Fort Worth Fashion Week: Bringing Fashion and Community Together

Neiman Marcus partnered with Fort Worth Fashion Week to showcase their Spring 2022 line. (Apparel – Neiman Marcus Fort Worth Stylist – Natalie Cochran Photographer – Model Hannah Dimmitt – Producer Liza Ismaili – Fort Worth Fashion Week®)

New York, Milan and Paris are some of the places one often thinks of when it comes to fashion.

However, creatives in the Fort Worth area are building a name for the fashion scene by showcasing what the community has to offer at the first biannual Fort Worth Fashion Week.

Phillip Maximillian, the creative director of Fort Worth Fashion Week, is one of those creatives at the forefront of the fashion movement.

“The integrity of Fort Worth Fashion Week was to create a platform for fashion and fashion designers or anyone who is relevant in fashion,” said Maximillian. “For example, boutiques, retail stores, fashion models, fashion photographers, everything can be done here.”

From February 21-27, events were held for Fort Worth Fashion Week Spring ’22. Maximillian said his goal was to “highlight the whole city” by hosting events at local boutiques, restaurants, bars, galleries and department stores.

The opening night of Fort Worth Fashion Week was held at Eye Works. (Amanda Vásquez/ Editor)

On Monday, February 21, the opening night of Fort Worth Fashion Week was showcased at Eye Works in the Cultural District. Designer eyewear such as Cartier, Tom Ford and Chanel lined the walls as store associates helped attendees find a pair of eyeglasses to fit their style.

Fashionistas and many other creative minds flipped through the pieces and listened to live music as they discussed everything from fashion to business to collaboration.

Dallas model, musician and influencer Creator Jewels, dressed in a vibrant multi-colored trench coat, said she attended the event to connect with her love of fashion.

“I think getting around this energy and this environment is very inspiring and will push me to be more creative,” Jewels said.

Solomon Wolf, MLM entertainment management company owner and Fort Worth native, has been using his network to help jumpstart the creative scene in Fort Worth.

“With Fort Worth booming and everything that’s growing here, we definitely set the stage for thinking about the future of fashion and the creative realm,” said Wolf. “I’ve been doing that for the last five years, just getting into the Fort Worth community. The more we network, the more we pool our resources, the faster and better we can create that atmosphere for the city.”

Maximilian, also a Fort Worth native, knew the metro area’s burgeoning fashion scene would be talked about for years to come.

“Fort Worth has fashion,” said Maximillian. “We just need to highlight and showcase the vibrant art, music and food scene here. What I’m really trying to do is make this a genre. In the next year or so, we will only hear about fashion.”

On Tuesday, the models walked the runway at Neiman Marcus in Clearfork to present their Spring 2022 collection, along with live music and a champagne reception.

For some of those who attended, Fort Worth Fashion Week was their first opportunity to experience a live fashion show. Maximillian wanted Fort Worth locals to “come experience what it’s like to be in a front row seat.”

Days three and four have been rescheduled for Saturday, February 26 due to the winter storm. Fashion week continued after the ice melted on Friday, February 25.

Heels, boots and all kinds of fashionable footwear walked the streets of the Camp Bowie district to peruse the clothing racks of local boutiques. Prippie, Lola + Lina, Chieffalo Americana, Hemline, Beehive, Move Athleisure, Hale House, Studio 74 Vintage and Shop Birdie welcomed fans to fashion week. At the end of the night, shoppers were invited to Winslow’s Wine Cafe to drink wine and discuss the day’s events.

Shein, a Chinese online fashion retailer, and Twinkle Patel, a fashion designer, stylist and illustrator, collaborated for a show at Bale Creek Allen art gallery on Saturday. TCU’s Historical Costume Collection and Fashion Merchandising Department also held an exhibit in downtown Fort Worth at the Dang Good Candy Art Gallery.

To close out the week of events, on Sunday, fashionistas sipped specialty cocktails at the Lot 12 rooftop bar, played virtual golf and kicked off Chaparral Golf Co.’s debut for its Spring 2022 collection. , the Market by Macy’s Spring 2022 show closed out the week of fashion events.

Dedication and collaboration, Maximillian said, came together to bring Fort Worth Fashion Week to life.

“We have about five months to plan things like this, but between the five months you need people to come together,” Maximillian said. “I even do editorial shoots, whether it’s hiring models or getting a designer’s collection ready, even setting up the production. It’s a lot of people getting together and making it all work in a week.”

Phillip Maximillian, creative director of Fort Worth Fashion Week and owner of the Mener Grand Train. (Photo courtesy of Phillip Maximillian)

Having an entrepreneurial spirit is a trait that Phillip Maximillian has at heart. His launch into the world of fashion began with his love for fashion and his passion for creating. However, his path to fashion design is not so typical.

After graduating from high school, Maximillian would be found getting his hands dirty working on cars at a Ford dealership. His ambitions to own a business began at age 21 when he started building his own auto repair shop in 2012.

Maximilian knew that his creativity could stretch further. He sold his store in 2015 and began his foray into fashion as a student at Petit Atelier, a custom design studio in Dallas.

“I realized I don’t want to do this forever, so I decided to go to fashion design school,” Maximillian said. “I have learned [how to] tailor and do the draping. I thought, I can do something with this and I decided that I am going to open my own custom suit company for men.”

With a lot of sewing and a lot of oomph, Mener Grand Train, the bespoke tailoring company for men, was born in 2016. Shifting his focus from auto repair to fashion, Maximilian realized that he had to learn not only to create designs, but also to build a brand. .

“I’m going to go from the automotive industry to fashion design,” said Maximillian. “That’s a whole different genre for me, so I had to learn the back end. At the same time I was practicing my trade and launching the company… I didn’t know [fashion] it came with the back of things. He just wanted to design and build a company. This generation is about social media, e-commerce and people.”

As he drafted designs, marketed his brand, and connected with other fashionistas, Maximilian realized that dedication to his craft was key.

“I knew it was going to be more than just fashion design and just getting your name out there and starting a collection and doing a fashion show,” Maximilian said. “It’s something you have to put your time into.”

The fashion merchandising department posted on Instagram about the dresses on display at TCU’s historic costume collection exhibit. (Taken from TCU fashion merchandising instagram, @tcu_fashion)

In an effort to connect with his community and inspire emerging fashion creatives, Maximilian decided to collaborate with students from TCU’s fashion merchandising department.

Stephanie Bailey, a professor in the fashion merchandising department, worked with students to create a display of TCU’s historic costume collection. The students chose three formal dresses from the collection to display dating from the 1920s, 1950s and 1980s.

Bailey explained that the collaboration with Fort Worth Fashion Week gave students the opportunity to learn about their industry and network.

“I hope it makes them double twice,” Bailey said. “The class that will put together this exhibit is learning about collections and making exhibits. This is a mini-exhibit where they get hands-on experience on how to put it together and how to put together the cards and all the information needed to teach someone about a historical exhibit. Then secondly, it’s always good to network and see what’s going on with the local community and in your industry.”

Amanda Vasquez is a journalism major and writing minor. After graduation, she hopes to pursue a career in magazine writing.

Source: www.tcu360.com