Incoming International Fashion Week: Las Vegas
By Jo Phillips
We’re all well aware of the fashion weeks which have recently set abuzz the key European fashion capitals London, Milan and Paris, and of course NYC. We often focus our sights on continental Europe at the expense of other spectacular events around the world, including Stockholm and International Fashion Week the is the in the glamorous city of Las Vegas in the casino capital of the world.
All the big European fashion weeks are flavored strongly by the character and stylistic conventions of their host city, in spite of the individual traits of the international designers drawn to their respective catwalks. London traditionally offers a combination of smart tailoring along side street styling influence. Paris meanwhile, is elegance personified, whilst NYC is about big commercial brands. Milan bring the superb colours of the Mediterranean alongside strict sharp classic styling.
If this is how the internationallly renowned fashion weeks are affected by their settings, what exactly can we expect from the equivalent events in Las Vegas? To answer this question we must first put our finger on what exactly the Las Vegas style is.
Many would point first to the sharp tuxedos and ball gowns which people Hollywood blockbusters like Ocean’s Eleven and Casino Royale. It’s certainly true that dressing to express your wealth and success is in Vegas’ DNA – it’s a city built on money after all – but there’s far more to Vegas style than simply looking classy. We talk of the way in which the colours of the Mediterranean seem to infiltrate local fashions.
If the same is true of Vegas, than a rich and vibrant palette must prevail in the fashions on show – from last year’s event seems to prove the point to a certain degree at least! We’re thinking the blues, the golds, the reds of the neon lights, all bright and brilliant; bold contrasts like the red and black of a roulette wheel; deep velveteen greens like the felt of a card table…
In Vegas we find that rich iconography that we recognize so well from online casino games and Hollywood movies, replete with all the razzle-dazzle and uproarious life you’d expect. As such, we’ll be predicting exuberant looks on the Vegas catwalks this summer!
