San Francisco Fashion Week Spotlights Couture Creations and New Designers
A new location marked the third season for San Francisco Fashion Week, organized to bring more awareness to Bay Area designers.
Eighteen established and up-and-coming designers showcased their fashions Aug. 23–27, and 15 students were highlighted in an emerging designers runway show.
Everyone seemed pleased with the show’s move to The Galleria at the San Francisco Design Center from the Palace of Fine Arts Theatre. That historic building is an architectural gem, but its auditorium-like seating made it difficult to get a good view of the fashions as they paraded down the runway.
So this year, Erika Gessin, the woman who started San Francisco Fashion Week in 2004, moved the show to the Design Center’s Galleria in the South-of-Market-Street district known as SoMa.
“A lot of the designers really wanted to freshen things up,” said Gessin, the 29-year-old owner of Mystery Girl Productions, which produces the show. “We chose the Galleria because of its versatility. It’s a great reflection of Bay Area design.”
Indeed, the airy four-story atrium of the old brick building lent a lofty air to the evening fashion shows, which were open to the public.
Couture fashion debuted on the opening night, with evening gowns and sophisticated styles floating down the runway. As the week progressed, there was a mixture of designers who had participated in last year’s fashion week and some newcomers.
“It is a great way for young, upcoming designers to create a presence in the industry and get noticed,” said Kaushie Adiseshan, whose 2-year-old Pink Elf line was seen on the last night of the show. “It’s a great way to show your collection.”
