Remembering the day I came back to Vancouver on September 1st 2010, with a finished mini-collection. DAMN it took a LOT of time and effort to go through it all...but it was ALL worth it!..
Now it's being presented at the Vancouver Fashion Week on November 4th, 7pm at the Empire Landmark Hotel (1400 Robson Street). I still have lots to do...many deadlines yet to meet.
Here are some visuals of what to expect...
In the first picture you can see the Gray Transparent Sweater and the Cable Vest. The gray sweater is made up of two different fabrics. One of it being stretch knit poly; which is the light-gray transparent section, and the other being cotton/wool woven fabric with a holey texture... The cable vest is 100% cotton and has embellishments on the hem and collar.... A beautiful, original piece... One you will NOT see anywhere else as it was thought of, designed and constructed by the Sesoren's ;) I have to say "Thank You" to my mother Tahire, who has supported me since the start and has helped constructing my collection.... A million kisses I send to you in Istanbul/Turkey!! Yes, the Fashion Week is based on spring/summer....but originally my mini collection is aimed at Fall 2010-2011. To adjust it to the spring and summer I added the hand-made floral tops, and the suede bikini bottoms. This collection is more so to check the pulse of Vancouverites (As it's never smart to start out as an independent designer right off the bat!!!! You gotta be veeery careful....) I hope my signature in this collection will lead me to design for local companies in hopes to add a little of me into our market ;) So..... Let's continue with the second picture... The Hippie Pants, Latte Faux Leather Pants and one of my favorite items the Vintage Bustier. The Hippie pants are 5% elasthane and 95% cotton. The background color is army green and has this amazing faded floral print on it! A RARE found fabric.... Soft, thanks to its finishes... Both the Hippie and the Latte Pants have the knee-cap stitching detail. Now I knew that that was going to be a trend this season. And all you have to do is check the window displays. It's all over the place, SO "trend-wise" this collection is on the right track... And I thought I really had to be careful while designing for the Vancouver industry as I have one set, of each item, in small/medium/large sizes that I want to sell out. That's why during my construction I made sure my products were going to be "sellable". Of course it's always great to have conceptual, over the top designs- but my aim is to "see the items being worn by people...see people liking what they wear"... (and not to forget to mention that these items are 100% original in style and fabric...some of the fabric is discontinued- I made sure of that... So "knowing that the item you wear can ONLY be seen on you" would make you feel kinda special now, would it not?... that's what I was aiming at with this collection.) Let's continue with the following set of visuals.
Again, one of my favorite pieces the Green Harness sleeveless sweater (worn by model Lauren Arrah / John Casablancas). Now I remember the story when I was plotting the design in my mind. I explained the style to my mother and she said "that's not possible". And I said "good...that means we're gonna make it!" ;) She trusted in me and my idea... And when it was finished with the leather shoulder epaulette, leather buttons and accessory chains that are kind of hidden in between the cables, my mother shrieked "I want one!". The outfit shown with that sweater is going to be my Opening Gala Presentation, where all of the designers attending Vancouver Fashion Week are going to present 1 outfit of their whole collection to the press...media...exciting... In the next picture Braleigh Nelson / Carrie Wheeler, shows off the faux Suede Belt. Now this belt is another "trendy" item to be seen this season in Europe... I have not noticed it in Vancouver yet (yay!). It's buckled from the side and has patches of the fabrics that the other items were constructed out of. It covers half of the front hip and half of the back. You can wear it on top of mini skirts (denim, earth tone leather ) on pants or leggings. Now a little bit about the photo shoot. i can hear some people's thoughts thinking "what about the horns? what's that all about?". I always loved mythology and I love science-fiction. When I design or style or even at times when I model, I "imagine". Hey, it's for free!! So why not use it, and try to make it work? I always love watching movies because it carries me away to a distant land...An adventure... Same with modeling, I love getting into character. It's just great to be away from reality even if it is for an hour or two. When I design, I like to feed off of an idea. Maybe an experience that I just went through. Here's a little story: I hadn't seen my parents for two years, living in Vancouver. So I decided to stay with them a while...that "while" turned out to be 8 months! ;) When I had left Vancouver things were looking pretty bad. There's always a way out of course. But emotionally I was at the worst phase I can remember. Then I found myself in my apartment in Istanbul/ Turkey. And MY LORD was that a culture-shock I re-lived again... Veeery crowded... A beautiful city that never sleeps, but that's why I ran away from it in the first place ;) I couldn't get inspired and focus on designing and my art. And there I was...with an idea. I worked as a designer in the industry for 4 years, but never had the opportunity and time to create my own private collection! It was HARD WORK. HARD TO COMMIT. Playing with wool and faux leather during the hottest season of the summer! But there was no giving up in my agenda. So "CRASH-BOOM-BANG" it was finished and I was on the plane flying back to Vancouver. I followed my intuition which said "it's the perfect time to make your wish come true". Now I'm a very spiritual person and I always listen to my gut feeling...but this one was pure responsibility. that's why I called this collection the CRASH Line: "Inner Gods at Creation". It's about being in tune with your femininity and the Goddess inside you...learning to follow the primal hunch and voice coming from your heart. Using those basic animal instincts to make our dreams come true..that nowadays we seem to ignore. Yes, women have that gut feeling. USE IT! That's what I tried to portray in my shoot. The protective unicorn and the fragile deer-like figure being attacked by a pack of wolves. Dreams being jeopardized by today's environment. Don't let it ;) Now back to the visuals... Close-ups.
The next item is the Green Skirt made of 100% cotton with chiffon rim and velvet trim and bow.
There is one more outfit that has not been added to the main photoshoots. It is the cotton, knit, Strapless Harem Overall. Made out of a very high quality fabric. It's color is deep purple. In this collection the black is my purple. As a mourning of summer I added faded floral print fabrics to give that vintage feel that I (and I know many others) love. For show purposes I have a Floral Chiffon Dress, a Satin Floral Dress and the Black Leather Strapless Skeleton Dress (which can be worn as a skirt on top of leggings or on top of a -preferrably black- tube dress.)
Sermin Sesoren
Thanking all the cast and crew for their help:
