Backstage, backstage, how I missed you…
I had to give up to all my fashion weeks plans for this season due to my full-on depressive mode and no money, even though I knew I would miss the fashion frenzy so much (especially the mood in the backstage!)
But a few weeks ago Marie (the best PR ever) mailed me “Would you like to do some backstage shooting at Miele catwalk?”
OF COURSE!!!
Miele catwalk is a multi-brand fashion show that takes place in Brussels every year, displaying the best of the ready-to-wear Belgian fashion for Fall-Winter (last year Belmodo asked me to make this illustration for the occasion, remember?)… How could I say no, especially when it happens half an hour away from home?
So here are some of the pictures I took… Actually I took more than 900 photos in one day (!) so there is much more to show you, but I’ll keep the photos of the catwalk for the following days.
The brands I followed the most backstage are Essentiel and Café Costume.
Essentiel models
Essentiel is a very nice brand from Antwerp that does both menswear and womenswear.
The owner and creative director of the brand is Inge Onsea and seriously, when you meet her you’re completely blown away by her energetic, strong and fascinating personality.
Inge Onsea ruling the fitting
I’m trying to find a way to meet her in her atelier because I really need to introduce her to you with a little interview and some pics, I’ve never met anyone like her in the fashion world (in the backstage she was directing the fitting, talking with journalists, fixing the details of the show, even steaming the clothes (!)… And all this while running on sky-high heels with the most contagious smile ever)
Some more images from the Essentiel fitting
The woman collection was very colorful and feminine (tomorrow I’ll post the photos from the shows so you can see the models in details) while the menswear collection was more preppy/college style (I loved the big sweaters, the huge wool scarves and the coats!)
Second brand I loved big time: Café Costume.
Models of Café Costume chilling before getting ready for the show
This Flemish brand (I should really visit their Gent store once to take more photos, the concept is great) makes tailored suits with a twist.
I like the fact that tailoring and slow fashion are being re-discovered these days and Café Costume embodies the perfect modern interpretation of a sartorial approach to menswear.
I loved the materials, rich but easy to wear at the same time (like the beautiful blends of cachemire), the classic cuts interpreted with a modern key (clean lines and the lengths) and the final touches (hyper-cool: the rider boots worn over the trousers).
And the choice of the models was the icing on the cake: they were chosen with a street-casting idea, so they were all “normal” men (not professional models) with such a charismatic and peculiar beauty that really gave an added value to the clothes and represented very well the concept of the brand. Brilliant.
Last minutes of relax before the preparations and the grooming step
God, it was so good to be back in action!
And seriously, spending the day running around with my camera and talking to some different people (especially spending the day with Immi and Marie and catching up with my beloved Tiany) was really therapeutic… Hope I’ll have more chances to get out of my “shell” more often in the future :-)
Stay tuned for the next posts, some photos of the show are coming!
Big kisses
Al
