{{Midwest}} Minneapolis: MNFashion Fashion Week Recap

Photo Left to Right: Looks from Renate Adjei, Emma Berg and Carmichael Claith for SCENEaSOTA.
Fall 2009 marked the second year that MNFashion has put on an entire Fall Fashion Week. Despite its adolescent age, the week’s events were widely attended by a bevy of style savvy locals. Notable events we attended include: Envision, Eat Street Style, and SCENEaSOTA. Each purveyed its own unique feel and presented viewers with on-trend fashion. The most exciting part was that all original garments were conceptualized and constructed by Minnesotans, proving once again that style does indeed exist within the Midwest
Envision

1940’s Silhouettes
Amanda Christine’s foray into 40’s silhouettes was a hit with the crowd. Her ever impeccable tailoring and quality garments came down the catwalk with the addition of structured funnel necklines, tops with large dramatically draped cowls both coming and going, and a fantastic floral dress with a flirty peplum skirted bottom. She also showcased the perfect grey pencil skirt with a fantastic side ruffle and a sexy front slit.
Peplums
Peplum skirts and dresses were very much present in the collections of Jenny Carle, Amanda Christine, Carmichael Claith and Amanda Chaffin’s collection; Rose White. This trend surfaced in many Spring 2010 NYFW collections and I can see it sticking around through the spring.
Sexy Knitwear
At Envision knitwear received a sexy twist with V-backed dresses in the collections of Jenny Carle and Peloria, and contrast button detailing by Arwyn Birch, Peloria and Renate Adjei also livened-up this fall and winter staple .
Moto-Jackets
If you are looking for a moto-jacket this autumn, V-State definitely has them! They sent several styles for men down the runway during their boutique showcase.
Draped dresses
PFT Couture had the crowd gasping at the fabulous draping in their dresses. I was also a fan of their color pallet of kelly green, black and white which can transition well from fall into winter.
Leather Details
Men’s outerwear by Russell Bourrienne received an update with fur trim and below the knee lengths, but my favorite coat was an olive tweed waist-length jacket from that included rich cognac colored belts woven through the garment horizontally. The piece evoked a bondage/straight jacket type look which is only to be worn by the bold and the beautiful.
Shoulder Emphasis
Shoulder emphasis was shown across the board with a ruffle shouldered dress from Emily Weich , off the shoulder and one-shouldered designs from PFT Couture, off the shoulder dresses from Drama’s boutique collection, an off the shoulder top from Rose White, a one-shoulder houndstooth dress from Carmichael Claith and one shouldered and cut-out shouldered designs from Renate Adjei.
Classic Blazer
For the women, the classic fall blazer remerged in the collections of Local Motion, and Emily Weich. There were also plenty of fantastic outerwear options shown from Arwyn Birch, Russell B., Cliché and V-State.
Blaze Orange
Kimberly Jurek of KJurek Couture treated us to two cute blaze orange dresses, a color that I think most in the Midwest definitely associate with autumn, and one that will brighten-up any fall wardrobe.
Eat Street Style

The Eat Street Style event was comprised of looks culled from three hip shops on Nicollet Avenue, otherwise known to the locals as “Eat Street.â€
Leather
Both Head to Toe and Lost and Found showcased a number of fabulous vintage leather goods for both men and women- which is a trend that has definitely cycled back around and into most people’s fall wardrobes. Their leather pieces included everything from belts for men and women, leather jackets for men, a tight black leather skirt that I am sure will fly off the shelves immediately, a fabulous pair of black leather cropped pants and a pair of flat red pointy-toed booties that I need to make mine.
Ruffles and Brocade
I was also particularly fond of a cranberry asymetrical ruffle-front chiffon flutter sleeve dress from Lost and Found and an egg-shell colored brocade sleeveless shift dress with black satin trim from Head to Toe.
Authentic 40’s Wear Blacklist Vintage enlisted a diverse selection of their “loyal customers†to model their top picks from the shop. The covetable items of theirs were a 40’s black dress with exquisite draping on the skirt paired with a matching jacket that included a line of tiny buttons.
Vintage Men’s Blazers
For men I was digging a grey blazer with black trim on the breast pocket and collar that really made it pop.
For more photos by Stephen Stephens and Kate Iverson, be sure to check out Digital Crush Photography.
SCENEaSOTA

SCENEaSOTA showcased 6 designers each with their own niche. There was plaid and one shouldered dresses from Carmichael Claith , sheer tops paired with vibrant African print skirts for Renate Adjei , easy and wearable dresses from Kathryn Sterner for “Kathryn V,†a flouncy floral print dress from Jenny Carle, and 70’s inspired sports and casual wear from Ashley Busch for “Raefiftyeight .â€
Eyes visibly lit-up when Emma Berg’s collection hit the runway. From my front row seat I attest to the impeccable construction and fantastic fabrics that were involved in her collection. Additionally the silhouettes of her designs were truly fashion forward and a step ahead of the pack. Emma showcased a black and gold brocade dress with a gold exposed zipper on back, topped-off with voluminous black sleeves. Another highlight of her collection was a pair of black silk harem pants (one of the few pairs I have seen up close that I have actually taken a liking to) paired with a cropped top.
For more photos from the event check out Digital Crush Photography by Stephen Stephens and Kate Iverson, and Emily Utne for City Pages.