Low Country Boutiques Bring High Fashion to CFW Runway

Share |

Wednesday through Thursday night of CFW did not disappoint! Theatrical runway shows put together by local boutiques demonstrated on-trend looks using merchandise from their stores, showcasing Charleston’s growing wealth of high end shopping options and proving that the low country consumers appreciate high fashion.

Allison Gilchrist of Pearl put together a fun show that gracefully glided through the decades; from hourglass figures and the flowing mid-calf skirts of the fifties, to updated hippie prints and the dramatically high-waisted pants of the seventies, to the reborn harem pants of today. Gilchrist has an eye for the next big thing, as proven by her discovery of the young Jason Wu – a designer she has been carrying long before Ms. Obama brought him into the limelight. Pearl’s runway show allowed the audience a glimpse into fashion’s future as reinterpreted from the past.

Going against the grain of preppy prints and country club chic presented by boutiques like Summerville’s Teal, Stacy Smallwood of Hampden Clothing featured a gritty downtown aesthetic replete with green lipped models sporting sharply askew tousled buns high on their heads. The look was fun, unexpected and reminiscent of Punk ballerina’s. All of the looks were complicated, well thought out and elaborately executed.

The standouts from the midweek shows included a creative collaboration between Saks Fifth Avenue and local accessory designer Mary Norton and a runway spectacular by West Ashley’s I Heart. For the Saks Fifth Avenue/Mary Norton show, models strutted down the runway clad in Saks styled outfits and Mary Norton bags and shoes. Trailing close behind each gal was a pair of chiseled male models in tailored European suits. Each man carried a silver platter – on one tray balanced the shoes the model wore and on the other was the handbag. The setup was fabulously engaging, and a brilliant of way of showcasing the shoes and bags! I Heart took the idea of runway show to a whole new level, elevating fashion from art to entertainment with a full-blown Bond Girl theme. Models wielded guns and channeled Bond’s infamous femme fatales from their seductive hair and makeup to their formfitting getups.

Can’t wait to see what Saturday’s Emerging Designer Competition Finale brings!

By Maggie Winterfeldt