This dress was designed & created as part of a charity event where manufacturers team with designers to create couture from the manufacturers' products. We teamed with Carnegie fabrics to create an outfit inspired by the Indian Peafowl.
Special thanks to Carnegie fabrics, as well as teammates Liz Wimer & Claireanne Pesce.
The team is composed of Liz Wimer, Juli Sproules & Claireanne Pesce, all with FOX architects; Gerard Pelayo, of Stranded; Mark Koenig & Leslie Kaufmann, of Leslie Kaufmann Associates, representing Carnegie fabrics.
In addition to designing & creating the outfit, designers must also model the designs - no professional models are allowed.
A side view of the dress & tail. The bodice of the dress is composed of Carnegie Xorel wallcovering embellished with hand-cut & sewn paillettes of Mica wallcovering. The skirt is created of ruched yellow parachute fabric from Carnegie.
A back view, showing the transformation from peacock to model. The intricate train is composed of various Carnegie window treatments, hand-sewn into a herringbone pattern that gradates from light, cream colors to a deep aubergine. The back of the train is ruched to follow the folds of the skirt underneath, before flowing out into a delicate gradation. The top of the train is also embellished with hand-cut paillettes of Carnegie's Mica wallcovering.
Hairstylist Gerard Pelayo of Stranded create a unique updo inspired by the Indian Peafowl's crest using live purple orchids.
The bodice of the dress is composed of Carnegie Xorel wallcovering embellished with hand-cut & sewn paillettes of Mica wallcovering. The skirt is created of ruched yellow parachute fabric from Carnegie.
The theme of the 2014 event was "Birds of the National Zoo." Each team was assigned a particular bird to use as their inspiration. Our team was assigned the Indian Peafowl, better known as a peacock.
The intricate train is composed of various Carnegie window treatments, hand-sewn into a herringbone pattern that gradates from light, cream colors to a deep aubergine.
Walking the runway along with some of the other design teams.
Walking the runway along with some of the other design teams.
Gerard Pelayo of Stranded, incorporating fresh orchids into a hairstyle evocative of the peacock's delicate crest.
Hairstylist Gerard Pelayo of Stranded creates a unique updo inspired by the Indian Peafowl's crest using live purple orchids.
The back of the train is ruched to follow the folds of the skirt underneath, before flowing out into a delicate gradation.
Juli Sproules, with Chad Webre of Hapstack Demetriou
Juli Sproules, along with the two other "peacocks"