EUROPE.....Museum Visits Recap Part Two: Les Arts Decoratifs Museum "Fashion Forward: 3 Centuries of Fashion" and "Barbie" Exhibitions!

EUROPE.....Museum Visits Recap Part Two: Les Arts Decoratifs Museum "Fashion Forward: 3 Centuries of Fashion" and "Barbie" Exhibitions!

Couture and Barbie: Collage of the "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" and "Barbie" Exhibitions--Les Arts Decoratifs Paris

Continuing with my EUROPE MUSEUM RECAP, here's Part 2 of my Blog. In my previous blog HERE I covered attending the "Vogue 100 Years of Style" London Exhibition as well as the "James Bond: 50 Years of Style" Exhibit in Paris. David and I were in Paris for less than 24 hours but we wanted to make sure to take advantage of the brief time we had.

David Paul and Nick Verreos--Barbie Exhibition, Les Arts Decoratifs Paris

Mon Dieu!--Nick Verreos at the "Fashion Forward: 3 Centuries of Fashion" Exhibition, Les Arts Decoratifs Paris

We were very excited when we found out that there were TWO fabulous fashion exhibitions in Paris and in ONE Museum: Les Arts Decoratifs. The exhibitions were "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" (3 Centuries of Fashion), and the "Barbie" Exhibition (enough said!). So, naturally, we had to attend!

Les Arts Decoratifs Museum, Paris France

So, let's begin with the "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" fashion exhibition. This amazing exhibition celebrates three centuries of fashion--from the 1715-2016. The Exhibition is a fashion designer's/fashion historian/fashionista/fashion lover's DREAM! It begins with stunning 18th Century clothing from the Louis XIV time including all the fabulous Watteau-backed gowns, elaborate brocade waistcoats, and then into the Napoleon and Empress Josephine era with the delicately gorgeous Empire gowns. The exhibition segues right into the bustle-backed fashion period and the start of modern Haute Couture with Charles Frederick Worth in the late 1800's and early 20th Century Chanel, Lanvin, Schiaparelli and so many more...

Pannier Divine: Court Dress, around 1778--"Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Watteau Couture: Watteau-back dress and petticoat (robe a la francaise), around 1740--"Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition, Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Striped Bustle: Striped satin gown "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Worth Sublime: An 1865 gown from Couturier Charles Frederick Worth--"Fashion Forward: 3                                      Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

  Fortuny Chic: "Delphos" Dress from Mariano Fortuny 1905-1907--"Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles                                          de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

     Empire Couture: Dress from Callot Soeurs 1909-1913--"Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode"                                                Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Empire Train: "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum                                                                                    Paris

Early 20th Century Mode: "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs                                                                            Museum Paris

The exhibition then moved onto the 20th Century highlighting the height of Haute Couture with late 1940s/1950's designs from Christian Dior, Yves Saint Laurent, Cristobal Balenciaga, Pierre Balmain as well as the fabulous 1960's looks of Andre Courreges, Paco Rabanne, Emanuel Ungaro. When I walked into the main hall of Les Arts Decoratifs which contained these designs...I almost began to cry...

1950's Couture Superb: "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs                                                                             Museum Paris

Dior 1947 New Look: "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs                                                                             Museum Paris

Toreador and Picasso: Yves Saint Laurent Haute Couture--"Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode"                                           Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Emanuel Ungaro and Andre Courreges: "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les                                                              Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Cardin Caftan: 1960s Pierre Cardin flower printed silk gown (right)--"Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles                                   de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

   Balenciaga Pouf: Cristobal Balenciaga evening ensemble Haute Couture Fall/Winter 1961--                 "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Comme des Garcons, 2016: "Fashion Forward: 3 Siecles de Mode" Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs                                                                      Museum Paris

Next up was the "Barbie" Exhibition---------------------------------------------------------------------------





Barbie!--Les Arts Decoratifs Museum in Paris also had the wonderful "Barbie" exhibition, showcasing...Barbie (!), of course. The exhibit pays tribute to the iconic doll, featuring 700 versions of the doll with many different styles of Barbie fashion. I was especially excited to seeing this exhibition since naturally, I am and have always been, a big Barbie fan. Also, if you might remember, I had a very nice moment during my time on Season 2 "Project Runway" when my design won the "Barbie Challenge"...

Nick Verreos "My Scene Barbie" Winning Design--Season 2 "Project Runway"

 Nick Verreos "Malibu Barbie" design--FIDM 2009 DEBUT show

I eventually had my own Barbie design sold all over the world. I also designed a "Malibu Barbie" look for the 50th Anniversary of Barbie celebration at the FIDM DEBUT fashion gala show. I was a bit sad that these creations/designs did not make it into the exhibition but, alas, there was enough there, to keep my attention.

Lots of Barbies--Barbie Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Barbie Couture Salon Fashion Show--Barbie Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Barbie Fab: Barbie Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Barbie & Ken Skating: Roller Skating and Figure Skating Barbie and Ken--Barbie Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Paris

Stewardess Barbie: American Airlines Stewardess Barbie--Barbie Exhibition Les Arts Decoratifs Museum Paris

Nick Verreos at the Louvre Pyramid and Louvre Palace Museum Courtyard, Paris France

Paris Sketch: I was so inspired by being in Paris--even for such a short time--that I did a "Couture Fashion Sketch" in my hotel :)

Au Revoir Paris! XO, Nick

Project Runway Recaps: Episode 8 of Season 10 Project Runway--"The Boris and Natasha Show"--My RECAP!

Project Runway Recaps: Episode 8 of Season 10 Project Runway--"The Boris and Natasha Show"--My RECAP!

Boris, Natasha and Bullwinkle and...Oh No, Another Team Challenge!!



To Start, What Does Boris and Natasha:

Bullwinkle:

And 90's Ripped T-shirts:

Have to do with Project Runway? Keep reading kids...

 

Last Thursday's Project Runway episode dealt with a Team Challenge in which they had to design two looks--in teams of three--for Fall 2012. As expected, there was lots of DRAMA, I-have-no-time excuses, and direct-to-camera, nasty one-liners...and for the most part some rather unexciting fashion.

 Headmaster of Arts and Crafts: Tim Gunn and the Season 10 remaining designers

To begin with, in order to get their "Mood Money" for this week's challenge, the remaining designers--after the teams were announced--had to make and merchandise t-shirts created from of all the art and craft supplies that awaited them at the Parsons workroom.

There was so much puffy paint, hot glue and glitter that it looked like a 70% off sale at Michaels Arts and Crafts...or like a Kindergarden classroom. One team made cute t-shirts with fashion croquis, others went for the predictable and tacky ripped 90's t-shirt look.

Meatpacking $2 Hookers: Team Gunnar/Sonjia/Christopher hawking their merchandise

They also created some necklaces, bracelets and whatever other "Whickety-wack" they could come up with to then sell to unsuspecting NY fashionistas, hipsters and tourists that happen to be walking by. Team Christopher/Gunnar/Sonjia were GREAT "$2 Hookers" and also made up signs to advertise what they were doing...They get ATTAGURL points.



Now to the DRAMA:

Boris and Natasha of Season 10: Designers Dmitry Sholokhov and Elena Slivnyak who were on one of the teams, got on each other's nerves. Dmitry is a former professional ballroom dancer from Belarus and Elena, well, she's just a Ukrainian-born Diva. Throughout the episode they were both very "Boris and Natasha" from "Rocky and Bullwinkle" cartoons. Elena said nasty things and Dmitry verbally threw it back at her. Elena made fun of his accent and Dmitry called her designs "coffin-like". It just went on and on.

Alicia Bullwinkle: Designer Alicia Hardesty--their team partner--poor thing was caught in the middle (or on sidelines) of their "Boris and Natasha Show" during this challenge. She was their "Bullwinkle".  As a result of their negative un-team-like working relationship, their designs on the runway suffered.

The Runway: 

Guest Judge fashion designer Ana Sui (far left) with Nina Garcia, Michael Kors and Heidi Klum

Fall Dressing: Team Gunnar/Christopher/Sonjia got along swimmingly and created the best looks of the night--Gunnar's dresses (above) were very Fall/Winter, directional and sleek. I especially LOVED the leather and wool felt fabric blocking.

 

The looks also included two other standouts: Sonjia Williams' jacket and Christopher Palu's camel coat seen above. Both were Paris Fashion Week fabulous. The winner--and rightly so--was Sonjia with that perfectly tailored jacket. I was SWOONING over the roll of  Sonjia's jacket sleeve cap: AMAZING! The styling, fit and look of the jacket was very...

 Armani Prive Haute Couture

Team Monotony: Team Melissa/Fabio/Ven were one of the two teams with the lowest scores. Their looks were very bland and uninspiring to the judges. I kind of agreed but at the same time, they were like something one would see from a FAB Danish, Finnish or Swedish fashion designer...

Hello Stockholm: The looks were very "Scandinavian" in terms of their clean lines and pseudo modern styling. Melissa Fleis' cropped jacket was well received by the judges but the rest was not-so-mucheey, including Ven Budhu's dowdy dirndl skirt.

 

Team Boris and Natasha: Team Alicia/Dmitry/Elena were also one of the lowest scored teams. The judges said that because they argued and didn't work well as a team, it showed on the runway with their designs. I thought Dmitry's (Boris) asymmetrical neckline dress was so "Robert Palmer Girl--2012"and Elena's (Miss Natasha) coat was a wonky mess. The front lifted up and it wasn't up to par with the work that I remember seeing from her back at the LA Castings. (I D.I.E.D. over her AMAZING coats!).

But it was Alicia "Bullwinkle" who went home because the judges thought her top and pants were a "yawn". It's a perfect example of one of the Project Runway credos: Go BOLD or Go Home. In my Recap (starting below), I wrote that her denim "cool girl" jumpsuit was much "fresher" than those stovepipe pants and jersey top...

Speaking of my Recap...here it is:

The Boris and Natasha Show

Last week, there were NINE designers, and
this week ... there are STILL Nine Designers. If you have been keeping
score, NO ONE was out in last week's DRAMA-filled "Lord & Taylor
Challenge" episode. The designers were asked to create a dress for the
iconic department store and the winner was Christopher, who made a
blush/nude and black gown which won praise from all the judges. On the
bottom — vote wise — were Alicia and Gunnar, yet Miss Heidi K. said that
because there were no real "train-wrecks" and, according to her, they
all did a good job, EVERYONE stayed. We all realize it was because of
the two designers who quit early in the season, but let’s just all play
along, shall we?!

Auf This and Auf That

In the beginning of the episode, the winner, Christopher, was riding
high on his winning horse and declared that someone should have gone
home. Gunnar was his target, and we all know, it wasn’t because of his
design, but mainly because he is Christopher’s Gay Arch Nemesis! I also
agree that someone should have been eliminated but I felt that it should
have been Alicia. I feel that the sooner the show can rid itself of the
not-so-talented designers, the quicker the TRUE designers can really
make this a competition. I know it sounds mean and heartless but I'd
rather see a bunch of FAB competing against other FAB. But I digress...

Team Kumbaya: NOT

Now, with this good news that NO ONE was out, one would hope that
there would be a communal Kumbaya atmosphere prevailing through the
walls of Parsons and less melodramatic fits of negativity. Well, kids,
not so fast ... After getting their "Hellooo!" from Heidi, they're off
to meet Tim. He's in the Parsons Workroom, which has turned into
Michael's Arts & Crafts depot with a bunch of glitter, glue, and
paint. Gunn tells the designers that as of now, they have NO BUDGET to
shop at Mood so ... they must create merchandise to sell on the streets
of Manhattan to raise the money for their as-yet-to-be-mentioned
challenge. That's the first bad news, here comes the second: this will
be a Team Challenge and they will have to sell in teams of 3. The teams
are named: Team 1 is Christopher, Sonjia and Gunnar; Team 2 is Dmitry,
Elena and Alicia and Team 3 is Ven, Melissa and Fabio.

Arts & Crafts Parsons

The designers get to work on their Art Doodle projects, making
t-shirts, necklaces, etc. Team 1's stuff is looking cute — croquis,
fashion illustrations and well-sketched faces on T-shirts. On the other
end, however, Team 2's creations are looking like something a First
Grader made after drinking too much "Honey Boo Boo Go Go Juice." Soon,
time's up and they take their merchandise — and go try and sell their
"whickety wack" to the unsuspecting hipster Meatpacking/Chelsea/East
Village public. After much haggling and pleading to people that "You
Really Need A 90s, shredded, Puffy-Painted T-shirt,” the teams return to
Parsons to let Tim know how much money they made: Team 1 made $648;
Team 2 $500; and Team 3, a whopping $800.48. So now, the teams have
their Mood shopping money, but what about the actual challenge? Mr.
Gunn??

Next on Ukrainian and Belarus TV ... The Elena and Dmitry Show

Tim finally announces that each team must create 2 cohesive looks for Fall. They go to Mood...



Click HERE to read the rest of my MyLifetime.com RECAP for this past week's episode--and don't forget to let me know what YOU thought!!!! PLEASE! I LOVE reading YOUR "Two Cents"!