Sometimes in interviews I'm asked who, as a fashion designer, I find the most inspiring from today's crop of twenty- and thirty-something designers. I almost always say Chris Benz. He somehow manages to find a way to marry casual tomboy with eccentric, vintage glamour, and his use of color (usually bold) is thrilling to me.
When I saw his fall 2011 collection from New York Fashion week this spring, I was surprised. He chose much more muted, neutral tones for his designs than in past collections, alongside pieces in (gasp!) plain old black, but with pops of color and pattern. And although I'm a huge fan of his trademark vibrant color selections, these looks captured his muse - Savannah, Georgia - perfectly. As a recent addition to Georgia's SCAD art school's mentorship program, he'd been spending lots of time in the area, and felt inspired by his surroundings: "Savannah is such a strange place, caught between Southern decorum and the influx of art school kids," he said at his NYFW presentation. "It's quite a collision."
The collection will be available to the public in just a few weeks.
Do you have a particular designer who inspires you, or is there one fall collection you're most looking forward to?
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Ooohhh, such a pretty collection!!! I love the top left and middle looks. He might be one of my new favorites too!!
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i've never heard of chris benz before. where have i been? from the photo, i like his ruffled dresses best. anna sui is the designer of my heart.
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I love the softness of the patterns! I forget that patterns don't always have to be bold or bright. Reminds me of pretty pile of autumn leaves...
ReplyDeleteThat first ruffled dress is so pretty!
ReplyDeleteI'm not usually one for such muted tones but something about these colors are really working for me. I think the very first image in the collection is my favorite.
ReplyDeleteI love all those colors! Perfect for the fall!
ReplyDeleteI just recently heard of Chris Benz, it might have even been through this blog back in the spring and I really dig his stuff. I feel like he mixes styles from the mod 60s with the bright 80s and then gives them a layer of simple timelessness. I can't imagine that's the easiest feat!! Thanks for sharing this, makes me look forward to autumn clothes.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for visiting my blog! I love finding new ones, and yours just might be one of my new favorites! I really love the design and visual appeal of your blog, and have really enjoyed going through some of the old friday favorite posts! Definitely following, and look forward to perusing much more thoroughly! :D
ReplyDeleteI loooove tiered dresses, but my bf thinks they're overkill. Boo! Was supposed to buy a pink one yesterday but he said, "Nope, too overkill". I settled to a slightly tiered pink tank top instead. But I'm still planning to buy that pink dress prolly when he' s not around... cause I'm too hardheaded. :P
ReplyDeletei love the bottom red dress and i love oscar de la renta :)
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