TLF @ The Bloomingdale’s – Dubai SS17 Fashion Show

For those of you who kindly follow That Luxurious Feeling on Instagram it was my outmost pleasure to bring you with me to the Bloomingdale’s – Dubai SS17 Fashion show. The Insta-stories I featured were highly appreciated and I loved the way you all engaged with me during the whole evening. It’s quite amazing with social media, the way you can arrive at an event solo but still feel like you’re part of a whole group.

As promised, I thought I’d share some of my thoughts on the show, the beauty, the fashion and anything else that came to my mind. Very brief and light, just like meeting spring is supposed to be.

Before I get going, I simply want to highlight this: no, I’m not a fashion blogger. I will not even try to sound like I know what I’m talking about. I want to share my thoughts not only as the Beauty Editor I am, focusing on that very part of the show, but also as being a regular customer of Bloomingdale’s. I’m always curious about fashion but often enough I find that trends don’t suit me. I’m very classic, paired down, down to earth, anonymous and it is with that perspective in mind I tackle all of Fashion Month. I view fashion almost like I do with art; I enjoy it like an exhibition and expression and sometimes, if I’m lucky, there will be pieces that I feel are wearable and chic. I’m constantly in awe of those who feel completely at ease around high-fashion and I try to learn as much as possible about new brands and influences. This was my fourth time visiting a Bloomie’s show and it’s been a great education for me.

As I had the huge advantage of getting a Press Pass, I think it’s only fair that I share the experience with you all!

Are you ready?

This season, the SS17 Show was set up in a warehouse, industrial area no one had ever heard of. Personally, I enjoyed that very much. It added to the mysterious and contemporary experience. Not only did it allow for the team behind the show to build up and create a whole exclusive world in the middle of nowhere; but it also made people stick around for the full experience. Where else would you go?

The Press area, built up like a flashy NYC loft apartment was a clever way of not only providing a secluded space where we all got the chance to quiz the buyers on this season’s fashion and influences, but also to showcase a number of new launches from the beauty department floor as well as Bloomie’s Home Store. As I stood there listening in on the lovely buyers (understanding just about half of the conversation one might add) I peaked around the “apartment” for treasures. I could find my beloved AERIN Perfumes  just launched exclusively at Bloomie’s as well as some fantastic jewellery boxes designed by Kate Spade NY. 

Oddly enough, as I listened to the buyers presenting the fashion, the cute vanity with its display of beauty made me feel almost at home. We knew we were about to witness a modern, contemporary and fresh show; it stood clear already by looking at the triangular, kaleidoscopic, mirrored runway built up at the venue.

The fashion trends for SS17 were described to me as a mixture of elements such as statement sleeves, tulle and fine layers, off-the shoulder pieces, jeans on jeans, sportswear influences and florals kicked up a notch with some punk. It might sound confusing and all a bit too much, but I’m quite happy to say that the trends are very wearable this season, even for someone like me who likes pretty details but want to be able to actually wear a dress for a good period of time!

The talk within the beauty community (which obviously are affected by what’s hot on the runway) has been that there is somewhat of a Fashion Fatigue. think of it: NYC and London Fashion Week passed by and did so completely quiet. I can’t remember a time where so little have been written or posted on social media? Even MAC Cosmetics who used to have a lot of groundbreaking ideas didn’t really raise their voice. I can honestly say that the London shows seems to be already forgotten by those of us that are not in the inner circle of things and one can only speculate what the reason is for the fatigue to hit right now…

Therefor, in the light of this state, I’m very happy and a little bit proud to see Dubai (without a full fashion week) and Bloomie’s making some changes to the way a fashion show is supposed to be and being brave enough to also focus on a lot of new and smaller brands to the market! They needed an introduction and surely got off with a flying start.

Now. My personal expectations for the evening were to get the chance to take you all backstage to witness the makeup and hair chaos. I love the fact that unlike other shows where you get loads of journalists and bloggers crowding the makeup artists for the same shots and the same quotes, the Bloomingdale’s team had made sure to keep the backstage area “workable”. I had time to walk around and ask a bunch of questions, looking over application techniques and understanding that I will never ever be able to recreate the fabulous hair styles!

For us beauty lovers, it’s safe to say that the evening was all about a Dream Team scenario: how many times do a girl get to see Armani Beauty team up with AVEDA for makeup and hair? It was like being a kid in a candy store: I hope I’ll never get “used to” this world, that it will always amaze me and give me goose bumps. It deserves nothing but respect and curiosity! As soon as I entered the area I knew I was completely at home. It felt almost rewarding to realize that I knew everyone from both the Armani Beauty and AVEDA teams. TLF is no longer a newbie and it made me very comfortable while working the room. The combined talent in a backstage area was simply fantastic.

First of all, let’s look at the makeup. The Armani Beauty team had decided to do two different looks, both that would reflect the Armani world of fashion. Head MUA told me that for the SS17, Mr. Armani is going of an eccentric and colourful look. As the show would be a multi-brand event with contemporary and kaleidoscopic elements, they’d decided to to it Armani style and emphasise  the eyes and lips.

Look no.1 was made with bold blue eyes using the new upcoming gel eyeliner in a cerulean blue for a dramatic winged effect and exaggerated with loads of blue eyelashes/mascara. I couldn’t help but thinking of the early 90’s when my mother sported blue mascara hahaha.  For the lips, Armani had decided to do a bold statement-lip with ombre effect using three different shades of their new Lip Magnet Lipstick; an intense colour product with ultra matte finish. First, a full layer of bright pink fuchsia was applied all over the model’s lips, then a light pink lipstick got added to the centre of the lips for volume and for the ombre effect, a black lip magnet lipstick was applied at the outer corners of the mouth to create definition.

Look no. 2 had super bold eyes with a washed out pastel to pistachio green eyeshadow, fresh complexion and a nude, glossy lip. Even though both looks are very bright, I could definitely see me wearing them with modifications: a great example of when runway makeup can be picked up at the beauty department floor for everyone to enjoy!

The same can actually be said about the AVEDA teams creations; although I might not be able to make looks out of wires and duct tape without going bald in the process(!) the core essence of the looks where easy to grasp: incredibly high pony tails, ponies made out of braids, braids in all shapes and forms and some small metallic (piercing) rings braided into the side of the models looks. You, who followed the Insta-stories all said the same thing: wearable and sexy looks with the best part of easy dry-styling. No curling tongs in sight! I may be biased, but I happen to think that no other hair-styling brand holds as many fabulous alternatives to dry-styling as AVEDA do. It is not a coincidence that they’re always present for all fashion weeks and I swear their dry shampoo and air control hairspray plays in a secluded division.

I’m very proud of the hair styles that AVEDA had done on both the female and male models. Seeing the beauty looks come to life and then paired with the clothes, shoes and accessories was a special experience that just made me want to go shopping! Luckily, for this season, the see-now-buy-now concept is here in full force and all pieces on the runway can already be found at Bloomies.

Back to the Fashion Fatigue I was talking about. This is just my personal opinion but I find it very uninspiring to see 30 models walking the runway in a row, with about 30cm in between them so it’s completely impossible to see the full look, not to talk about trying to photograph it. It moves to fast for me. I don’t get to savour it and I can’t say that it gives me much pleasure. Therefore, it was my lucky night when the choreographer of the show had decided to let each model have the runway all to her/himself. Lot of time to view the full outfits and in order to cure the fashion fatigue from LFW: we the audience got to enjoy a spectacular fashion show mixed with a dance number where all the amazing dancers made sure to enhance the whole experience and the music felt just about right! Guys, this wasn’t a fashion show, it was a SHOW.

With mirrored effects, the dancer’s performance and all new and exciting brands I actually found myself liking the clothes and the accessories. As Press, I got FROW seat which made it much easier for me to live-stream the show for you to watch and to snap pictures. I do apologise for the bad iPhone quality of the pictures below, but I want to show you just a few of my favourite looks from the night:

Phillip Lim (look) and Jimmy Choo (shoes). Feeling the PJ/sportswear trend
Marc Jacobs, (full look). I like the brand on anyone except FLOTUS 😉
Alexis. (Full look). I loved the fine layers and ruffles. I also find it gorgeous that the bright fuchsia lips didn’t clash with the poppy red flowers. 
Helmut Lang (full look). Urban city vibes, wearable and clean lines. 
Maggie Marilyn (look) Gianvito Rossi (shoes). Maggie is a new brand to me and this is my favourite look from the evening. The sharp cerulean blue eye-makeup really accentuated the outfit.   
Jonathan Simkhai. (full look) thoses statement sleeves and ruffels again! The sleek pony tail makes it fresh and perfect. 
Moschino (pants) + Phillip Lim (top). And that pony tail in duct tape that’s probably still there on the model’s head! 
Jonathan Simkhai (look) + Charlotte Olympia (heels). I’m going shoe shopping. I’m craving polka dots! 

All in all a spectacular evening where it felt like the Bloomies team had really made an effort to create something fun and entertaining, educational (at least to me!) and very luxurious. After the show all visitors mingled with the dancers and models, the ambiance was very relaxed and it felt like people really had a good time. Out of all the shows I’ve visited, this one definitely top the list. Dubai doesn’t need a full week of Fashion Fatigue, we can do it #LikeNoOthers and celebrate SS17 with a bang! 🙂 ♥

 

Thank you Bloomingdale’s AlTayer/PR 
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4 Comments
    1. Wonderful Lisa! It makes me so incredibly happy to see that the post inspires you to try some new trends! It is, in my opinion, important to let “regular customers and users” see what’s going on at all these fashion shows. We are the ones who spend our money at the shop floor! Lots of love from Dubai and thank you for always being such a great friend! xoxo, M

  1. Sounds like my kind of show. Although I wasn’t there, your writing captures the mood so well. Oh, and love the backstage pics and cellphone snaps. Makes it feel more real. Interesting observation about Fashion Fatigue. Consumers are becoming ever more demanding and educated.

    1. Hi Rich! Oh amazing that you could feel as if you were with me, that was the whole idea of the article and all the insta-story sequences. I truly feel the fatigue in so many divisions, not just fashion. It is as if we are all exhausted after the US election, the things happening globally and obviously all changes will reflect how retail is doing at the moment. xx, M

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