Oct 12, 20223 min read

LAFW Blazes Los Angeles🔥

Updated: Sep 2, 2023

The buzz of LAFW had the city of Los Angeles on fire before the weekend of festivities, private events, panel discussions and fashion shows had even begun. New venues, new owners (N4XT Experiences), new LAFW. Carefully selected fashion brands were showcased at the Lighthouse ArtSpace, home to the immersive Van Gogh exhibit and cutting edge events. The space was like a blank canvas. A large venue for designers to create their own world through projected designs on the walls and movable white seating blocks for the curated shows. The experience was chic, modern, and had a refreshing take on the LAFW we love so much.

The variety of events and panel discussions provided for L.A. Fashion Week were a breath of fresh air and felt long overdue. It placed its bet in the world of fashion. It was as if the fashion community near and far were able to connect in a way not provided in the past Los Angeles Fashion Week experiences.

Our first day started on Friday to experience the Francis Libiran and Avel Bacudio fashion shows. Both shows stunned and wowed the crowd. Francis Libiran played with poppy pastels over tailored suits, layered chiffon, draped long trains, sultry cut-outs and woven statement pieces. Avel Bucadio stayed within the black and white color scheme and slayed in lightly layered chiffons, tailored button up's, floor length bottoms and ornately woven floral suit jackets. There was a classically timeless element to every look -not overdone, just right.

On our second day of LAFW festivities we were joined by actress and young activist Taylor Mosby to attend the fashion shows of Attachments, Gypsy Sport and Revice Denim.

The fashion show for Attachments left a significant impact on me. It began the moment the line started to wrap around the Lighthouse ArtSpace. We noticed a homeless man attempting to interact with the guests in line, asking more money and walking around. Due to the homeless population in Los Angeles, specifically Hollywood, it is very common to see and come across homeless people. As the guests attempted to not interact with the homeless man, many appeared to be uncomfortable. To our surprise, it was a social experiment for the Attachments fashion show. The show began with a beautiful solo symphony from a violinist, placed in the center of the runway. As he played, the same man appearing to be homeless came through the room and walked through the crowd. He was an actor, it was shocking. The juxtaposition of the elitist world of fashion through not only our reality as guests attending, but the paying of the violinist and the reality of what so many go through just outside of those walls -crashed in that instant. A guest even acknowledged him as he walked past the violinist. It was perfect. It was a mirror to the audience that they could not just get up and walk away from. It was genius. The garments were composed of many layers -reconstructed suits, vests and puffer outerwear. The models creatively and freely dominated the space collectively and individually each with their own story. They adorned make-up that visibly indicated the aftermath of a fight or living on the street - as they acted out their lives and interaction with one another. It was a moment I won't forget.

The shows for Gypsy Sport and Revice Demin were perfect compliments of each other, while standing completely on their own. Revice Denim offered contemporary looks and with a sultry edge through cut-outs, midriff reveling tops, and low-rise bottoms reminiscent of the the early 2000's. The show sparked as fireworks projected onto the walls during the finale. Gypsy sport was daring and tackled norms with an "out of this world" approach befitting its Saturn-like logo. The logo adorned most of its garments as others, were layered and flamboyant. The designer played with plaids and sequins over see-through garments. If there was one thing for sure, Gypsy sport was not going to go unnoticed.