Wear What When Blog

Trunk Show Slideshow

Erdem at Nordstrom Bellevue

Photos from the designer trunk show.

Posted by: Heather Fink on Oct 25, 2011 at 07:00AM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

SLIDESHOW: Erdem’s trunk show at Bellevue’s Nordstrom was like sunshine on an otherwise gray day.

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If there’s one place where resort collections should fly off the shelves, it’s Seattle at the onset of the grey season—at least Nordstrom hopes so.

On Saturday, October 22 at 12, the Bellevue Square outpost hosted the up-and-coming Canadian/Turkish/British designer Erdem Moralioglu and showed pieces from his latest fall, resort, and spring/summer collections. Guests at the event sipped champagne, mingled with the designer, and even sported the intricately pretty dresses alongside the real models.

The resort collection was the perfect mix of lux wintery velvet and breezy silk. Prints looked like products of some jewel-toned paint fight that broke out in the textile workshop. I’m sure Erdem (he’s like Cher and Madonna when it comes to names) won’t mind if you want to cheat, and wear one to a holiday party or two.

The pastel floral prints and whimsical lace of the spring/summer looks were enough to make any southern belle swoon, and to make all of us Seattle girls hope that Erdem has the power to summon sun rays out of the clouds.

Check out the slideshow, and come back to it for inspiration during the gloomy days of midwinter.

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Tags: Eastside, Seattle Trunk Show, Nordstrom

Slideshow

Splendid’s Bellevue Opening

Photos from the October 22 opening craft-a-thon.

Posted by: Seattle Met staff on Oct 24, 2011 at 04:00PM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

Photo: Diane Bolme

SLIDESHOW: The new Splendid shop in Bellevue Square opened with a splash—of color that is.

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Circling back on the Splendid store event we told you about on October 6, here’s a slideshow of images from the positively positive opening celebration.

Crafty LA mom Karen Kimmel (remember that name, her buzz is only growing louder and louder) and her Crafting Community projects are all about changing the world one plant-cozy-making family at a time. Eastsiders and Seattleites alike got to take their turn with the conceptual artist who makes things real, and real fun.

Crafts were crafted, cookies were dunked in milk, and dads chased kids around a family-size playpen. Safe to say Splendid felt a warm welcome.

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Tags: Eastside, Grand Opening, Seattle DIY, Family Friendly

Fashionable Giving

Bravern Fall Fashion Fundraiser

Seattle-area moms are gaining momentum…

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Oct 24, 2011 at 01:00PM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

Seattle author and stylist Pia Jacobsen shares this season’s picks with guests at the Bravern. I met the former Nordstrom exec about a year or so ago, and she told me that whole Britney-Spears-flashing-her-unmentionables moment was a turning point for her; she realized she needed to share her knowledge of style and etiquette with America’s young women.

Where: The Shops at the Bravern; Suite 120, the former Artisanal space

What: A Night of Fall Fashion is a fall style event and fundraiser for MOMentum, a movement aimed at installing outdoor adult fitness equipment in parks near playgrounds.

The event’s host is Pia Jacobsen—local stylist, former Nordstrom exec, and author of pia…me a book about developing personal style. “I’m thrilled to be a part of the Fall Night of Fashion because I admire MOMentum’s mission to give moms their own place to exercise in our local parks,” says Jacobsen. “I’m looking forward to sharing tips on how women can look fabulous this holiday season.”

MOMentum cofounders Paige Green Dunn and Kelly Singer (of Sassy Fit) believe that “healthy moms raise healthy families.” Their outdoor gyms offer “low impact cardio equipment and strengthening machines that focus on the areas moms care about most: arms, abs, hips and thighs.” The well-placed gyms require no electricity—they’re powered by people.

In addition to live models wearing Jacobsen’s seasonal picks from the Bravern’s shops, Wild Ginger will serve appetizers and guests will have an opportunity to win raffle prizes from Velocity Art and Design, Calidora Skin Clinic, lululemon, and other area vendors.

When: Wednesday, October 26 from 7 to 10; tickets may be purchased for $50 through Brown Paper Tickets. A limited number of VIP tickets are available for $150, which includes a private pre-shopping party and champagne reception.

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Tags: Eastside, Seattle Fashion Show

Shop Opening Celebration

New! Splendid at Bellevue Square

The popular knit-jersey line celebrates family style with Kimmel Kids’ Karen Kimmel.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Oct 06, 2011 at 01:00PM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

Splendid x Karen Kimmel x Crafting Community = Vibrant color play, fun family time, cool accessories and layering elements. Create some of it for yourself at the new Splendid store in Bellevue Square on Saturday, October 22.

As of October 14, Bellevue Square has a new occupant: Splendid.

The brand is well-known to those who have found its pint-size hoodies and Modal maxis inside department and specialty stores; this is the line’s first stand-alone Northwest shop.

To introduce the less familiar and get to know fans better, Splendid is hosting an all ages craft day on Saturday, October 22 from 1 to 3 with LA hipster mom Karen Kimmel.

Thanks to similar events with the Ace Hotel, museums, art galleries, and other Splendid-sponsored spaces, the artist has a cult following of cool parents. After spending a few hours designing an all natural, super soft, on trend Splendid scarf with your six year old, you’ll likely find yourself happily drinking the legitimately cool Kool-Aid too.

Called Crafting Community, the October 22 event, and others like it, are all about fusing families through making and doing. In addition to on-trend scarves, you and your brood can craft necklaces and bracelets and other accessory items.

The event is free, and four guests will even score a $250 shopping experience at the new store.

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Tags: Eastside, Seattle Kids' Style, Art Events, New Seattle Boutiques

Exhibit

Three Reasons to See BAM’s Latin Jewelry Show

What you’ll learn at the Belleuve Arts Museum’s exhibition of narrative, evocative accessories.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Jul 15, 2011 at 07:15AM Speech Bubble 1 Comments

Miguel Luciano’s platnum-plated plantain is part of BAM’s exhibit of Latin American jewelry. The show will explode your definition of “jewelry,” open your eyes to new ways of storytelling, and inspire all kinds of ideas about personal expression.

With more than 130 examples of body adornment from 90 artists representing 25 countries in Bellevue Arts Museum’s Think Twice: New Latin American Jewelry there are infinite reasons to spend some time inside the exhibit’s two intimate, story-filled rooms. Here are my top three:

1. Beauty sometimes comes from math and history. I’m always open to the historical perspective but rarely do I think of numbers and equations influencing style and aesthetics. I’m just not wired to consider things that way, but Luis Acosta’s Quipus, brooches made with paper and thread, reference ancient Incan record-keeping knots that kept encoded numerical data. To the modern trend-watching, style-hunting eye, the elegant, deceptively complex red and white pieces would seem to be ancestors to the current crop of colorful, soft, knotted and wound necklaces that keep showing up on racks and runways.

2. You don’t know bling. Teresa Margolles’ Ajuste de Cuentas will school you. Based on the gawdy, showy accessories of Mexican drug lords and fabricated by jeweler who often works for drug dealers, her rings contain 18 karat gold, diamonds, and thick, glistening shards of windshield glass taken from drug-related crime scenes.

3. Bling sometimes comes from history. Miguel Luciano works with popular culture, consumer culture, and colonialism in his work; his platinum-plated plantain (yes, a real plantain) is a study of high gloss and fruit rot. Pictured here, the necklace looks like something a 90s rapper would’ve sported at the MTV awards. Inside, the banana from 2006 is far less glamorous.

The show , previously only shown at the Museum of Art and Design in New York City, has been up since the end of May; it runs through October 16.

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Tags: Visual Art, Eastside, Bellevue Arts Museum

UPDATED Runway: Zandra Rhodes, The Stranger, FACE, and Trends for Treehouse

Save these dates for upcoming fashion events around town.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Mar 29, 2011 at 08:00AM Speech Bubble 2 Comments

Brit designer Zandra Rhodes appears at a spring 11 runway show of her couture looks at Neiman Marcus on April 7; the incricate costumes she designed for Seattle Opera’s Magic Flute will be on display inside the store from April 1 through April 10.

Who says there are never any fashion events in this town? Here are four to put on your calendar now.

EDITED Where: Neiman Marcus

What: Together with the Seattle Opera, the Bravern anchor brings the super-colorful Brit designer Zandra Rhodes to town for a look at the couture looks in her spring ‘11 collection. Ms. Rhodes designed the costumes for the Seattle Opera’s production of the Magic Flute; those pieces will be on display in the store from April 1 through April 10.

When: ~~Thursday, April 7; Seattle Opera is taking reservations for the event. Call 206-676-5568 or visit www.seattleopera.org/zandrarhodesevent for more information.~~

THERE HAS BEEN A CHANGE TO THIS EVENT Zandra Rhodes will be making a public appearance at Neiman Marcus on Friday, April 8 from 1 to 4. There will not be a runway show, but her spring ‘11 collection will be modeled and on display. This event is free and open to the public. Her costumes for the Opera’s Magic Flute production will still be on display from April 1 through April 10 in the Neiman Marcus windows.

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Where: ACT Theatre

What: The Stranger presents the first annual Worn Out, in which some up-and-coming Seattle designers (some of whom you’ve seen here and here and here) show their stuff.

The weekly paper has asked yours truly to help judge a Vitamin Water–sponsored contest portion of the event, so I’m looking forward to that. At least I think I am.

When: Friday, April 8; tickets are $20 and they’re on sale now.

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Where: Pnk Ultra Lounge

What: This year’s FACE promises all the big city glamor of year’s past—the runway looks are from Barneys, the models are top talent from local agencies, the crowd is exactly the kind you want to be a part of. Of course, the benefactors—homeless and orphaned children in schools built entirely with Seattle dollars in Nepal and India—are exactly the kind you want to be involved with also.

When: Tuesday, April 26; tickets range from $50 to $125 and are available through Brown Paper Tickets.

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Where: Westfield Shopping Center

What: Trends for Treehouse raises funds to provide area foster children with the help and services that they don’t otherwise have access to. The show also puts hot looks from Banana Republic, Escape Outdoors, Gap, The Limited, Macy’s, and more on the runway.

When: Thursday, May 12; tickets are $50

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Tags: Eastside, Seattle Fashion Show, Fundraiser, FACE, Barneys

Free Stuff! Tickets for Voila!

Win free tickets for Kirkland’s premier wedding show at the Woodmark.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Mar 02, 2011 at 11:30AM Speech Bubble 1 Comments

SLIDESHOW: Voila 2010 at the Woodmark in Kirkland. This year’s show promises to be equally stunning.

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Remember a few weeks back we hit you with a whole string of Seattle and Eastside wedding shows and fun meet-and-try opportunities? Among them is Voila!, at the Woodmark in Kirkland; co-founder BreeAnn Gale of Pink Blossom Events has two tickets to give away and they’re going to readers of this blog. See the slideshow here to get a look at last year’s very successful event.

For access to seasonal food and decor ideas, top photographers, beauty and fitness experts, cake bakers and bouquet makers, and more on Sunday March 20, email me (just once; multiple emailers will be disqualified) with the subject line, “Voila!” Do include the best email address or phone number to use if you win. Please use the address wearwhatwhen (@) seattlemet.com

Emails must be received by 6pm on Tuesday, March 8; a winner will be selected at random from the qualified entrants on the morning of Wednesday, March 9 and emailed or called that day. The winner and his/her guest can pick up tickets at the event, at the check-in desk.

It’s worth mentioning that once you get there, there will be another chance to win. Voila! organizers are giving away a Sonoma wine weekend. Details are available at the show.

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Tags: Kirkland, Eastside, Seattle Wedding Details, Wedding Show

Virtual Reality: Cecil + Edith

The life and times of a Bellevue gal’s online boutique, via a slideshow.

Posted by: Malika Ritchie on Feb 28, 2011 at 08:00AM Speech Bubble 2 Comments

SLIDESHOW: For Cecil + Edith, Armour repurposes grain sacks and quality leather. ‘I love how they have a useful history. When they become market bags, they’ll live on to have a useful future.’

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Taiwan native and Bellevue resident Joanna Armour calls an Esty shop known as Cecil + Edith her workplace. There, among other things, she makes leather-handled market bags by repurposing old rice bags.

‘It began because I was hoarding this collection of vintage grain sacks,’ says Armour. ‘I always imagine them riding on someone’s shoulder to the farmer’s market and being filled with organic produce and flowers. I love that they live on to have a useful future.’

Find out more about Armour’s process and the history behind her shopping bags in the slideshow.

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Tags: Bellevue, Eastside, Etsy.com, Seattle Etsy, Virtual Reality

New Store: Ann Taylor

The concept: Ann got cool.

Posted by: Sarah Hirsch on Nov 01, 2010 at 07:00AM Speech Bubble 1 Comments

Slideshow: We heart you too, Ann, and your new Bellevue Square shop.

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Bellevue Square has a new resident. Sort of. The Ann Taylor store got a facelift. It’s now stocked with chunky sweaters and feathered handbags and there are Chanel and Richard Avedon coffee table books laying around. Accessories have been cheekily renamed ‘covetables,’ there are chandeliers, and vases of monochromatic flowers. There are a few private dressings rooms, but there’s also a communal area with a three-way mirror and couches. It’s not your mother’s Ann Taylor; the new store is girlfriend-y.

Situated on the second floor, directly across from J Crew (more on that in a minute), the gleaming white storefront all but cries out, “Hey, girl!,” to twenty-something shoppers.

We attended the store’s grand opening last week, where director of public relations, Andrew Taylor, (no relation) told us the new vibe isn’t necessarily about a younger client, but ‘being inviting to all ages.’ So is the concept behind the new ‘concept store’ (their words; the Bellevue shop is only the second such environment for the brand) based being fresher and cooler? Taylor allowed for that, and added, ‘And intimate and chic.’

Fair enough. But if you get a whiff of Juicy Couture-meets-Express-times-that aforementioned neighbor, we’re right there with you.

After the AT’s fall 2010 New York Fashion Week shows last winter, national fashion media like the online fav Refinery29 were all abuzz with praise with the line. Prior to that, even style.com and the New York Times were friendly to the recession-friendly brand, especially when it came affixed to leopard print dresses. (Paging Michelle Obama…) And did you hear about the little sheath dress that sold out in two days and started fetching tidy prices on eBay this past spring?

Alright. So how did Ann Taylor get cool? Well, for one, it turns out the brand got a new senior vice president of design: Lisa Axelson. Fresh outta Club Monaco (whose papa is Ralph Lauren), she brings a knack for stylish classics trend-referencing twists. And it may not just be the ‘concept’ stores that are ‘cool.’ The whole Naomi Watts thing doesn’t hurt (she’s cooler than your mom, right?) And, A-list editorial stylists like Kate Young have been tapped for in-store promotions and parties at the brand’s Loft locations. Kristin Rawson, AT’s style director says the tweaks and style turns are all about how they’ve, ‘continued with the classics of Ann Taylor, but updated [the line] to make it more modern and elegant.’

And, you might find, covetable.

Check the slideshow here for more, and watch this video from the recent Fashion’s Night Out.

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Tags: Bellevue, new, Eastside, Retail News

What’s Your Take On… Studded Ugg boots?

Jimmy Choo + Ugg Boot capsule collection is on tour now.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Sep 24, 2010 at 08:00AM Speech Bubble 4 Comments

Kind of wondering how those studs would hold up in the snow.

Where: Jimmy Choo at the Bravern

What: You either love them or hate them. There’s no real in-between. And there’s certainly nothing sexy about them, which is why it takes a minute to ingest the news that Jimmy Choo’s Tamara Mellon took on a capsule collection of Ugg Boots for fall/winter.

‘Other than Jimmy Choo, UGG Australia is really the only other footwear I have in my wardrobe,’ says Mellon. ‘I wear it at home in New York, on holiday in Malibu, and as an essential travel accessory. We are delighted to have created a special capsule that captures the best of both brands — the legendary comfort of UGG with the spirit of Jimmy Choo.’

And that’s where it begins to make sense, huh? If you spent all day in these# you might be looking for something like this by dinnertime. And hey, the high heelers have teamed up with Hunter, too. Kinda makes you wonder what’s next … Doc Marten? Timberland? Crocs??

Jimmy Choo’s Ugg collection includes a charcoal diamond Donegal cable knit, cream and black zebra prints, natural leopard prints, printed metallics, and studs, fringe, gold grommets, rivets, and other blingy details. They go for between $595 and $795.

The companies are only distributing them within their own stores, and they’re expecting such a great response that they’ve sent the boots out on a world tour so that customers can pre-order them. Can you feel it? The line is in your area as we speak, but only for a limited time. You can try the collection out now in Bellevue, and order and pay for them — they’ll be on your feet after October 21.

When: Now through Monday September 27

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Tags: Eastside, Shoes, Bravern, What's Your Take On...

Just Landed: Sofie Olgaard

Catch the Danish-by-way-of-SF minimalist’s fall collection at Zebra Club, Canopy Blue, and Seduce.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Aug 30, 2010 at 08:00AM Speech Bubble 0 Comments

Slideshow: San Francisco designer Sofie Olgaard’s fall collection in Seattle stores … soon

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Where: Zebra Club, Canopy Blue, and Seduce

What: Dark, minimal, a little goth, somewhat romantic, not-so-basic fall basics by San Francisco’s Sofie Olgaard. The Scandinavian native’s San Fran-angled sensibilities feel right at home in Seattle. Check the slideshow and see if you agree.

When: Zebra Club gets the first shipment on August 30, Canopy Blue gets its ruffled-shoulder, backless black blouses and other pieces in mid-September, and Seduce adds the line to their brand list in October.

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Tags: Eastside, New for Fall, Just Landed, New in Stores

Wedding Wednesday

Sale: Goodbye to Voletta Couture

Bellevue bridal boutique liquidates stock.

Posted by: Laura Cassidy on Aug 25, 2010 at 07:00AM Speech Bubble 3 Comments

Slideshow: Designer wedding gowns from Voletta Couture will be marked from 50 to 75 percent off the weekend of Sept 10, 11, and 12.

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Where: 3150 W Government Way, Ste 1B, Seattle

What: Listen, sit down. We have to talk. Voletta Couture in Bellevue, once among the premier wedding boutiques, is gone. It’s not certain at this point whether the shop will reopen, so all of the existing stock—wedding, bridesmaid, and mother-of-the-bride gowns as well as shoes, veils, and accessories—must be sold. Most of the gowns to be sold are a bridal size 10, which translates to a street size 8; reps at the sale will be referring customers to the shop’s former seamstress for alterations.

Voletta carried Amsale, Kenneth Pool, Christos, Badgley Mischka, Anne Barge, Oscar de la Renta, and Reem Acra among other lines. You can expect to see gowns from those makers marked down from 50 to 75 percent. Flip through the slideshow to see examples of what’s on offer.

When: Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, September 10–12, 10am–6pm

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Tags: Weddings, Eastside, Seattle Wedding Gown

Wear What When

Erdem at Nordstrom Bellevue

Splendid’s Bellevue Opening

Bravern Fall Fashion Fundraiser

New! Splendid at Bellevue Square

Three Reasons to See BAM’s Latin Jewelry Show

UPDATED Runway: Zandra Rhodes, The Stranger, FACE, and Trends for Treehouse

Free Stuff! Tickets for Voila!

Virtual Reality: Cecil + Edith

New Store: Ann Taylor

What’s Your Take On… Studded Ugg boots?

Just Landed: Sofie Olgaard

Sale: Goodbye to Voletta Couture

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