San Francisco Fashion Week '06: Kelly B.
Designer Kelly Barry has hopped on the natural-fabric bandwagon to clothe the contemporary woman in soft bamboo and organic cotton jerseys shaped into dresses, hooded tunics and kimono tops. For her woven pieces, such as a sailor pant or an A-line miniskirt, she uses organic cotton mixed with linen as a new addition to her line, launched last year. Barry started her career by studying environmental science, while dabbling in sewing. Before you knew it, she was studying at the California College of Arts, earning a degree in textiles. After graduation, she was working for an organic cotton supplier and noticed there was a dearth of fashionable creations made out of organic cotton. The 26-year-old got busy launching her ready-to-wear line, which is intended to take women from the beach, with swimwear and coverups, to a night on the town, with sexy flirty dresses that have sophisticated silhouettes, such as a sleeveless cowl-neck jersey or a slim-fitting dress with a racer back and a contrasting ruched panel. “My average customer is an 18- to 45-yearold woman who is aware of her surroundings, of what is going on in the environment,” Barry said. “She wants to dress really fun but have things fit well and feel good.”
