Fashion that Filters the Air We Breathe

High fashion meets Sustainability with a dress from Catalytic Clothing that improves air quality by breaking down airborne pollutants coming in close proximity to the surface of the fabric.  Erin O'Connor as HERSELF, still from Catalytic Clothing Film courtesy of Adam Mufti

The term “sustainable luxury” appears to be an oxymoron. However, the coexistence of fashion and sustainability has become a haute topic of discussion lately. In the world of fast fashion, trends change more than ever and eventually textiles flood the earth’s landfills.

Companies like H&M and Puma have taken a position on the matter.  Puma’s “Bring Me Back” program encourages customers to return footwear, apparel and accessories to be repurposed and recycled at I-Collect. Last month, H&M held a discussion at Vogue Headquarters to discuss the future of sustainable fashion with a “Conscious Talk.” The Swedish retailer also created a new ‘Conscious Exclusive’ collection featuring Hollywood-inspired dresses made with sustainable material. The area of luxury fashion however, falls behind as most high-end retailers continue to push desirable yet un-sustainable textiles.

The Problem with e-Commerce Packaging

E-Commerce packaging from high-end retailers does not live up to the client’s high level of expectation.

When shoppers open the doors to a luxury fashion house, they enter a unique world where the brand experience is best felt through the tangible embrace of a product and the elegance of the interior. Stepping through the online door, shoppers of the digital generation enter a similar world of exclusivity. The final client touch point, product packaging and delivery currently trades this exclusivity for pedestrian presentation.

A Modern Renaissance of Style

Laser-cut at J. Mendel captured right on the runway. Photo courtesy of Bryanboy (Taken with Instagram)

The rebirth of extravagant textures and intricate layers are breathing new light to the fashion industry. A Modern Renaissance, mainstream couture is experiencing a life of color in opulent textiles. The forward-thinking atmosphere of the early Renaissance revolutionized fashion while setting the caliber for the years to come. With a strong attention to detail, new technologies continue to break the boundaries of fashion today.

Progress in science and mathematics prompted trends of the 15^th century. Around this period of enlightenment, the province of fashion evolved with the inception of lace. Replacing embroidery, lace transformed dresses, evoking a plethora of different styles. Laser cut, a modern cross between cutwork lace and a screen-printing aesthetic delivers highly intricate patterns with incredible levels of precision.

Fashion Focused

Design Packaging's Summer Journalism intern is the talented Orange County native, Natalya Kadziauskas who currently attends The Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication at ASU.  Natalya is in her first year at The Cronkite School focusing on PR/Print Journalism.

 Since Natalya snatched her first glossy copy of Vogue magazine, she realized her passion, and fell in love with the visual artistry fashion portrays. Natalya is inspired by the work of Karl Lagerfeld, creative director for the fashion house Chanel. Lagerfeld’s theatrical runway productions continue to provide an enduring influence to her creative process. Natalya’s travels to Paris, Rome, Milan and Barcelona have refined her sense of style. Digging into the global fashion scene has enhanced her keen eye for spotting elevated trends early in their development.

Conversation on the Weather, New York Fashion Week Recap

A snowstorm at New York Fashion Week did not deter fashionistas from racing show to show through the snow, clad in designer stilettos. If one thing is for certain, the fashion community was not restricted by the blizzard. Rather, designers embraced the weather as an opportunity to showcase their best winter pieces.

Inspiration for fall looks extended beyond the arts. This season, several designers pulled inspiration from their own international voyages. Using their miles prior to hitting the design boards, designers were influenced by places including Turkey, Spain and France.

Marc Jacobs Fall 2013 its in the Bag

Rows upon rows of retail shopping bags waiting for the show to begin.

The beautiful display of shopping bags at a Marc Jacobs runway show are a must see in person or online, either way the artful shopping bag display a classic nod to retail packaging like no other.

 

Design Packaging Awards Gala

The first annual Design Packaging Inc. Awards Gala AKA "the DPI" (pronounced the Dipee) was held this past weekend in Scottsdale's Tatum Ranch. The Oscar themed event saw winners in several categories including "Best Meltdown In Our Creative Department By A Sales Person" and "Best Quote of the Year".  The evening culminated with the Lifetime Achievement Award being presented to John Auten for 10 years of exceptional customer service. 

 We would like to thank everyone that helped make 2012 an incredible year and those that will help continue to propel Design Packaging into 2013. 

Clockwise from top left: Joan, Denis, Kathy, Diana, Evelio, Rob, John, Chris, Alison, Whitney, Kyree, Stacy, and Evelio

Packaging Pinsperation

Where does packaging inspiration come from?

Simply put, everywhere.

Traveling, a fragrance counter, a child's over-packaged toy, a late night out with friends, news, a memory, and yes maybe even Pinterest.

Packaging Purge

 

In the midsts of a personal minimalist quest to simplify my life, I've begun "the 100 thing challenge", my expression of design has matured, and I have been fortunate to re-experience many of those collected products purchased or collected for their aesthetic value. I have found packaging, bought, collected, stored, and catalogued in my memory bank to use as inspiration at a later date. Well, as it so happens, that later dates rarely come because as busy as we all are it is easy to forget exactly what we've stored. Not to mention the ease of which you can scour the internet, or drive over to your local luxury retailer for much needed inspiration. As I begin to unearth some of these samples I will attempt to remember to both photograph and share via pinterest or luxcrux before donating, or discarding.

2012 Olympic Boxing

Deciding to take a break from 2012's holiday peak season and have a little fun, John & Michelle recreated London's 2012 Olympics icon out of folding boxes for the Design Packaging homepage.