CUSTO BARCELONA – Fake is Great, Especially When It’s Reversible And Machine-Washable

TEXT, VIVIAN KELLY
fall 2010 Image, courtesy of Custo Barcelona

By “fake”, I DO NOT MEAN KNOCK-OFFS. THIS FAKE IS ALSO KNOWN AS FAUX FUR.
THE KAISER, KARL LAGERFELD, MOST NOTABLY DID IT FOR FALL/WINTER 2010 AT CHANEL, BUT HAVE A LOOK AT THIS WILD LOOK BY CUSTO BARCELONA.
for Fall 2010,
CUSTO BARCELONA introduced the “2 great coats in 1”. It’s all-glam on one side, and all-about vintage on the other.
It’s currently available in Burgundy and Hunter Green, as seen on the fall 2010 New York runway show. I got there too late, and despite having a ticket to a decent seat, had to content myself with watching the show on the monitor in the Bryant Park lobby. Nonetheless, as menswear writer, MARK BEHNKE of www.fashiontribes.com and I studied the looks, I was all-in. HERE, IS A DESIGNER WHO STILL MANAGES TO CUE INTO THE TRENDS, BUT STILL DOES IT "MY WAY". We loved the color, the flash, and the sheer hutzpah of this collection, that reminded me of the ghetto-glam of one of my favorite BOND flicks, "Live and Let Die", in which one of the Harlem drug lord-villains, 'Mr. Karanga' [actor, Yaphet Kotto], wore a coat quite similar to this one, in the scene where he was assassinated in his over the top Caddy pimp mobile.
I love the fashion AND economical aspect of this coat. You get to hit fall’s vintage trend, and as for glamour – THAT is ALWAYS in fashion.

Available at www.custo-barcelona.com

The Custo Barcelona "Hairy Metal" fall 2010 Collection

TEXT, VIVIAN G. KELLY-VAN ZUTPHEN

We had a seat for this big-time show but got shut-out anyhow. As we stood in the Bryant Park Lobby watching the show on the monitor, we reflected on WHY this SPANISH brand is such a hot ticket here in the USA.
The Dalmau brothers have successfully captured and held on to the laid-back Californian style they saw on the surfers who lived in Southern California and the psychedelic look that plays in Northern California.
We applaud them for their consistency -you expect + you get: wild cartoony prints, peacock worthy color and umpteen texture combinations. We loved the paillette mini dress with cap sleeves and the rich hues of green. For him, our top pick is the black sequin or leather suit worn with a seventies' style smiley-face tee.
Overall, there were far fewer layers and an abundance of texture mixing shredded fabrics and lots of metallics - hence the title, "hairy metal". True there was a dose of black and grey but they were over the top and all shined up in patent leather treatment that kept our eyes glued on the screen.