Tag - Victor Wilde

 “Fuck ready-to-wear; Get ready to rumble! STYLE WARS is back!”

On November 17th, I participated in Style Wars, held at Cinespace in Hollywood. I found out about the  design competition from my friend, milliner Anita Hopkins (www.anitahopkinsla.com). The concept is to create a garment, relative to the theme that is chosen for you on stage in FIVE MINUTES…Yes, you heard me correctly…F-I-V-E. Though five minutes may not seem like a long time, but believe me, it is. I, along with seven others (some had teams, others, like myself, didn’t) competed on stage…using duck tape, beads, table cloths, kitchen utensils, fabric and material from home…anything…for five heart-pounding minutes. However, there were two rules: garment must be constructed in those five minutes and no pre-designed materials. Afterwards, we were judged by Blake Lewis, Miguel De La Barracuda and Djak Azran. Then there were those who went on to two more rounds before determining the winner, who on November 17th…the LA winner was Victor Wilde. 

       This concept of style meets mayhem was the brainchild of husband-and-wife team MJ Diehl and Roman Milisic. It came from their original idea of the “Instant Couture” approach to fashion. According to Roman, “A deconstructionist fashion philosophy, where the creation process- the time, the place, the people- was as important as the designs themselves. Style Wars was a way to take that and use it to create opportunities for young designers, and give them national visibility.” This duo is amazing. While at the night-before meeting, I learned a couple ways to turn a pair of jeans into a bolero and a men’s button-down into a halter dress. After introducing the show, the couple then took a model, wearing a drab orange dress, tore it off her and turned a dozen-or-so hangers into a futuristic dress. I was blown-away watching them and how fast they worked and created.

The whole experience was pretty awesome. I will most likely be doing it again next year….this time with a team! 

SPECIAL THANKS: Cinespace, J, Anita Hopkins, MJ Diehl, Roman Milisic, Grace Models, the judges, the competitors: Paul Magalad, Victor Wilde, Briana Gonzalez, Lizz Wasserman, myself, DeeDee Hopkins and Johanna Zuckerman, the hair and make-up team, MAC, Surface Magazine, Lemondrop and DIM MAK DJs. For more info on STYLE WARS and perhaps enter the competition as well, go to www.houseofdiehl.com/stylewars. 

NOTE: ALL THE PICTURES IN THE SLIDESHOW ARE COURTESY OF ROMAN MILISIC !!