SS09 Runway Review: Sarar / Eva Zissu / Royal Sunday at Nolcha

As I have said previously, my favorite shows by far during Fashion Week were the smaller shows, highlighting up-and-coming fashion houses and independent designers with talent bursting from every seam. By far my favorite shows were hosted at Nolcha. Nolcha is a global fashion industry network that works to introduce designers from around the world to the world at large, and Nolcha fashion week is a presentation of selected designers work to a national audience.

Nolcha shows run a bit differently than your regular tent show. For starters, besides the main show, the location plays host to numerous smaller, independent designers that display their collections in a gallery setting. It is quite pleasant to walk around before and after shows, and find yourself surrounded by even more stunning work than simply the show itself. Nolcha also varies from a standard show in that each show hosts multiple designers, varying from three to roughly a dozen. As fashion shows tend to happen absurdly fast, I feel this is an excellent variation - who ever complained about having to see more great fashion?

Nolcha kicked off this season with three designers of varyied talents: SARAR (high-end menswear), Eva Zissu (handbags and accessories) and Royal Sunday (street style). Of the three, SARAR is by far the most established brand, having been in the business for over 60 years. SARAR is Turkey-based company that was established in 1944 by Abdullahman Sarar, specializing in elegant, finely made menswear. Though this company has had a rich history, the last few years have been particularly developmental for them as a brand. In 2005, SARAR launched their CSS brand to a more middle-income audience, and have also opened their line to include women's wear. Over the last few years they have opened numerous flagship stores worldwide, the most recent in Manhattan. This Nolcha show marked their first ever fashion show.

Simply put, SARAR makes beautiful clothes. Not only is each piece exquisitely tailored, but the materials used in their creation are pieces of art in their own right. Rich, tactile tweeds, wool, and cottons and silks dominate in this collection, the result being a suit that is less a garment than a companion, a piece that is sure to last in both quality and style for the next 10 years.



This timeless style and quality also translated into the women's wear line, whose pieces were feminine and appealing, while being sturdy and well-formed. The central area of attention in most pieces were the necks, which were decked in Victorian-reminiscent ruffles, high collars, bows and ties. There was a sense of propriety and modesty in these pieces that was simply delectable.



Eva Zissu was shown after SARAR, and her bright, vivacious handbags proved an interesting counterpoint to the classicism of the previous collection. Former model, turned buyer, turned boutique owner, recently turned handbag designer, this Caracas native can whip up a bag as hot as the South American sun. Built heavily on animal print and unique leather, these bags are not for the faint-hearted or demure dame. Sizes were big and bold in flat, envelope-thin clutches and massive duffels as models strutted out with no less than three in tow, sporting matching vests and cowboy hats. With bags so striking, it should only be a matter of time until every celebrity with a bit of spunk is carrying one of these hot little numbers.



The final collection to be displayed was Royal Sunday, a Swiss design label launched in 2006, innaugurating its entrance into the U.S. Market through Nolcha's show. Royal Sunday touts that its items that are all hand tailored, finished with unique metal accents, and intended for a young, fashion-conscious generation. True to its word, RS's line did have a number of intriguing metal accents. I particularly liked the metal studded elbow patch adorning a leather jacket, and the grommets used as a form of decoration on t-shirts and slacks. With any sort of embellishment, there's always the risk that the "look" will take second stage to the "effect" - which I feel did occur in many of these pieces. It just feels like a lot of the outfits are vehicles for the effect being presented, rather than standing as strong designs in their own right. However, they are a still a very new label, and if they can hone their clothing designs into as sweet a trick as their embellishments, we're gonna have a contender on our hands.