Spring/Summer '08- Moda Mahattan, Fame, Accessories the Show-What's New?

This week, The Javits Convention Center in New York is home to three professional trade shows produced exclusively for the fashion retail trade. Accessories The Show, Moda Manhattan (ready to wear) and Fame (Junior, Young Contemporary) , showcasing more than 3,000 juried collections of accessories and Ready to wear fashions for Spring/ Summer 2008. The organizer is Business Journals Inc (BJI), a business media company producing 5 business-to-business magazines, 8 trade shows, and seminars and web sites.

When you walk into the shows, the sheer size and variety is nearly overwhelming. The three shows running together take up 90,000 square feet of the convention center. It's hard to imagine that the first show in January of 1998 had just 150 booths. It takes hours to walk even one show, and days to really do it right. While the Fame , Moda Manhattan and Accessories shows are specifically for buyers who want to find the newest and best items for their stores, as a member of the press, I also get the opportunity to see and share trends. It's the ultimate window shop! I get a chance to see the same trends as the buyers, and I always find a few, new and nifty companies that I will feature in this Blog, the Advice Sisters Enews, and of course, in the Advice Sisters monthly "What Works" Beauty, Cosmetics & Fashion review columns.

Last season, for example I met Susan Brandt of Anntelle Jewelry. Her wonderful jewelry was reviewed in our December/Holiday 2007 What Works Column, and there are also some pieces in our Current (January/February 2008) What Works column. The designs are lovely, and reasonably priced. We will be reviewing more Anntelle in our March/April and upcoming columns as well.

And, I also met Headband Designer Rebecca Michaels of Violet Love, who designs soft, stretchy, versatile, fabric headbands in a dizzying variety of designs. We will be reviewing the latest and greatest--the Organic Line of Headbands - ECO by VL, made from eco-conscious bamboo fibers, in our March/April What Works column.

Of course, it is nice to take a break when you're up on your feet for hours. Fortunately for show attendees, there was a Jose Cuervo Lounge where guests could enjoy a margarita and meet lifestyle professional, author and Food Network chef, Sandra Lee. She was there to dish secrets to making meals simple, and to greet her loyal fans. I didn't have the time to wait to have Sandra sign a poster or bottle of Cuervo Gold (and I really would have prized that bottle of tequila), but I did take this photo. FYI: Jose Cuervo isn't just the name of a tequlia, he was a real person. Jose was granted a license in the 1700's, from King Carlos IV in Spain, to commercially produce Tequila. After one, small, but very delicious, Margarita (I did have to work, after all) I went back on the floor. I walked, and walked, and walked, and talked, and looked.

I came across Craig Williams and his Kakadu Traders Hats from Australia. These fantastic hats for men and women come in a variety of colors, fabrics and styles. One I particularly like is called "Florentine." It may be difficult to see from the photo, but the super-feminine, Florentine women's hat in beige has a lacy insert that makes this "down under" hat a hit in the big city as well as for Western weddings. "Cheetah" has a wide, canvas, band of "animal" print -- but it's a ventilating mesh to keep you cool, too. Keeping the sun off your face while making a fashion statement is a definite thumbs up! We hope to bring you a review in the March/April What Works column.



Another trend I like because it is so much fun are the bright, soft, flowing, silky, scarf-top "fashions from the Aris Ai line shown here with one of the Shennel Trading Corporation's owner.



I'm happy to report that for Spring/Summer 2008, the outlook is bright, bold, colorful and cheery. Orange, red, yellow, bright green, bright blue, white, and turquoise were everywhere, and subdued, brown, grey, black and brown was hardly in sight. Sequins, chains, beading, ethnic designs, flowers, and lots of whimsical accessories will be in your stores and will make you smile. I'm sure I must have been a raccoon in my last life because they love shiny objects. Cubic Zirconia, gold chains, and Swarovski crystals adorned everything from tank tops to tote bags, belts to baggage tags. I wish I had unlimited funds, because my closet would be full of these precious, shiny objects! Fashions ran the gamut from flowing tunics to tight fitting stretchy tops, but I didn't see anything that looks amazing different from last years' "must-haves." You'll be in the know if you wear bright colors, animal or ethnic prints, beaded items, caftans and tunics, floral prints, stripes, belted dresses and coats, retro/vintage, and the ever-present, denim. The chances are if you purchased bright, or white, last year, it'll still work this year, too....but trust me...when you see the fashions, jewelry and accessories flooding the stores in the very near future, you'll want to add at least a few new items to your wardrobe and accessories drawers!

I can't wait for Spring!

Moda Manhattan/Accessories The Show/Fame May 6-8 2007

Back in January, I went to the Moda Manhattan/Fame/Accessories The Show grouping at the Javits Center in New York. The organizer is Business Journals Inc (BJI), a business media company that produces 5 business-to-business magazines, 8 trade shows, and a number of seminars and web sites. They have always been gracious to the press, and I find these shows lively and full of interesting individuals selling everything from evening gowns, to key chains.

Moda Manhattan and Fame offer fashions and accessories, but the Accessories Show is the only juried, all-accessories trade event in the entire USA. The trio of market exhibits are focused on buyers (more than 8000) so almost everything there is wholesale only. When I arrived on Tuesday (the last afternoon for the show), it was still packed with enthusiastic buyers from speciality stores and boutiques, department stores, catalogues, and even duty free shops looking to see what's available for the next season in activewear, special occasion/evening, outerwear/coats, suits/ careerwear, dresses, knitwear/sweaters, sportswear, related separates, soft separates, loungewear/sleepwear, fur/leather, and accessories from belts to bags to hats to tons and tons and tons of jewelry in all price points.
As usual, I got there late, and a bit breathless (I walked cross-town because it was such a nice day). I made a quick stop in the press lounge, and discovered that there were a lot of press materials I would have liked to pick up, but for some reason, the complimentary tote bags (or any type of carry bags) are never offered to the press. Of all the people who really need a tote, you'd think the press would be top of the list? In any case, my purse felt like it weighed about 500 gazillion pounds after toting it around for a couple of hours.

But all gripes aside, as I said in my last post in January, if you can't spot trends here, you're not looking very hard.

So what trends did I see for Fall? As far as the eye could see, the usual earth tones, black, grey and deep greens were in full force, but the mood was somber. They say fashion mirrors the mood of the country, so maybe the war and other troubles at home are influencing designers. There seemed to be lots of soft and drape-y fashions, many in cashmere, velvet, and other luxury fabrics. Styles seemed less structured, softer, a bit more forgiving (that doesn't mean you should chow down on cheeseburgers, but at least you won't need to be model-thin to wear anything trendy). In accessories, wide belts, "ethnic" jewelry, lots of hats (many soft cloches or berets), embellished handbags (with everything from stones to feathers), lots of prints, and lots of embroidery and beading seem to be "in."

Every season, simply by walking around the large exhbit floors, I find a few vendors with something special --something I know my Advice Sisters readers will want to know about. I'll be featuring some of this season's vendors in my monthly "What Works" Beauty, Cosmetics & Fashion review columns, and in my Enews and here on this blog.

I was tired and ready to leave, when I spied a wall of handbags, and had to stop. They were trendy and attractive--and when Anna Maria Blescia and her partner, Gail Mackler-Carlino of Frenz...eee told me that their bags were not leather, but a line of "animal friendly" (in other words, man made materials, not from animals) handbags, I was hooked. Their designs stand out from the rest of the pack (and believe me, at these shows you get to see a LOT of handbags). What also impressed me about the Frenz...eee line are the trendy designs and the fact that while many of the handbags are crafted from synthetics (some are fabric), these faux materials have the look and feel of buttery soft leather. Even better, they're lightweight, easy care and, of course, no animals were used to create them.

I took home a Classic Satchel in ivory....I'm in love with it! I could have taken home half a dozen styles! Oh, and another HUGE plus: the prices are reasonable! I'm not going to tell you ALL about Frenz...eeeright now--you'll have to visit my July/August "What Works" column (first week in July--June is up first week in June) to get the entire story about Anna and Gail, and their awesome assortment of items). These bags offer value, but still, the quality is high. They have all the bells and whistles that more luxury brands offer, down to a dust bag and a signature keychain (two swinging purses) included with every bag. If you can't wait for my column, visit www.frenzeee.com for information!

Also interesting was ArtofCloth, a collection of art-inspired casual clothing made from handmade textiles. The tunics and shawls were not only interesting to look at, but cover a variety of "evils" if your body is less than perfect. I also liked the rhinestone-festooned leather handbags from Ximena Ramirez These are a bit pricey and definitely not for the shy, but if you like the sparkle, the rhinestone-laden bags are perfect day-to-evening choices!