New Mexico Fashion Week 2016 – Night Two

The second and final night of New Mexico Fashion Week promised six more designers: Destinista Fashions, Enlightened Designs, Guadalupe Ramirez, Monista Arts, Montecristi Custom Hat Works, and Westerngrace. During the intermission, I had the opportunity to be interviewed by the lovely Gabrielle Torrez. The short interview included how I got my start in blogging, what my blog is about, and also about my unique vintage style.

The evening started out with the Santa Fe Community College student designers presenting their collections (as they did on the first night, which you can read about it HERE).

The first designer presenting was Guadalupe Ramirez. The Santa Fe Community College alum presented some pieces from his past collections and gave us a tease of his 2017 collection- “La Catrina.” Guadalupe explained to me that the aqua and red dresses were a part of his “Simple Economy Triangles” collection from 2010. “This was back in 2010, the year when the economy of USA was in jeopardy, so my inspiration was the triangle behind our American currency — behind our dollar bill — we have a triangle with an eye in the middle. So every garment I included a triangle representing our current news about the economy.” The black dress was a part of his 2011 collection- “Yin/Yan Swan,” where all the garments were in black and white. He drew his inspiration from the movie, Black Swan. “As you can see, I really get inspired from current news, movies, and history.” He presented three garments from his “La Catrina” collection, which is set to officially debut in December. That inspiration was based on La Calavera Catrina, which was a zinc sketch image of a female skeleton dressed only in an upper-class hat, by famed Mexican printmaker, cartoon illustrator and lithographer- José Guadalupe Posada.

Next up, was Monista Arts. Monista Arts was founded by Monica Duran- an artist and designer, who is battling a terminal form of cancer. Monica “feels that life is a huge canvas just waiting to create wonders and beauty. Her art tells a story about her life, and the suffering of losing hope of all the dreams she had. Monica started working nights on images that reflected how she felt or how she wished her life could be. Through revelation, God gave her this gift to share with other women who are lost and lives that have been taken by illness.” This season, she showcased lambskin clutches, handbags and clever leather ponchos with fur trim. The collection took on an essence of Native American culture, while also having a Southwest flair.

Designer Jesse “Grace” Call presented several of her western-influenced designs from her brand, Westerngrace. Westerngrace embodies the timeless spirit of the west, as well as the culture of cowboys and cowgirls. Notable garments that I enjoyed seeing walk the runway were: dresses, a jacket, and skirt with a leather tooled yoke/trim; diagonal ruffled maxi skirts; and a gingham print dress and blouse.

New Mexico Fashion Week veteran- Destini Duran of Destinista Fashions presented her signature abstract print, wearable collection. The Santa Fe Community College alum lets the designs tell the story, while allowing the fabric to be the “cover.”

Another NMFW vet, Sharidynn Denetchiley of Enlightened Designs, showcased her jewelry collection. She proudly represents the Diné (Navajo) Nation, is a notary public, contributes to political activism, and advocates on leadership committees for social justice for urban Indians in Albuquerque. Patrick “Cloudface” Burnham‬ also collaborated with Sharidynn, by creating unique Native American mediums on the models, while complementing Denetchiley’s designs.

The last design house of the evening was Monticristi Hat Works. The Santa Fe-based hat company was founded in 1978 and has been a staple when it comes to Panama-style and fur felt hats. We were treated to a variety of styles that evening, many of which were worn by NMFW team members.

I would like to take the time to thank the New Mexico Fashion Week team, namely: Melissa, Nick, Manny and Elizabeth, for having me!