One highlight of this spring breaks' short vacation was seeing my first runway show ever - part of fashion week in Charleston. Though the venues started Tuesday night and continue on until Saturday, we only had time for Thursday night's showings. When we arrived there were no seats, and we stood for the eternity of around 6:45 until around 10:30, surrounded by fashionistas. Everyone looked like they were in four inch heels and outlandish dresses (minus the photographers and a few tourists), next to Leslie and I in jeans and and T's, standing as close as possible to the photographers pit in hopes we could slide under the radar.
And though I stood next to a staff member for the second half of the show, we were never pushed from the very front of the runway. I managed to get some awesome shots, even if I did have to sink to using automatic again. I was asked a few times if I was shooting for a magazine or a newspaper, to which I declined and said I was just there to take photos over my spring break and admire. After a set of batteries and one bow off my new (and much lower) heels, I shot several pictures I'd keep only to edit for facebook later.
The night started off with a fabulous and unique violin performance from a man who's name I can't remember - all I know is that he played the most epic performance of anything Michael Jackson I have ever heard. I was never a huge fan of MJ, but this was incredible. His CD was waiting for my money after the show, but sadly I didn't have a wallet present to buy it. I will be searching the internet after this entry....
After the music, the DJ returned with several remixes of songs I knew - which Leslie and I remarked throughout the show that it was unexpected but nice to hear some mainstream or remixes of mainstream electronic to accompany the runway models. Passion Pit, MGMT, Justice, and Radiohead all made appearances, and I'm sure several other people we knew but might not have caught.
Local designer Eden Boheme started the night with one of our favorite collections, featuring several vintage looks Leslie and I both claimed favorite until the end. It was a large collection with so many pieces I enjoyed.
The next feature was an awkward letdown, sadly enough. Tommy Bahama's awkward male models did nothing for us except the occasional giggle, and even the clothes were pretty boring themselves. Though I'm already disinterested in beachwear (it's never that different), this was what I might have caught down at the beach club in Florida, not on the runway. To highlight the awkwardness, I chose our spotlight male model of the night in his always stunning and ever so edgy Hawaiian shirt.
Copper Penny is a cute name, and much to the likes, had some cute dresses. A few of their models looked a tad awkward, but by this point Leslie and I had guessed that there were a few people in here that weren't models - which was actually kind of nice, even if they did walk a little funny. Having some normal people in there gave us all the perspective of what these articles would actually look like on some real people (aka not bags of bones, nothing personal). Though some of it was a bit boring, the colors were cute and over all I liked the collection.
Next up was Hampden Clothing, a surprisingly edgy line compared to the previous show. With cobalt blue panda-eyed makeup, shiny blacks and bright colors we haven't seen since the last century, thin models showed off a line I half-enjoyed. Though the makeup went with some outfits and didn't with others, I shot the pieces I thought were interesting at least. The music during this session was wild and fun though, I had to say, and these models looked like they were having a good time, and were definitely confident.
After Hampden clothing, a long break ensued. Not wanting to lose our spots, Leslie and I stood in our spots enjoying the music and pointing out several interestingly-dressed viewers as they passed us by. Feeling rather short, I admired the heels on every other woman in the room but us once more. Though my nautical red heels (at his point missing a bow) couldn't compare to some of the expensive footwear, it was an odd concentration of tall people. Even Leslie remarked at how unusual it was to see so many people nearing her height.
When the show finally returned, a model competition was on it's way. Several judges somewhere in the seated audience were to choose one girl and one guy from twenty, ten of each, to win said competition and announce the winners at the end. Though we didn't stay for the announcement, and neither did several others, the runway walk of twenty models lasted a good twenty minutes, and the most crowded period of the show we witnessed. Snuggly behind the staff man in the amazingly awful snakeskin loafers with elongated toes and a tall woman shooting for the newspaper with a point and shoot, there was no way I had a hope of catching any of my favorite fetching models during the competition.
Afterwards, a few people cleared out and I was able to weasel my way towards the front, shooting for the next show of the local designer Seeking Indigo. With a large collection featuring flowy dresses, earthy colors, and some nice bathing suits, this was one of my favorite groups to come.
Featured after was Pearl, a relatively edgy but somehow forgettable collection. Some of the pieces were wonderful, and others were unexciting. Most of the colors were eye-popping though, and turned out to be fun.
The finale came along right after with a fancy intro to the featured designer Mary Porter. Interested in Parisian Couture, her designs were mostly formalwear, and included everything from sleek and slinky blacks to garish greens and pinks, and even a few white dresses that could pass for a very expensive wedding. The largest collection of the night, and by far our favorite, I picked out for lovely dresses I think summed up the collection relatively well.
For my first runway show it was largely successful, and with good timing for once, my batteries managed to last and not die until the very end (thank god I hadn't wasted my chances on the model competition when the finale was so worth it!). As we walked back sometime after 10:30, getting ahead of the crowd by skipping the contest's results, we ambled back with fashion on our brains. Though there were designers we were dying to see in Saturday's wedding and formal collections for the fashion finale, we made a vow that we would indeed try to go to more shows when time permits us. With New York a train ride away it's plenty possible - though the price is debatable, and picture taking might not be as easy as it was this time, I'm sure if we looked it wouldn't be that hard of a venue to find.
