Amid the backdrop of war, Los Angeles’ Fashion Week began with a moving display of eveningwear by Lever Couture, designed by Ukrainian-born, L.A.-based designer Lessja Verlingieri. 

Sergio Hudson, Cult Gaia, Brunello Cucinelli, Ulla Johnson, Prada, Gucci, and Balenciaga are some of the notable brands that are participating in various L.A. events, including dinners, parties, and runway shows that are planned throughout the remainder of the year.

Lessja Verlingieri initiated the week’s fashion festivities at the Barker Hangar in Santa Monica, drawing attention from celebrities like Milla Jovovich, Geena Davis, Johnny Wujek, and Martin Katz. The designer is well-known for dressing stars like Lady Gaga, Jennifer Lopez, and Tems, a singer who wore a viral cloudlike gown at last year’s Oscars.

“Lessja is a close friend of mine, she designed my dress for Cannes last year, and I think it’s important for us Ukrainian girls to support each other, and I had to be here tonight to give her a good rock to lean on,” Jovovich told WWD, adding that the designer’s work “is sculptural but also respectful to a woman’s body. She’s a woman designing for women.”

Backstage, Verlingieri, who last showed in Tokyo in 2022, was reflective. “I love L.A. and I want to make a mark here,” she told WWD of her couture-like gowns. “The collection is supposed to [imitate] emotion, reflect our state going from light to wild, strong silver to happy flowers, then white to black. Because we have in our lives a lot of sadness — especially with everything happening now.”

A pillar of light stood at the top of her runway, and the show began with a voiceover of Charlie Chaplin’s famous speech from “The Great Dictator,” which makes a case for humanity in a time of evil, in his case, Nazi Germany.

On the runway, Verlingieri’s collection featured ethereal mesh goddess ensembles, gowns adorned with flowing metallic streamers, and striking ribbon fringe outfits.

Every ensemble featured in the collection is deserving of the red carpet treatment. However, difficulties persist in light of the ongoing SAG-AFTRA strike impacting the fashion industry. Nonetheless, Verlingieri remains committed, stating “It’s hard, but I cannot stop doing what I love and what I feel.”

L.A. Fashion Week’s history has been marked by a tumultuous journey, featuring competing producers, divergent missions, and ever-changing locations. However, this season, the show is being orchestrated by N4XT Experiences and has garnered recognition from the Council of Fashion Designers of America, with the aspiration of rekindling the enchantment of its past editions.

This year’s L.A. Fashion Week lineup includes Sergio Hudson, Gypsy Sport, Simkhai, Claude Kameni, No Sesso, Theophilio, Luis De Javier, Neon Cowboys, BruceGlen, TomBogo, Saintwoods, Advisry, Sami Miro Vintage, AnOnlyChild, and Demobaza, among others. The event promises to offer a diverse range of collections and styles. The LAFW event will also include celebrity guests, stylists, media coverage, and international press.

The partnership with software giant SAP has enabled N4XT to offer interactive shopping experiences. The event will also feature a BeautyLab installation in collaboration with Lancôme, allowing the public to engage and explore these fashion brands.

Noah Kozlowski, the new vice president and head of designer relations, is spearheading L.A. Fashion Week, ensuring that the event provides designers with ample space to tell their stories and showcase well-made garments. He has created opportunities for smaller brands to shine, emphasizing creativity and quality craftsmanship. The event has strategically been scheduled after the global fashion month to allow designers to have more time for creativity.

Kozlowski shared with WWD, “Launching another main fashion week hub in another city, especially in a place where a lot of manufacturing takes place, will have a lot of impact not only for L.A., but for fashion as a whole. Everyone was interested in knowing the possibilities,” he mentioned, highlighting the widespread enthusiasm among designers he approached for their participation.

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The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted Fashion Weeks worldwide, but this past Saturday, Feb. 13,  fashion fans got a treat from Flying Solo that hosted an in-person runway show on a SoHo rooftop. Even though it was 30 degrees Fahrenheit outside, the models and guests braced the cold, hungry for beauty and a sense of normalcy.

There were six one-hour outdoor shows, and by the beginning of the sixth show, it started snowing a little bit and the runway became icy, making it almost impossible for models to walk in heels. A staff member tried to wipe down the runway without pausing the show, cleaning with the cloth in front of walking models. They slipped many times, but were able to close the show strong, encouraged by the supportive guests who cheered. One of the models was seen crying from the frustration and the disturbing scene raised a question — is it worth suffering for fashion? 

“We tried our best to wipe the runway down but it was still very slippery for models in heels. They were really the heroes of the show and did an amazing job despite the cold conditions,” said Katie Lares, one of the original designers who helped build Flying Solo.

Flying Solo is an innovative company that gives brands that are ready to expand into new markets a platform to succeed through membership-based retail stores, leading-edge PR-showroom, and Fashion Weeks in New York, Paris, and Milan.

During a time when a lot of retail stores have closed down due to the pandemic, Flying Solo not only stayed afloat but has also expanded in size, moving the old flagship location to a bigger venue on 420 W Broadway, formerly a Karl Lagerfeld and a DKNY Store.

Managing Director and Co-founder of Flying Solo Elizabeth Solomeina said they always knew that their innovative membership-based retail model was the only way forward, and this year has proved that correct. “Small brands have no resources to afford standalone stores in areas like Soho, NYC. They also can no longer afford to do quality large-scale shows on their own,” she said. 

“We chose to do a live NYFW show even though it meant significantly more work for us at Flying Solo. It was also extremely challenging to execute in order to comply with all the safety regulations. It would’ve been much easier to organize and host a virtual show but we believed that this was a big moment for independent brands. It was their chance to get significantly more attention so we could not let them down and let the opportunity slip through their fingers,” Solomeina said. 

One of the Australian designers, Vijay Naidoo of Tattva/Truth Desi Streetwear, said she received the invite to NYFW last minute and questioned if she would be able to pull off the show. “Of course with the pandemic at hand, I wasn’t able to fly to New York. Not being able to go meant I had to design a new collection in 10 days! Being under that pressure was both challenging and enlightening. But we successfully managed to get everything to New York on time.”

Planning the fashion show during the pandemic presented unique challenges. In the past years, Flying Solo presented their fashion shows indoors, but for the past two seasons, they showed outside. “Safety was definitely our number one priority, and we wanted to make sure that we kept our guests and staff safe during the event. Everyone was required to wear a mask and temperature checks for staff were mandatory,” Solomeina said. 

Flying Solo showcased 83 brands from 18 countries including clothing, jewelry, shoes, bags, and other accessories. The clothing in the collections ranged from everyday streetwear and athleisure to more extravagant pieces and even swimsuits. Some of the looks that stood out to us the most were the dramatic and provocative designs by Prey Public, vibrant and colorful by Alexandra Popescu-York and Amari Monee, and stunning, dreamy pastel pieces by Hala Al Mamari. 

Romanian-born designer Alexandra Popescu-York, established in New York for more than a decade, said the message behind her collection “HOT mess” was a feeling of hope and vitality– hence, the bright colors. “I think we all came out from a year of pandemic a little shaken up, a little afraid, a little bored, a little messed up but that doesn’t mean we cannot be A HOT Mess. I am very emotional and emphatic with the situation that the whole world is in, and the situation is not a “pink” one. 2020 was a terrible year for all humanity. I chose to rise up and fight in my own way, as an artist and designer, to fight fear, to try to inspire myself and others for a better and beautiful future,” she said.  

Popescu-York gave credit to Flying Solo for putting up a show during these challenging conditions.  “Personally I didn’t feel the cold because my adrenaline was very high and all I felt was happiness and excitement!”

Multiple models that we spoke to also said that the adrenaline rush helped them endure the cold. 

As for the question of whether fashion is worth suffering for, opinions vary. 

“I absolutely love fashion and the creativity that goes into it. People work hard for their vision, designers dream of seeing their work on display and I enjoy seeing and hearing about their success. As long as I am treated respectfully and they know my worth and believe their vision would not be harmful to their model then yes, it’s worth it. It makes you want to try harder to do your best if you feel valued,” model Janine Tondu said. 

“Would I do it again? Yes,” she said. “The runway was slippery but the team was backstage trying to attach rubber soles to our shoes to aid us.”

Model Aleka Ward had a different opinion. “People say beauty is pain, but that’s a different type of pain. Personally, I wouldn’t do it again in those conditions but it was definitely worth the experience,” she said. 

After all, everyone’s testing out a new normal during these unprecedented times, and learning as they go. Perhaps in the future, Flying Solo can install a carpet on the runway or fake grass so the runway has better grip. Only time will tell. 

The post Flying Solo Fashion Show: Cold Weather & Icy Runway appeared first on The Urban Watch Magazine.