Berlin celebrates summer fashion
The fashion scene has gathered in Berlin this week, where both up-and-coming and established designers are showing off their latest creations.
Back to the future
It's Fashion Week once again and Berlin has rolled out the catwalks. Up-and-coming as well as established designers are presenting their latest creations and fashion shows, trade fairs, showrooms and parties are on the agenda. Designer Jamie Wei from Taiwan was a finalist for the Designer for Tomorrow award and sent her models out with futuristic "glasses."
Summer colors
White, light blue, and bright red are the colors we'll be seeing next summer - at least according to designer Hien Le from Laos. He opened the Fashion Week with elegant creations that use flowing materials to accent minimalist-classical forms.
From the flower bed
Austrian designer Lena Hoschek prefers bright colors and her catwalk is reminiscent of a flower garden. Her feminine creations have a retro folk element and the hairstyles and jewelry she uses are similar to singer Lana Del Rey's 50's look. Hoschek offers a romantic reply to the purism that is otherwise prevalent on the runways.
Happy birthday!
Berlin designer Kilian Kerner celebrated his label's 10th anniversary with models in tennis shoes, live music and an opulent wedding dress. Bold prints were a trend in his summer collection. Kerner is a big name in the fashion scene and celebrities like model Eva Padberg wear his creations.
Zebra look
Sweden's Queen Silvia is among the customers of designer Anja Gockel, who regularly shows at Berlin Fashion Week. Already in trend, wide black and white stripes return in her collection for next summer. Her headdresses are a bit more playful, sometimes including flowers.
Wealth of creativity
Berlin Fashion Week focuses for the second time on interesting new fashion from Africa, with Kenyan writer Auma Obama introducing promising young designers from the continent. "We have such a wealth of creativity; this is a big opportunity for all of them," said the half-sister of US President Barack Obama (fourth from right).
Lady in red
Designers Romero Bryan from Jamaica and UK, Nadir Tati from Angola and Arrey Kono from Cameroon teamed up for a joint Africa Fashion Day show, where this extravagant red evening gown was presented. The designers proved that urban styles can also be colorful and elegant.
Simply classic
Men weren't left out at this year's Berlin Fashion Week. German designer Sissi Goetze's men's summer collection was classic and puristic and her boyish creations avoid pomp and frills. Some 2,500 designers are presenting their summer 2014 collections in 12 different trade fairs in Berlin.
Sexy curves
Women don't have to be a size 4 to be able to wear fashionable clothes. That's why there is a new section of Berlin Fashion Week dedicated to plus sizes, titled "Curvy is sexy." Interest was strong and the trade fair for larger clothes spans 1,000 square meters (nearly 11,000 square feet). Organizers hope to make it a regular feature at Fashion Week.
Denim forever
The largest of the Fashion Week trade fairs is Bread & Butter, with over 600 exhibitors showing everyday fashion at the old Tempelhof Airport. Jeans continue to be a staple. No matter how often they're redefined, they'll likely never disappear from the catwalks and our closets.