Fashion Week Redux

There's a bit of Fashion Week for the rest of us, happening this weekend at Artists & Fleas, in Williamsburg on the waterfront. Come browse a curated showcase of over 12 emerging independent jewelry, clothing and accessory designers as they unveil new looks and new lines from their Spring/Summer collections.

New Designers & New Designs will also shine, sparkle and dazzle with a spring assortment of my fine fashion jewels! Read more about what folks are saying about Cynthia Rybakoff jewelry, over in the 'Burg, after the jump.

Images courtesy of Artists & Fleas.

Faded Glory

Once upon a time, in the mid-1970's, there was the original pre-faded jean, Faded Glory. The "it" brand of it's day, one rocked those jeans with a pair of Frye Stitching Horse boots, and a foxy Huck-A-Poo shirt.

I was stoked when I saw the Stella McCartney spring collection, because her easy peasy modernist take on denim seemed so eerily familiar. Those loose, boxy silhouettes worn with sensible sandals may be nothing like their 70's disco ready predecessors, yet they resonate the same pre-washed coolness responsible for teenage popularity way back when.

Images courtesy of style.com.

Beholden

Can you fall in love with a belt? Seriously, date it? There's much to adore on BHLDN. Behold the nautical rope belt that whispers softly in my ear "you know you want me."

Image courtesy of BHLDN.

Travels With My Aunt

She's the original Gaga, having survived an early career as an infamous cabaret singer, and several marriages to curious gentlemen of European extraction. She's been around the world more times than she cares to recall. She loves to collect souvenir items, and doesn't think it's touristy at all. She has a flaming bouffant and long lacquered nails to match, with impressive stones on almost every finger. She wears Cleopatra eyeliner and flowing caftans in loud prints. She makes flourishing gestures with her bejeweled wrists and hands for emphasis, as if casting a spell. She drinks bellinis at 10, espresso at 4, martinis at 6, Campari and soda at 8, followed by a continental dinner at 10, her only meal of the day.

She is your aunt, not you, of the understated chic urban set. But you love touristy things too, especially little hand painted enamel charms from fabulous places you and your husband are too busy to visit, what with careers, a family, and a home to manage. Maybe some day, you tell yourself, when the kids have grown, you'll plan fabulous trips around the world, more times than you care to recall.

Cynthia Rybakoff one of a kind sterling silver and vintage enamel travel charm collection, available weekends at Artists & Fleas, Brooklyn.

Big Love

Lavender Heart Valentine at Etsy.

Art print cards on display at Glittering Conscience.

Van Dyke brown botanical print tote at Artists & Fleas.

Cyanotype botanical print at Mascot Studio.

My husband Matt is a true romantic. Recently, he created a heart shaped wreath made of dried lavender from our garden, and made a few test prints. They were a hit, so we've expanded the theme for our Valentine's collection of botanical heart note cards, totes and prints for Handmade On Peconic Bay.

Our Lavender Heart note cards are eco-friendly and come in six amorous colors, perfect for Valentine's Day or any heartfelt occasion! They're available at Etsy and Glittering Conscience, 96 West Houston, in NYC. The one of a kind cyanotype lavender and rosemary heart, pictured above, is available at Mascot Studio. Mascot Studio carries a carefully curated selection of Handmade On Peconic Bay prints and note cards, in a tiny jewel box of a shop, tucked away in Manhattan's East Village.

For those of you in the hood, come visit us in Williamsburg, starting this weekend, when Handmade On Peconic Bay make its debut at Artists & Fleas. Shop our entire hand crafted Valentine's collection of art print note cards, one of a kind cyanotype and Van Dyke brown canvas totes and prints, plus a whole lot more!

Black + Cream

Vive la couture! Jean Paul Gaultier's Victorian vixens have a punk attitude with glam style. These creatures of the night, with feathery mohawks and provacative jet accessories, are most appealing in black with high contrast cream or mocha. The level of rich detailing in the luxe fabrics and tailoring is extraordinary! But of course chéri, this is couture. Some of my favorite ensembles are shown here, juxtaposed with 17th century blackwork prints, which were ornamental designs for enamel jewelry making, produced in Northern Europe between 1580 and 1630.

Images courtesy of Style.com and BibliOdyssey.

Tribal Vibes

Paris. Spring. 2011. Could have fooled me. I thought it was 1973, judging from those chunky African trade bead chokers and bracelets! At second glance, Isabel Marant's spring collection is more fabulous than I thought. Ultra modern easy styling that's preppy chic, and urban bohemian all at once, with a sophisticated mix of texture and color that's soft and feminine. A striking contrast to the heavy glass bead bracelets and chokers that scream hippie. It really works.

I bought tons of African trade beads, when I was first starting out, including the interlocking snake beads, featured heavily in Marant's appealing spring accessories. The jewelry I made back then was rather lumpy, but colorful and full of that 1970's New York City ethnic vibe. Little did I know, my African trade beads were bona fide antiques, made predominately in Venice and Bohemia from the late 1400s through the early 1900s, and traded in Africa and the Americas for goods, services and even slaves.

Today African trade beads have been making somewhat of a comeback. The beads themselves, when authentic, are quite collectible, plus they fetch a pretty penny. I quite adore them right now, for livening up a modern look with an unexpected tribal twist. And won't they be a refreshing change this season from all the fussy glitz, and be-ribboned rhinestones we've grown accustomed to?

Images courtesy of accessoriesmagazine.com.

Cavalry Couture

Ralph Lauren called out the cavalry for Spring 2011. Was someone watching old re-runs of F Troop? Of course, Ralph is in his comfort zone when channeling the Wild West, but nobody does it better.

This season's menswear heavy theme had a distinct military flair, with great accessories like shoulder slung carpet bags, over sized longhorn belt buckles, feminine beaded earrings, and two-tone metallic silver motorcycle boots. Also notable were the luxurious details like crafty lace, and plenty of fringe.

My fave look could be a modern day Annie Hall, in sharp white trousers with suspenders, a bowler hat and owl rim glasses. La-di-da. La-dee-da.

Images courtesy of The Spirit of the Old West, Style.com.

Delicate Flowers

One of the inspirations at Carolina Herrera's Spring 2011 show was botanical plates collected in the eighteenth century. Dried botanical specimens were carefully affixed to the page with the scientific name and origin of the plant neatly written by hand, and then framed.

For the collection, this was interpreted as scaled up floral prints climbing up the models' stem-like figures, complete with faux tape and calligraphic labels detailing the plant's name and origin. I find this bit of quirky fashion surrealism to be just the thing for adding a dash of elegant wit to a spring charity event or gala.

Kudos Ms. Herrera, for referencing both botany and beauty, and would you please do this line for Target.

Thanks,
Cynthia

Images courtesy of Jezebel.