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Manuel Fernandez: Backstage Takes Center Stage
By: Mari Davis
Photos by: Visko Hatfield
Sep 9, 2001/ FW/ --- Alright, you were expecting a runway show! The models on the
catwalk and the spotlight on them!
And here is FW bringing you shots of the models as they are stepping out of the catwalk.
Alright... alright... I hear what you are saying. I heard the same things from our Fashion
Director who wanted to put this piece in the backstage coverage, not in the more formal
runway shows coverage.
I insisted that for a change of pace, FW bring the backstage centerstage. We have a lot of
the formal runway show coverage. Why don't we surprise our readers with a backstage coverage?
So here it is! At Manuel Fernandez show, we are taking the backstage shots front and center.
The main reason is not just the change of pace. The real reason is to see if the clothes that show
very well on the catwalk still look great when the models are just moving around, like what we
do in real life.
After all, very few of us walk the runway for a living. But we buy and wear the
clothes that are shown!
Manuel Fernandez's very wearable collection passed with flying colors! As we watch the models
step off the runway and take the two-step stairs the clothes kept their form, as if they were
sculpted on the model's body.
It was not a surprise though! For a designer of Manuel Mendoza's caliber, it is a piece of cake!
A technical master, his creations drape perfectly on the wearer.
Spring 2002 is Manuel Fernandez's third runway show at 7th on Sixth. Last season, it was all
about the beauty queen, the designer dressed his models as if they were Miss Universe. For
Spring 2002, Manuel Fernandez changed gear and thought of the the modern woman who leads a
busy life.
The Manuel Fernandez woman's daywear wardrobe is colorful and sexy without being overt. Slip-
on dresses and sporty separates are mixed with sexy work out clothes and shorts. Bobby socks
with tennis shoes and sandals were the main accessories.
And if you want to go biking, you can use those shiny blue pedal pushers with a matching
jacket. Or you can use the white one with red floral embroidery matched with a midriff.
The designer also presented plaid pencil pants and tops. There were also ruffled skirts
ala flamenco dancers. In these pieces, you easily deduce that the collection was inspired
by his native Valencia.
The eveningwear collection is a sight to see. The designer overdid himself on this section
of the show. My favorite is the below the knee revealing black skirt, i.e., if you can call it
a skirt. It would take one hell of a body and a lot of moxie to wear, but it is definitely
one of the best dresses in the show.
The front part of the skirt is divided into three pieces, the center being "solid"
and covering the "delicate parts." The two sides are made of horizontal threads, as if
someone had pulled all the vertical threads from the fabric, and it shows the upper leg up to
the waist!
If I want to wear it, I need to go to the gym for a few months to have that perfect muscle tone!
And yes, the skirt stayed on the model's body, still covering what should be covered as she
climbed down the the two-step stairs! Its definitely a dress to think about getting for those
early Spring parties or when you are out on cruise!
Manuel Fernandez Fashion
Manuel Fernandez Fashion
Manuel Fernandez Fashion
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