October 2013 will be the first ever Hawaii Fashion Month, a movement to make Hawaii recognised as a fashion destination like California and New York. The event will echo throughout art galleries, shopping centres, theatres, schools and eateries state wide.
Paul Brown states, "Hawai‘i Fashion Month gives local stylists, designers and retailers the opportunity to showcase the multicultural talent within our state’s fashion and beauty industries. Hawai‘i styles and trends not only represent our island culture, but they also symbolize a dynamic melting pot of fashion with inspiration from all over the world."
It's true, Hawaii offers a unique blend of fashion, where eastern and western tastes mix and mingle. When you first think of Hawaiian fashion, you probably think of Aloha shirts, leis, slippers (flip flops) and miu mius. But the truth is there is so much more to offer; from avant garde couture from designers fresh out of school and still budding, to our thriving hub of Japanese sub cultures.
J-fashion enthusiasts of all sects gathered at Ala Moana Shopping Center last month, for the first ever Honolulu "Harajuku Fashion Walk." Guests included representatives of Visual Kei, Sweet, Gothic and Classic Lolita, Cult Party Kei, Shironuri and Decora.
We met inside "Shirokiya", Ala Moana's unique Japanese Department store and Food Court. From there we went on a trek through Ala Moana Beach Park and back up to Neiman Marcus, taking refuge in the air conditioning.
On our journey we were stopped by curious bystanders, shocked Japanese tourists, and we were even bombarded by a children's birthday party posse, who recognised the Lolita fashion with gusto. The entire party took their photos with the J-fashion group (And I made a small child cry with my shironuri Vkei outfit. Not intentional.)
It was a wonderful way for all of us to come together and show our style. I loved it because I was able to go out to a meet-up in something other than lolita that I enjoy- The Visual Kei style. (I am the one in the white hair, red tie and red Listen Flavor Boots.)
Speaking of Visual Kei... me, my friend Alice, Nephilim Halls and several other sponsors have teamed up to bring J-fashion out of the closet in Hawaii. One of our events was a "Pop Kei Fashion Show", hosted by Loading Zone for their "Anime Mayhem!" event, a gallery show of anime styled art by local artists.
Models, mainly supporters of our Visual Kei Dark Castle events, came out in items from their own closet. Brands like Putumayo, h.Naoto and Mint Neko were well represented. The theme was "Pop Kei", or a more casual, pop art style of oshare kei.
Alice and I also had a Pop-Up booth with information on J-fashion, music and alternative events in Hawaii, and of course Visual Kei Dark Castle.
Since there were art supplies out for guests, we even received fan art from an adorable little girl!
Our main goal was to get the word out about J-fashion in Hawaii, and to attract a following for our upcoming event: VKDC: Angels and Demons. It was our usual bi-monthly Visual Kei Dark Castle event but with a "Heaven vs. Hell" theme.
The guests got REALLY into dressing up... and much to my surprise, it wasn't all demons! We had some amazing angels! Here I am with my fried Dana, who made his detachable wings and all his accessories by hand!
I lead the Angels, and my friend and Co-host Alice lead the Demons.
Here we are with the winners and runners up of our Fashion Contest! The Best Demon was awarded a gift card to Sensually Yours, and the Best Angel scored a gift card for The Tea Farm Cafe. Both are local Hawaii businesses.
And this was NOTHING! Visual Kei Dark Castle is only just starting to take off in Hawaii... and in October, with Hawaii Fashion Month we are going to prove it to you, with our VKDC Halloween Party!
You are cordially invited to join us at our new venue, the newly owned, operated and renovated Next Door in Honolulu. Save the date for October 5th from 8 PM to 11 PM, and stick around for our following late-night Industrial Event, "HYDRA".
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| BIG Mahalos to Millenium Hawaii for sponsoring, and Mariko Obsidian for always making kick-ass flyers! |
We even filmed our first-ever commercial for this event, inspired by Halloween Junk Orchestra's "Halloween Party".
** I'm not sure if Embed is working or not, so if you don't see the video below CLICK HERE!**
It was filmed at our new venue, Next Door.
Come out on October 5th to kick off Hawaii Fashion Month, Halloween style with some of the most innovative and creative fashions on the island. Come out and play with the monsters!
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| Photo courtesy of Jeff Cox |
Feeling J-fashioned out yet?? Well, I haven't posted in nearly five months, boys and girls... this is barely scratching the surface! I just wanted to get you in the know about some of the awesome things we have going on in Hawaii. Obviously, Hawaii Fashion Month is not only a fitting idea, but it's been a long time coming.
There are so many incredible fashion scenes going on in Hawaii... and the general public barely knows about them yet!
To international fashion, and beyond!
Xoxo, Cherie
