Pittsburgh Fashion Week Runway Tickets Are Selling Fast

By Kaitlin Shields

Get your fashion on, strike a pose, and enjoy Pittsburgh Fashion Week’s Runway Show live and in person at the Wintergarden.

On Wednesday, September 21st, our designers will be dressed and ready to dazzle you with their latest creations to showcase Pittsburgh’s growing fashion industry. Ticket prices range from general admission to VIP. Every seat is guaranteed an eye-catching view of our models rocking carefully styled, authentic pieces. Our spotlight is ready to highlight the collections of six talented designers after two years of virtual walks. VIP tickets include access to the pre-show party starting at 6:00 pm. General admission doors will open at 7:00 pm, and our models will hit the runway at 8:00 pm.

Join us for an evening of flare at the Pittsburgh Fashion Week’s Runway Show and let your passion for fashion shine alongside our designers.

Pittsburgh Fashion Week Kickoff Party

By Kaitlin Shields

Pittsburgh Fashion Week is back in the spotlight and the runway is yours. You’re invited to strut your stuff and celebrate the start of Pittsburgh Fashion Week at our VIP Kickoff Party.

Back in person on Monday, September 19th, this highly anticipated event will open the 2022 fashion week followed by six more days of fashion and fun. Taking place under the stars on the rooftop of Sienna Mercato from 7:00-9:30pm, complimentary appetizers will be paired with a cash bar. This party is open to the public but is limited to the first 250 guests in attendance.

Gather your fashionista friends and join us at our VIP Kickoff Party to initiate the start of Pittsburgh Fashion Week in style.

Vintage Meets Modern this Pittsburgh Fashion Week

By Payton Ferris

As a suit maker, with a vintage appreciation stemming from family inspiration, Malcolm Staples pushes boundaries to create beautifully fitting pieces for both men and women.

Growing up, Malcolm saw his grandfather as a stylish man who dressed fashionably for events as simple as going to the barbershop. With this style in mind, Malcolm is able to pull from times such as the 1950s by utilizing accessories like ascots, scarves, and hats. By doing this, Malcolm is able to contemporize these details and place them in a “natural setting” within his work.

With trademark suit making, Malcolm ventured out into creating “elegant and tailored” three-piece suits for women. Despite “being a one-person operation”, he adjusted quickly to “follow demands” of his female clientele and now has more female clients than males. This expansion of style also inspired him to experiment more with popular female pieces by designing dresses and gowns as well.

Originally from Michigan, Malcolm comes from a “lower income, single parent household”, which taught him “the value of working hard” to find success. His mother is a large influence on his work as her love and support encouraged the possibilities that he could achieve.

His nephew Lamarr Woodley, who was an outside linebacker with the Steelers for six years and was with them for their Super Bowl XLIII win, introduced a connection to Pittsburgh for Malcolm. He was drawn to Pittsburgh by relating to aspects of the “blue collar town” and appreciated the hardworking community.

For the future of fashion, Malcolm hopes that the industry will proceed in a circular motion to keep up with evolving trends. With the importance of staying relevant, he hopes that designers will learn how to change with society without taking the rapid changes personally. Malcolm believes that we all have to “continue to reinvent ourselves along the way” to achieve our defined success.

Sustainable Fashion Joins Pittsburgh Fashion Week

By Payton Ferris

Prioritizing practicality and sustainability, Emily Rouse ensures that her designs are perfect for the everyday look while still originating from the creative inspirations of House of Rouse LLC.

With prints designed in-house, Emily’s collections begin with an idea for the prints and then develop based on that foundation. She works to make each versatile collection of womenswear so the pieces can last and work for any occasion. In terms of inspiration, she finds that everyday things around her influence her collections. The KALEIDOSCOPE Collection, which will be shown at the show, originated from a photograph that she took of a shadow cast from a building. By manipulating this photo, she was able to discover a print that struck creativity for her collection. With this idea, she explores the concept of how a photograph is both stuck in time and eternal, which creates contrast within the art itself.

Having grown up in the Wheeling area, Emily currently has her studio, Edgington Studio, in her hometown, which has provided her with a supportive environment to grow her business. Doing Pittsburgh Fashion Week and working with the local fashion community has given her the opportunity to promote the importance of local fashion and design on a national level. Despite encountering challenges from the pandemic, she has learned not only how to problem solve and expect the unexpected, but it has also allowed her to cherish both her and other local businesses.

With the rise of sustainable fashion, Emily utilizes her one studio in Wheeling, West Virginia, to reduce the environmental impact that may occur from constant shipping from various locations. She also produces very small runs to cut down inventory and produce pieces as they become in demand to avoid having products that may end up in landfills. Along with both of these methods, she also has a partnership with the City of Wheeling’s Department of Recycling that gives her the opportunity to donate fabric scraps from finished pieces to local schools for children to use in craft projects. In a similar manner to the idea of a photograph, climate change also intertwines with history and immediacy, so every action that we take towards sustainable fashion coincides with the art of the craft.

Emily would love to see the fashion industry develop a more transparent approach to showing customers where and how clothes are made. She wishes that fashion creation becomes more of a local, American-made concept and that the team behind the clothing, such as the pattern makers, sewers, and cutters, be recognized for their work by those who wear it. She also hopes that “sewing becomes less of a dying art and that more people will find inspiration to keep sewing and designing fashion alive.” The intertwinement of the vintage and modern concepts of fashion gives an incredible insight into how society interacts with the designs of House of Rouse LLC.

Pittsburgh Fashion Week Designer Kaitlyn Berthold

By Payton Ferris

By focusing on elements of fantasy and history, Kaitlyn Berthold creates a style based on the beauty of other worlds and times.

As a cosplayer herself, Kaitlyn was originally intrigued by the fashion world through making her own costumes. By working on more complicated designs for characters, she encountered challenges and was able to grow her skill set for her work. From aspects such as chainmail to creating props from household items she was able to bring her visions to life through the inspiration of a character as a starting point. She now utilizes this concept of inspiration in her collections by providing a background that helps delve further into garment details.

In 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic halted her schooling at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh and delayed her plans. She was able to travel to London and build her knowledge via an internship, but other plans such as going to Milan as well as participating in past Pittsburgh Fashion Week events were delayed from the virus. Despite these setbacks, she learned “to be persistent and have faith in both herself and her designs.”

As she got the opportunity to travel, she has observed how different interpretations of both history and fantasy are represented in varying cultures. During a trip to Venice, Italy Kaitlyn was given access to a costumer’s backroom for a masquerade ball. For these costumes made in Venice, everything was done very traditionally in the sense that items were made by hand and a major emphasis is put on the details of each piece. This visit along with her other travels has inspired her to look toward greater plans for where her design future may take her.

When looking at the possibilities for the fashion industry, Kaitlyn hopes to see the elimination of fast fashion to increase the creation of long-lasting products. She also wants to see more opportunities given to independent designers. She knows how much work and love that designers put into their work, so she hopes that customers will realize the impact that they make on small businesses as “buying from an independent designer means more and has more effect than an online wholesale retailer.”

Pittsburgh Fashion Summit

By Kaitlin Shields

Attention all members of the fashion community, class is in session! You are invited to expand your knowledge about the industry and connect with other fashionistas at the Pittsburgh Fashion Summit.

Whether you are a designer, creator, buyer, retail business owner, or fashion enthusiast, the Pittsburgh Fashion Summit, on Tuesday, September 20th, will open your mind to a world of fashion possibilities. This fashion packed, informative event, taking place at the Union Trust Building, will include lunch, a keynote speaker, panel discussions, and workshop classes. A networking opportunity complete with appetizers and cocktails will wrap up your day of fashion education.

The schedule is as follows:

Check-in: 8:30 a.m. to 9:30 a.m.

Mayor Ed Gainey, Speaker: 9:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.

First Panel Discussion: 10:30 a.m. to 11:45 a.m.

Lunch: 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Workshops: 1:15 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

First Break: 2:30 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

Second Panel Discussion: 3:15 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Second Break: 4:45 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.

Networking, Appetizers and Cocktails: 5:15 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.

Join us at the Pittsburgh Fashion Summit to sharpen your skills and connect with other fashion enthusiasts who are hungry for the latest and most innovative trends in Pittsburgh’s fashion front.

Buy Gucci Sneakers with Augmented Reality

By Amanda Wen

With the increasing popularity of words like NFTs and the Metaverse, it’s clear that the digitalization of the world is only becoming more and more innovative.

Improving a retail brand’s virtual presence is now necessary to remain a competitive and adaptable business. Features such as Kroger’s digital price tags or Audi’s VR showroom are outputs of the digital craze. 

Another trending technological feature currently being used by many household fashion brands is Augmented Reality (AR).  AR “combines a view of the real world with computer-generated elements in real time”, all from the ease of one’s device (computer or smartphone). 

The biggest issues revolving around online shopping include annoying size charts (both domestic and international) and lack of personalization. AR can be a unique solution by creating an emotional connection and experience through any buyer’s screen. 

Brands from Gucci to Timberland are already implementing AR into their in-store and online shopping features in order to create an immersive and personalized experience. 

A Virtual Fitting Room

With Gucci’s new try-on feature in collaboration with Snapchat, buyer’s are able to use SnapML filters to try on a variety of different shoes, to which they can later buy on the Gucci website via search or Snapchat itself. 

Gucci Snapchat Ad try before you buy AR

This AR experience was a huge success for users, driving an increase in engagement, conversion, and retention rates for both Gucci and Snapchat. Pretty cool!

From the in-store perspective, Timberland has launched a ‘magic mirror’, an AR-powered mirror that allows users to try on clothes virtually.  Shoppers could quickly and conveniently try on different garments without the hassle of undressing in fitting rooms or waiting for endless lines. 

The smart tool was also a way to attract new customers for Timberland, as people stopped and engaged with the store’s features due to its differentiation and novelty. 

Seeing is Believing

The AR industry is predicted to have a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 42.9% throughout the next 8 years, meaning the industry has the potential to reach $1,274.4 billion by 2030. AR can be a game-changing platform for fashion retailers to take advantage of, with the ability to reduce overconsumption, increase conversion rates, and create equitable sizing globally. 

Nevertheless, AR is still in its infancy and has yet to solve its risks before actually being integrated into daily retail operations. AR’s biggest issues concern privacy and its cost of development, as well as maintaining it. In order for everyone to partake in this digital phenomena, limitations like these must be resolved first.
However, The blend between technology and fashion has only begun. Virtual clothes for Zoom are in creation, Balenciaga presented their AW21 collection through VR, and the retail industry is constantly expanding into different avenues of modern innovation.

Middle-Eastern Asian Style Comes to Pittsburgh Fashion Week

By Payton Ferris

By using inspiration from her home in the Southern part of The Philippines, Marissa Tampoya utilizes the colorful and beautiful style of Middle-Eastern Asian culture within her work.

With a commonality of ideas floating through the current fashion community, Marissa focuses on not following trends and instead focusing on emphasizing the differences in style and acting on whatever inspires her for her work. Her goal is to create pieces that her clients can wear every day and still stand out in comparison to others.

By residing in the United States, Marissa observes the culture of trends in comparison to the trends of the country where she was raised and uses this to incorporate into her style within her business IslandGurl. She is inspired by the environment around her, especially focusing on the Earth and observing how plants and animals embrace the color and movement that they represent. The similarities within the culture of the island she lived on in The Philippines in comparison to the U.S. allows for her American audience to be familiar with the style while simultaneously embracing the detail and culture that comes with each piece.

When she first started out designing, Marissa was concerned about the acceptance of her work and style. However, she knew she had to remain true to herself and design what spoke to her. Her challenge now is trying to find materials that are unique and speak to her/her work. Luckily, she has friends outside of the U.S. that help her to discover new fabrics that other people in the U.S. do not have access to and therefore contributes to IslandGurl’s individuality. Although trying to create while having to wait to have the fabric in front of her is a challenge, she loves being able to utilize unique pieces for her work.

She hopes that in the future, the fashion industry will inspire designers to step into their own rather than following others. She also hopes that the industry will learn to change with society and culture. Perhaps others will be inspired to observe their surroundings within the present day.