Accessories by ASH was launched in the Summer of 2010, and was first noticed for its innovative knot jewelry collection, a reinterpretation of the classic nautical rope trend. Designer Allison Hertzberg picked up knotting techniques while doing a documentary on lobster fishermen in Maine, where she attended college. She then translated that knowledge to fashion, demonstrating that good design can be applied to areas where not first intended. Allison is a natural born crafter, who works full-time in the fashion industry and has used design as a creative outlet to channel the constant inspiration that New York City provides her.
The Fall collection focuses on more of an heirloom aesthetic, featuring vintage chain, layering pieces and fringe detailing. The mixing of metals produces an industrial feel yet still remains delicate. The Fall pieces are reminicent of disco and bohemian glamour, creating a unique look that is 100% wearable and stylish. A strong believer that one accessory can make an outfit, Allison strives to produce under-stated statement pieces. Allison makes all ASH pieces by hand in her East Village studio with love and increasingly poor eyesight.
http://www.accessoriesbyash.com/
Chelsea Sutrisno is an up and coming contemporary designer based in New York City. Chelsea spent her childhood in Jakarta, Indonesia and moved to Los Angeles in her early teens.
An alum of the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising, she holds a degree in Fashion Design. Her experience in the fashion industry includes work with BCBG Max Azria Group, Chanel and Gucci.
In late 2009 Chelsea launched the ChelseaSutrisno Label. Influenced by both the laid back attitude of Los Angeles and the edginess of New York City, Chelsea aims to provide simple yet modern style.
The label is defined by its sleek black silhouettes and seeks to change the concept of black on black.
By juxtaposing handpicked Fabrics of various textures, ChelseaSutrisno is forward, versatile and refined.
http://www.chelseasutrisno.com/homepage.html
BEDFORD STREET LAUNDRY founder and designer Jessica Yuen is a Queens-raised native New Yorker. She studied at Stuyvesant High School before pursuing fashion design at Parsons School of Design. She interned extensively at Donna Karan, Teen Vogue, and Mischen and spent her junior year abroad at Parsons Paris. However, it was the internship at CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist Ohne Titel that she credits for giving her a real glimpse at building a brand where originality and craftsmanship comes first.
After Parsons, Jessica began to explore the world of styling at New York Times T Magazine and Albright Fashion Library as well as interning for stylist Alistair McKimm. Within a year, she began producing custom pieces for several musicians including Sean “Diddy” Combs.
In 2009, Jessica’s family sold BEDFORD STREET LAUNDRY; the West Village landmark that funded her design education. It became the brand’s namesake and a lasting tribute to the company’s modest beginnings. The Fall 2010 capsule collection marks the official launch of a brand that not only focuses on fresh shapes and unexpected details but also honesty and a good dose of humor.
http://bedfordstreetlaundry.com/
INIMA is an emerging New York based womenswear label designed by Annie Kurz.
Born in Satu Mare, Romania to a German/Hungarian family Annie studied fashion and textile design at the Reutlingen University, Germany. Providing the tools in fashion technology and tailoring the university also encouraged experimentation with material, form and treating clothing like artwork.
Fashion became for the designer an art form restricted and inspired by the rules of the human body and by the purpose of the wearable garment itself. Her concepts are a connection between theory, emotion and high craftsmanship, which becomes the essence of the label.
INIMA translates from Romanian into “Heart”, from the Latin, “Anima” -Spirit, Life, Soul.
Each of the collections is a library of reflections like a personal diary created to capture a moment and a truth. The approach is a conceptual and critical one, in sense of questioning different forms of fashion’s appearance and meaning in society.
http://www.ocsikurz.de/inima/home.html
Born in Vancouver, jewelry designer Katherine Huie blends her innate west coast style with an east coast edge founded living in New York and currently Toronto. Following a degree in Fashion Design, Katherine’s love of vintage jewelry set against contemporary pieces inspired the line foe and dear. Founded in 2008 foe and dear reconstructs vintage items using new hardware, chains and gems for one of a kind, custom jewelry. Inspired by found objects foe and dear designs are original and custom made. Each pieces is crafted with a passion for design and a love of even the smallest of details. As a result, the wearer feels they have found something incredibly special, made just for them.
Few designers are bold enough to start their own clothing line straight out of fashion school, but that wasn’t the case for Sunghee Bang.
She received widespread acclaim at the Fashion Institute of Technology, where her designs won first place in both her Associate and Bachelor of Fine Art graduation shows, in Art and Knitwear respectively.
Sunghee enjoyed further success in competitions for The Fashion Group International (FGI), Go Red and Lululemon Athletics. Her steady stream of internships with New York designers Donna Karan, J Mendel, Jill Stuart and Peter Som allowed her to gain knowledge of the industry, and further developed her own unique vision.
In 2008, several of Sunghee’s print designs found their way into Alexander McQueen’s Spring-Summer 2009 collection. Her apprenticeship with this prestigious design house in London solidified her desire to be a big international designer in her own right.
At its core, minimal innovative shapes and exquisite tailoring define Sunghee’s aesthetic. Her meticulous techniques in patternmaking, knitting, and textiles give her ready-to-wear basics an understated allure and depth. Her designs reflect the idea that a touch of androgyny makes a woman more feminine, and minimalism is always sophisticated.
Born and raised in Seoul, Korea, Sunghee currently resides in Brooklyn.
In these rapidly changing times N:F:P fosters the concept of transition, transformation and evolution. Gail Travis has designed a collection of smart geometric shapes and styles that are of the moment, but not bound by time. Each piece has the ability to link, layer, fold, snap, shift or connect, creating a platform for personal expression. Ultimately encouraging each individual’s NEW FORM & PERSPECTIVE.
The knitted sweaters (NIT), hand felted dresses and tops (FELT) and foundation jersey pieces of tanks, bodysuits, and leggings (PHRAME) collectively present a unique line of architectural building blocks. N:F:P additionally offers a distinctive line of tunics, dresses and floor-length gowns using a signature felting technique, one of the oldest methods of fabric-making. NEW FORM PERSPECTIVE marries felting with diaphanous featherweight jerseys in subtle, muted colors creating stunning, sophisticated, modern foils for layering the knits.
N:F:P’s ability to turn upside-down, backwards, and creatively mold, secures the sustainability of each garment. It supports a more socially conscious and resourceful lifestyle through appreciation of highly designed, multi-functional product. Rooted in timeless architectural shapes, New Form Perspective’s goal is to encourage minimizing the disposable mindset of recent fashion, and increase awareness of fashion’s strength to be an enhancement to our basic environment and personal self. Ultimately sharing the beauty of fashion through it’s ability to be inventive and creative while maintaining a wearable artform, NFP positively motivates each individual towards a more personalized interaction between designer and consumer.
Designer Gail Travis resides in Beacon, NY. She works out of her studio, tucked away in room #202A in the old Beacon High School that has been converted to an artist cooperative. After working in the high-end fashion design world in NYC for the past 10 years, for companies such as Calvin Klein, Shelly Steffee, and Vera Wang, she has fatefully been guided to design her own brand free from mainstream trends. Her collection is inspired by her surroundings, personal interactions, experience of movement, and architecture and sculpture. Ultimately these inspirations morph into the modular, building-block nature of her designs.
coh. N, a collection of fluid separates designed by Ra chel Cohen, a Parsons Alumni was born from her interest in the relationship people have to their clothes.
Her collection offers a new way to dress, a wardrobe that transcends age and trends.
Simplified shapes in luxurious fabrics are the response to her will to create something with longevity and versatility.
Silhouettes often drape from a seamless square-shaped fabric and double as urban camouflage. Each piece is unstructured enough to mold to the wearer’s natural shoulder and hips.
Raised in Kansas and currently living and designing in Manhattan’s Lower East Side, Kara Laricks is a graduate of the Academy of Art in San Francisco. Kara debuted her womenswear collection during New York fashion week in September of 2008.
Equally inspired by the rigidity of her suburban grid upbringing as she is by the diversity and energy of both San Francisco and New York City, Kara’s design aesthetic reflects her love of opposites and a desire to blur the lines that divide. Her designs are clean, thoughtful and functional.
COLLAR, STAND + TIE is Kara’s debut accessory line of ties for both men and women. Conceived of Kara’s love for the androgynous avant-garde and traditional menswear elements, Collar, Stand + Tie presents a “never before seen” accessory for Dapper Dans, the Poindexter chic and for those who stand confidently (and stylishly) apart from the crowd.
Made in New York City from the finest cotton and silk/wool blends, each tie is designed to compliment an existing wardrobe. Pair Collar, Stand + Tie with any button-down, jacket, pair of trousers or jeans, sneakers or wingtips - even a vintage dress to create an original, signature look.
http://www.collarstandtie.com/index.html
KEY BY KHOI LE was sprouted from the concept of absolute simplicity and utility for accessories, without sacrificing taste or a unique aesthetic. Each piece has a direct tangible relationship with the interactions with society as well every day life. Khoi Le has attended the Parsons School of Design for fashion design as well as The Fashion institute of Technology for Accessories Design. He has also worked under Bliss Lau for her innovative handbags and jewelry line as well as Marc Jacobs for Collections Footwear.
He splits his time in New York and Northern California always encroaching into inspiration every step of the way.
View some of Khoi's work here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/43846688@N06/
NICO & J presents modern textile jewelry that evokes the sense of touch. Using unique fabrics, fur and other found objects is what sets these pieces apart. The line launched in Fall 2009 with colorful spandex necklaces. Now, it has evolved to funky statement pieces that beg to be touched. Whether from an abandoned chandelier found on Park Avenue, junk shop artifacts, or recycled fake fur from toy designers, Nico & J accessories tell stories.
Jocelyn Negron works from her home studio in Brooklyn, New York. She graduated from The University of Georgia with a BFA in Digital Media in 2008. In addition to designing jewelry and clothing, Jocelyn works at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City.
EIGHTEENTH explores the design possibilities of the beloved tee with a collection of shirts that are innovative, yet never over the top. The shirts combine unique detailing with a minimalist sensibility, focusing on bold geometric cutouts and asymmetrical necklines to compliment the soft fabric and clean silhouettes. The result is a tee that is anything but basic.
CODY SAI ADLER-MCALLISTER moved to New York at the age of 18 from his home town Berkeley, California. He began his degree for Fine Arts at Pratt Institute, and was introduced through a family friend to internationally recognized designer Koos Van Den Akker, famous for his collage like patchwork and the Cosby sweaters in the 1980’s. Koos gave Cody his first glimpse into the Fashion Industry and has since acted as his greatest teacher/mentor.
Cody then attended the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City, where he graduated with a degree in Fashion Design. While getting his education at F.I.T., he interned at several show rooms and independent design companies. He currently works at Jed Root Inc., an agency that represents some of the top Photographers, Stylists, Hair and Make up Artists, including editors at Vogue, Elle, Vanity Fair and numerous other publications.
Eager to get back into the creative side of fashion, he decided to launch a small collection for Spring 2010. CODY SAI Spring 2010 is a casual ready to wear collection, focusing on subtle details, fabric comfort and natural colors.
http://codysai.com/codysai/CodySai.html
JESICA MILTON creates minimalist garments with a feminine sensibility. Jesica is passionate about creating garments that are versatile, wearable, and current. The spring 2010 collection features classic warm weather staples with a slouchy, borrowed from boyfriend appeal. Linen trousers and cotton shirtdresses are updated with metallic coatings, a quirky abstract print, and English lace peek-a-boo cut-outs. Each garment is thoughtfully designed and crafted in Jesica's Seattle based studio using fair trade labor.
http://jesicamilton.com//index.php
TITANIA INGLIS designs clothing for the modern woman: effortless, essential, cutting edge. Experimental construction and functional details elevate these signature pieces into the realm of high design working for daily life. Her debut collection plays on a series of dichotomies: girl/boy, yesterday/tomorrow, structured/relaxed, natural/industrial.
The underlying element of sustainability is a given for a designer who looks towards minimalism as a matter of taste, as well as a method to avoid waste. Each piece is sewn by expert seamstresses in New York’s garment district out of organic linen or Japanese organic cotton.
Titania studied at the ultra-conceptual Design Academy Eindhoven and apprenticed under Camilla Stærk, ThreeAsFour, and Jean Yu before launching her solo line.
KALLISTI DESIGNS are made to adorn and flatter the body while making a statement effortlessly. A Kallisti body chain can be worn multiple ways for a distinctly different look and can complement an outfit in ways unlike other accessories. The concept is founded on creating bold designs composed of minimalist elements to make strong, edgy patterns with careful attention to how they drape on the body. The current collection focuses on designs that are both industrial, yet flowing, with designs for both women and men.
Xing Xu is a resident New Yorker and has a background in fine arts. In addition to designing jewelry she is also a fashion and arts producer. Xing is involved in fashion, performance arts, film and event production. She is currently the organizer of Brooklyn Fashion Festival.
http://www.kallistifashion.com/
MELANY B WIMPEE is a Brooklyn-based multi-disciplinary designer. She began her design education at Brooklyn's Pratt Institute, focusing in Interior Design and expanding her design sensibility to include furniture design, jewelry, bookmaking and accessory design. Stemming from this broad base of training, Ms. Wimpee's work seeks to incorporate the commonalities of construction methods and design philosophy found in these distinct fields.
Ms. Wimpee launched her design company, MelanyBE, in 2009. MelanyBE currently carries accessory, jewelry, and custom book product lines, all of which seek to balance aesthetics and practical fabrication. Every item is handcrafted in Brooklyn. Each piece in the MelanyBE collection is intended to stand out with dramatic scale and finishes. By pushing the boundaries of materiality and construction techniques, MelanyBE offers products that are completely unique and innovative. Utilizing these same design concepts in the realm of fashion, MelanyBE is planning to incorporate a clothing line that will debut within a couple years.