My sister and I had so much fun at this year’s dreamy Crystal Couture Show and Sale in Arlington. A quick ride on the Metro from DC for this was so worth it. Here are our favorites from Saturday…
The evening was exotic and quixotic!
This coral dress from MB Design Gallery would have charmed the fins off any glamorous mermaid. The skirt flowed and fluttered through the air. I was able to catch it just in time.
And these sophisticated gowns were fresh, breathtaking.
I’m going to be completely biased here and tell you that the designs from Fordam Rowe below were my favorite.
The luxurious tassels sewn right onto the hips of velvety a-line skirts and the lovely floral or glittering accents topping brave camo or mesh appealed to the girl-punk vibe deep inside of me. Better yet, when I approached the Fordam Rowe table back stage, I was assured that the tassel skirt (that I will be buying from their Etsy shop) could be tailored wider at the hip and smaller in the waist to fit my curves. I love that! Check the final catwalk video below for their truly killer denim-and-diamond bomber jacket. I’d luuuurve to have that one, too.
Fordam Rowe, the final catwalk…
So, as far as WhybPosh is concerned, somebody from Ann Taylor had betta pick up the phone and call WhybPosh right now, ask that girl if they can sell some of her dresses! Because those lovely short-sleeved gowns were posh, clever and well-tailored, just the sort of thing I expect to see whenever I walk into my favorite local AT. Take a look for yourself. Which outfit was my WhybPosh crush? Well, the white dress with one beautiful blue sleeve was tempting, but I think If I had to choose, I’d take the nude almost-snake print dress with the sleek leatherette back. It’s the sort of thing a supervillainess might wear to her office gig by day. Pics? No, you have to see these babies in motion.
Okay, so look at the super rosy & ruffled sleeves on this black dress from Passport Clothing. (By the way, this is an actual, physical boutique on 11th Street in DC, so you can just walk on in if you see something you like in these pictures.) These two black dresses that struck me the most were bold and luxe. Between the very ruffled sleeves of the posh black dress and its wet and wild as an oil slick sister on her way to the club — you can’t go wrong.
I also noticed some men’s shirts that were finely detailed, enough to make anyone perk up and take notice from across the office meeting table. Check out the final catwalk.
And then, of course, we strolled away from the catwalk a couple times to enjoy the shops. I loved all of the hand-picked and handcrafted goodies. Personality glasses twined with bright yarn, beads and gold studs–these should be very on-trend if they’re not already.
And I was magnetized by the table full of West African mudcloth wristlets (super-loved the wristlets!), pillow cases and other international prints from Threads by Nomad. Kristin from Threads by Nomad happily told us our story. She and her mother run their unique shop featuring clothes made by refugees in the U.S. to help support their income. I told her that, just looking at the careful selection and confident use of the prints, it was clear someone who truly loves and appreciates these styles put them together. And, as it turned out, Kristin grew up in West Africa, so the mudcloth patterns, especially, remind her of home.
We had an incredible time. I definitely recommend the Crystal City Couture Show and Sale for a casual fashion experience. We wandered in, we wandered back out to the stalls to shop, we got to speak to the designers–and we saw them putting clothes straight off the runway, on hangers to sell in more than one instance. This was a really special night in Crystal City.
I’d say the most fascinating thing about visiting Crystal City on Saturday night was finding out that it is, fashion show or not, a kind of mecca for crafty folks. We saw a lot of unique little shops, and then came the queen of all brilliant boutique-like offerings: Tech Shop. I totally did a fangirl squeak when we walked past a studio where you can sign up for classes and use their carpentry or dress-making shop — yes, I did say dress-making shop — to hone your skills and make your own fashion dreams come true.
Um, I will be signing up for this. Well, after I buy that tassel skirt and do all the other things I swore to do in this post. If I do, I will carefully document my dark descent into many Little House on the Prairie-style dressmaking shenanigans. I promise.
I’ll keep posting cool local fashion events in the listing at the bottom of this blog so that you stay in the know. And maybe I’ll even start a Royal Jelly DC Meetup group… we’ll see. 🙂 If you’d be interested in something like that, comment or shoot me an email. I’d love to hear from you!
Enjoy your passion for fashion in the DMV!
Royal Jelly 
Very nice. Ed Blanchard MB Design Gallery.
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