Thakoon Panichgul: Remember his name

So you know I absolutely had to write something about Thakoon P. who is the designer of two pieces Michelle Obama wore in the Pittsburg summit and a dress when President Obama accepted the nomination for President. Whoever she likes, I like... and as for Thakoon... I love. Let me give you some information about him.

This American fashion designer was born in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand and moved to Nebraska where he fell in love with photography. After graduating from Boston University in 97 with a degree in business he was offered the position to work as a buyer for J.Crew. But his time at J.Crew was short lived as he left to become a fashion writer for Harper's Bazaar and ended up studying at Parson's ( of course) for two years from 2001-2003.

His first line was put out in 2004 and the press went crazy. Michelle Obama and Sarah Jessica Parker were a few of the names that fell in love with is designs. The then 29-year-old designer quickly grabbed all the big wig fashion enthusiasts and they remain in his clutches. He doesn't exactly make the Avant Garde, statement clothing, but that is what his followers love about him. He has a minimalist, modern twist on things.


Thakoon was given the honor of designing for different companies such as footwear for Nine West in 2006 and White T-Shirts for Gap in 2008. He has even done a few things for Target in 2009. ( Seems like Target has become the " Must -Have- A -Line for department store... who knew! )



Award Center
2005: Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation Award for New Talent



The moral to this story is that anyone can have a vision and if executed properly, it can be respected by others. Though Thakoon has been graced by the " Obama" effect, I still believe that with or without Michelle's approval, he has some great designs.


I want people to keep in mind that just because he dressed Michelle, it doesn't mean that he ONLY needs to make stuff that would suit her in his collections. His collections have been criticised based on the idea that Michelle Obama wouldn't wear them... well duh... he is not her personal designer. He makes special pieces for the first lady, she doesn't pick through his already made designs. Please!

Anyways... I love Thakoon and his courage to switch from the numbers side of fashion to the creative side. There isn't a lot of information on him, but I know there soon will be. Watch out for him, because I smell a CFDA award in the near future.



V
p.s. i wish his staff would have gotten cuter models or something ... these girls are a little...idk... not all, just some

Much Needed Dose of Michelle Obama

So I have been going through M.O.W. (Michelle-Obama-Withdraw) lately ... I mean what has she been wearing, who has she been wearing? Well I can tell you this, First Lady Michelle has a lot of diversity in her wardrobe with her pieces being designed by people coming from many different parts of the world.




Jackie- O inspired look, custom made for the First Lady by Thakoon Panichgul, Thai Born Designer.

Another Jason Wu( Canadian Born) master piece.

Another piece by Thakoon, who designs out of New York.
Dress by Zero + Maria Cornejo a Chilean designer.
Dress by the one and only, DVF, Belgium born president of the CFDA.

A delicate Nina Ricci dress, whose founder Maria Ricci was born in Turin.

Jason Wu dress, Micheal Kors ( New York born) black coat and Azzedine Alaia( born in Tunisia) studded belt! This is , by far,my favorite look!
Michelle in Oscar de la Renta ( from the Dominican Republic).

And of course, what would a Michelle Obama post be without a J. Crew piece ( the sweater) !


Don' t you just fall in love with her all over again!

Check the designer line up:

Jason Wu

Maria Ricci
DVF
Thakoon Panichgul

Maria Cornejo

Red Alert: Customize Your Own Louboutins

So I was definitely caught off guard with my workload at school this semester. So I have to limit my long posts for times when... just when I can.

For now I am going to hit you with some short and sweet posts ( I know you love those).

I just read this article in this cool magazine called Departures about this great, great idea of allowing people to have custom made Louboutins.


No, you are not mistake, CUSTOM MADE. Apparently at his France atelier, Madame Herbert is there to take appointments for brides to get their own custom Loub's. The place is called Minuit Moins 7 and it is located on the famous Rue Jean-Jacques Rosseau, the same street that houses all of high fashion's hot spots in Paris.

This shop has everything you need to make any shoe your little heart desires. Not a bride, not a problem. As long as you have the money, you can get the shoes.

Notice I have yet to mention the price. Well, that's because it's a little steep. The Initial mold of the foot starts at $3,400 and the total costs depends on how elaborate you want your shoes to look. But I have to say, if you have the money to invest, it's well worth it. Not only to you have a lower risk of DYING in your heels because they are made especially for you, but you also get a chance for Mr. Louboutin himself to help you come up with an idea for your special shoes.


I am going to start saving my pennies now!

The Infamous: Mark Fast !

28 year old Canadian designer Mark Fast just recently did the unthinkable and sent plus sized models down the runway. Don't be ridiculous, these ladies were US size 8-12. But really... all this press over these women who are still below the average size of American women, which is a size 14.


Not only was the press going crazy over the models, but his staff ( creative director and stylist) apparently walked out on him. Really? You are going to walk out on a revolutionary moment in fashion? Well he kind of needed them because, well, there were some wardrobe problems.

I mean these girls were very pretty women, honestly, I rather see these girls with curves like mine, than girls that only 10% of the world looks like.

When I become a designer, whether people like it or not, my models will have real bodies. What good is a garment if it only looks good on models? We are the ones buying, so we need to know how we are going to look in it. I want to feel like that with all my favorite designers, but sadly that's not the case.


Even though his dresses could have fit his models a wee bit better, Mark Fast still made an effort that many designers would believe to be taboo. I love the effort that he put in to diversify the runway, and I look forward to his next collection when I am sure he will make the clothes fit these models better, but I mean what can he do, his staff left him right before the show. I think he made a great first effort.

It's the thought that counts right?

I also spotted a lot of racial diversity on his runway. I mean he went above and beyond with this one huh?


"It's time for a rebellion against safeness. It's exciting to be a designer now."

Also, Also, Also!!! Mark is going to do a line for Top Shop! All the publicity sure did pay off huh?

Can't Wait to check it out!

Here are some of his other models: