically cut clothes hybrids (half-jackets, half-blouses) and dresses with fluff, overalls hanging on ropes, and dresses made of fringe.
Her color palette contained black, grey and orange that didn’t distract from interesting silhouettes. Litkovska also experimented with checked fabric, which is already trendy this season. Besides, she presented a large collection for men, who are also advised to wear tunics, slim red trousers, and loose blouses.
Iryna Karavai also presented a “city collection,” but a more eclectic one. This season, she experimented with a variety of styles – hippy, the 80’s and safari were all there. Her colors were white, blue, black, brown, pink, violet and cream. Her choice of fabrics included velour, cotton and chiffon. This mix created dynamic, light images suitable for a stylish city dweller.
Another laconic collection along the same lines was presented by Lilia Pustovit. Into the stuffy atmosphere of a busy city she brought in lace that made her clothes look lighter and more romantic. The loose fit of her dresses reminded one of ancient tunics, making the silhouettes naive and feminine. The asymmetric cuts brought in a contrasting masculine note. Another “punk” solution from Pustovit is to wear light dresses with simple black trousers, colorful tights, and wide cardigans.
Classics forever
The collection by Victoria Gres was dedicated to opera diva Maria Callas. Gres created an image of restrained elegance and chic in black and red, or to be more precise, some hues of red.
Loose silk dresses, tight and widening fringed skirts with belts were combines with massive accessories, such as orders. Another trendy element introduced by Gres was black and white spots. The models ended up looking like people from photos around the time when Jackie Kennedy, Aristotle Onassis, and – of course – Maria Callas were young and set the trends.
Shops:
Victoria Gres by Gres (11A Moskovsky prospect, Alta Center, Fashion Lab, 228-6176);
Nashe (72 Chervonoarmiyska, Olympiyskiy shopping mall, third floor, 590-2575);
Atelier 1 (10 Taras Shevchenko boulevard, 8-050-953-2363);
Anna Bublik (19 Gorkogo, 248-7678);
Goodbuyfashion (8-098-413-4644, 8-067-321-2755,
289-6983).
