ICFashion Flix: Star Trek Into Darkness

Summer blockbusters have started and last week @SkimMilkProject and I saw Star Trek Into Darkness. Star Trek Into Darkness is JJ Abrams’ second Star Trek Film after rebooting it with Chris Pine, Zachary Quinto, Zoe Saldana, Karl Urban and Simon Pegg. The first of the rebooted series established an alternate timeline, so these films are to be completely separate entities from the original series. Star Trek (2009) was an extremely successful reboot grossing over 250,000,000 in the US. So obviously, Star Trek Into Darkness was a highly anticipated sequel. JJ Abrams has also been tapped to direct the reboot of Star Wars. His plate’s quite full.

Star Trek Into Darkness takes place a few years after Star Trek where James T. Kirk (Chris Pine) has commandeered the USS Enterprise with his   First Officer Spock. After saving dying planet, illegally, Kirk and Spock get into a morality argument and part ways. But after Starfleet is attacked by John Harrison (Benedict Cumberbatch) and Kirk loses a friend, Kirk and Spock have to fight together to destroy their newest nemesis.

Overall, I liked Star Trek Into Darkness. There were nice twists and turns that I will not give away. There was only one problem I had with the film. The stakes weren’t high enough. Once you see it, you will know what I’m talking about but what I found missing was a sense of true urgency and retribution for the villain’s actions. Benedict Cumberbatch was a welcome addition to the Star Trek universe as John Harrison, the new foe and terrorist. His performance and otherworldly appearance lent great credibility to the film. Misused or underused (?) was Zoe Saldana as Uhura. I think JJ Abrams and the writers didn’t quite know what to do with her character as they already established sexual tension and a relationship with Spock, so all she had to offer was more sexual tension.

Costumes of course always play a big role in future or otherworldly films and Star Trek Into Darkness was no different. Michael Kaplan did a great job of creating wonderful outer space garments and some pretty awesome future ones too. I loved Uhura’s costumes. As they were edgy and I could see myself wearing them now, especially her civilian clothes. 

The most intriguing of the uniforms were the uniforms for the Nibiru scenes. The scuba suits were interesting. I wouldn’t mind have those onesies! 

The Designs of the Klingons were epic. Sadly, there was no Worf, my favorite Klingon! But I loved the war helmets and military uniforms!

Have you seen Star Trek Into Darkness? What did you think? 

photos via gil-mansergh.blogs.petaluma360.com, itsartmag.com, news.moviefone.com, hdwallpapers.in, collider.com, upi.com, dailykos.com

Jorge Vega Umana Fall 2013

I had the pleasure of running Front-of-House for the Jorge Vega Umana show this season on February 13, 2013 and was never more excited! Not only is Jorge a brilliant designer from Nicaragua, but he’s a friend of mine through our working together for Porsche Design. So I was ecstatic to work with him and see his new designs for Fall 2013!

Behind the Scenes:

Running Front-of-House for Jorge’s show was an exhausting experience but very rewarding I got to see the clothes behind the curtains, or in this case, in the offices of Alvin Ailey Studios! The exhaustion mainly came from the flu that I had and contracted the day before. I was literally running around with a 103* fever but it was all worth it!

Interview with Jorge Vega Umana:

Now I don’t normally get the opportunity to interview the talented designers I write about, but Jorge gave me this unique opportunity as a friend and the extremely nice person that he is!

About Jorge: Jorge Vega Umana was born in Nicaragua and trained as a lawyer but found his calling for fashion overwhelmed his lawyer sense. He was drawn to the calling of the cloth through the visions of the fashionable ladies of Granada. Shortly after moving to New York, Jorge became a Visual Merchandiser for Porsche Design, designing gorgeous window displays and throwing fabulous special events in the SoHo and Madison Avenue stores.

While working as a Visual Merchandiser, Jorge was approached by glamorous women who wanted him to design custom dresses for them. He began running a small side business with these custom creations. Due to the success of his side business, Jorge decided to breakout even more. He launched his first collection “Amore” in the Spring 2013 season at Alvin Ailey Studios on September 13, 2013.

ICFashionChic: Where were you born? 

Jorge Vega Umana: Born in Nicaragua 

I: What was your first fashion adventure? When did you decide fashion was your calling?

J: It was either being dressed as a child to go to a party my grandmother was giving and seeing all the elegantly dressed women or my first trip to the Bal Harbor shop in Florida as a kid and seeing all the beautiful clothes in the stores and the well dressed people walking around.

Calling? Mmmmmm let me think I always have the calling. I used to admire the clothing in the paintings of women and use to ask myself. How were they made? So I started draping at an early age.

I: If you could do anything else besides fashion, what would it be?

J: Anything related in the creative field.

I: What was your inspiration for the Fall 2013 collection?

J: The inspiration come from a book I was reading named “The Power of Style”.

The women there struck a chord by how they conducted their lives and particularly Babe Paley. I wanted to bring that woman into the 2nd decade of the 21st century.

 

I: When designing, what is the first thing you do and what do you do after a garment is finished?

J: Sketch, sketch, sketch and then check, check, check and look , look until I’m satisfied.

I: Where do you see Jorge Vega Umana in 5 years?

J: Good question :) ! Doing what I’m doing, having a line and perhaps starting a lifestyle section.

I: For aspiring fashion industry people, what’s the one piece of advice you would give?

J: Hang on to your dreams. Don’t give up, give it all you have. Look and learn from all around you.

As you can see, Jorge Vega Umana is the next designer to watch with gorgeous silhouettes and cuts. His designs have a sense of classiness without being boring and a fun sense of glamour! 

You can view Jorge’s Spring 2013 on his website JorgeVegaUmana.com!

Photos by Mariela Murdocco

ICFashion Flix - Iron Man 3

Well the Summer blockbusters have begun with Iron Man 3 marking the first official Summer blockbuster release on May 3. This past weekend was also The Great Gatsby’s premiere but it seems like it just couldn’t beat out the comic book hero fans hauling in over 20 million less than the metallic man on its second week.

Now you may wonder why a fashion fanatic such as myself would see the premiere of one of the most highly anticipated fashion films of the Summer and would instead pick a less fashionable comic book hero. Well here’s why, The Great Gatsby is boring. Sure Baz Luhrman has spiced it up and sparkled the Hell out of it but the story is just not compelling enough for me to watch. I also know what’s going to happen, not that I have ever read  F. Scott Fitzgerald’s novel but everyone pretty much knows the story: guy loves girl, girl is married to another guy, other guy is having an affair, things get messy, someone dies…blah blah-dy blah! 

So I decided to hit the theaters for my favorite on-screen movie hero, Iron Man. Iron Man was very good. I’ve heard that Disney neutered the films from the original comic book appeal but I have to say, they got it just right for the 3rd film. I just loved Robert Downey Jr. snarky comedy and his chemistry with the young boy, Ty Simpkins, was amazing!

Iron Man is back and he has made some enemies in the past. Now one in particular has it out for Tony Stark. “The Mandarin”, played by Ben Kingsley, is terrorizing the world and Iron Man must stop him.

Well as you know, I try not to give too much away. The cast is made up of Robert Downey Jr, as Tony Stark aka Iron Man, Gwenyth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Jon Favreau as Happy Hogan, and Don Cheadle as Colonel James Rhodes aka War Machine. There was some great supporting by Rebecca Hall, Guy Pearce (who may not be just a supporting character) and James Badge Dale.

Well the fashion of Iron Man is very contemporary minus a brief flash back to 1999 where “I’m Blue (Da Ba Dee)” by Eiffel 65. Tony Stark’s sunglasses are always points of envy for me!

What I found truly interesting were the costumes for “The Mandarin”. Super cool and with asian influence even though you weren’t quite sure where he was supposed to come from. His costumes really supported the image of “The Mandarin”. Well done costume designer, Louise Frogley!

Since super hero movies aren’t really fashion based, What did you think of Iron Man 3? Was it all you hoped it would be?

images via hypable.com, imdb.com, and screenrant.com

Runway Weddings and Fairytale Brides

Ok. Whether you like it or not, wedding season is here. May 1st officially marks the first day, kinda like the 20th of March marks the first day of Spring. I don’t have anything against wedding season, I actually rather enjoy seeing the newest wedding gowns and bridal accessories. What I hate about wedding season is the expectations that arise.

I have been with @SkimMilkProject for over 4 years now. It’s been a very interesting ride, some ups (lot more ups lately) and some downs. We have been living together for 3+ years, so of course the question of, “when are you guys going to get married” pops up frequently. But we are not ready for it. However, that doesn’t stop me from preparing for the hopeful inevitable. So I’ve put together some of my favorite gowns from the Fall 2013 Bridal Collection Season.

Vera Wang’s opening look from this season was truly a stunner! I love the layers and the delicate laser detail on the bodess of the gown. I’m not a gown person…but I think Vera Wang is changing my view!

Empire waisted dresses and tops are suited for my body type and Badgley Mischka showed one of the most beautiful empire waisted sheaths for Bridal Fashion Week. The lace and beaded detailing makes the dress stand out. It also evokes a Jane Austin feel with the sweetheart cut!

I am not one for a short bridal dress but this Jenny Packham sheath is too adorable to let go. I would actually wear this at a special function, maybe not as my wedding dress. But I love the lace and the cute satin buttons.

My favorite gown from Jenny Packham is this gorgeous sheath. Now, I’m not a fan of themed weddings but if you were to do a themed wedding, the 20’s or the 30’s is not a bad era to channel. A Great Gatsby themed wedding, not too shabby!

Ok, so the model’s body is not really suited for this dress but I admire the design of it! Marchesa’s short wedding dress makes me almost want to get married in a short dress. It’s perfect for that beach wedding that we all secretly fantasize about! I love the uniqueness of the bodess and the ruching of the skirt.

Reem Acra always has a flare for the dramatic and it was no different for Bridal Fashion Week. This A-Line dress was spectacular. This is the dress that would make you stand out and go broke. Absolutely beautiful!

(all images via MarthaStewartWeddings.com)

This season, the big statement in wedding dresses was color. Gold, red, black, but I can’t bring myself to embrace it. Maybe if I was married more than once. Some of the black and white wedding gowns are chic and sweet but that’s as far as it goes with me.

What do you think? Will your wedding dress or style be in color? What has been your favorite gown, sheath, A-Line, or short dress of the season?

Women Taking Back the Streets!

As some of you might know, I live in the Bed-Stuy, Bushwick area of Brooklyn. I have lived there for 3 almost 4 years now and have to say that in that short time, it has changed a lot. When I first moved to Brooklyn, you would be hard pressed to find any hipsters and now you can’t sit on your stoop without wanting to trip a dread head smelly hipster (hehehe). But when I first moved to Brooklyn, all I ever saw were guys staring at women cat calling. Ugh! I’ve always hated that. When I would go to the playground in my hometown at the young age of 14, I had to deal with it. In Brooklyn, it’s even more common and artist Tatyana Fazlalizadeh has had it!

When I walked down Broadway one day with @SkimMilkProject, I noticed a poster of a black woman on one of the construction fences.

Well this poster just about read my mind! I’m so sick of hearing, “Yo Shorty”, “Hey Ma”, and “Ooo Nice Nice, slow down!”. And this is when I’m wearing an old t-shirt and sweatpants. Could you imagine the days I have to walk by when I’m actually looking nice?

When I saw the poster, I was like, “yeah! That’s right!” But two short weeks later, I found the poster ripped in half. I was upset because I thought the poster made a valid point. My name is not Baby! But after a a while, I forgot about Tatyana’s statement until I saw an article on WNYC.org about the posters!

I think Tatyana’s effort was solid in trying to limit cat calling but I knew Bushwick and Bed-Stuy wasn’t ready for it. It so annoying how objectified women are. What do you think? Are men born pigs? Is it only in certain neighborhoods? Who whistles after you? Do you say anything? Am I the only one bothered by this?

ICFashion Flix - Jurassic Park 3-D

Jurassic Park 3-D came out last week in celebration of its 20 year anniversary! I was overwhelmed with excitement! Jurassic Park is the movie that made me want to become an actress, also the first couple of seasons of ER. It’s also the movie that made J.J. Abrams want to become a director. Without Jurassic Park, we wouldn’t have this amazing new Star Trek to look forward to!

So in honor of the digitally remastered and re-dimensionalization of Jurassic Park, I have put together outfits through Polyvore that evoke the spirit of running away from raptors and possibly attending that San Diego opening!

Jungle Safari:

This outfit was mainly inspired by the ill-fated Muldoon with his awesome safari hat. This ensemble will allow you to easily blend in and hide from the vicious raptors, or at least you can confuse them with your reflection!