“The Best in the Lex”

-Trend, Glamour, Class

Lights, camera, fashion!!! Lexington has a lot to offer local fashionistas. Two of my favorite boutiques were Runway Couture (located in Victorian Square) and The Black Market (located on East High Street). The great thing about boutiques is that they always offer great style with a twist! Boutiques tend to be a lot smaller and more aesthetically appealing than your average retail store. If you’re looking for high fashion styles, sleek trendy styles, or just a more compact one on one shopping experience, a boutique would be a great option for you!

The difference in the two boutiques selected was very interesting. Runway Couture offered vibrant and muted color schemes, a variety of fabrics, embellished jeans and accessories, and more of a high fashion (couture) style of clothing. On the contrary, The Black Market exhibited fun, multi-colored schemes (vintage or modern), various types of fabrics, shoes, artwork, and hand-crafted items.   The store appeared to be “simple, vintage, and trendy” regarding the type of clothing they displayed. Whereas, Runway Couture is a place you’d go to for a special event or a night out on the town. Both locations had a small, clean, and organized layout.  The style décor was also fitting to each boutiques store name. If we had to recommend either boutique on a fab or flop basis...we vote fab!!!! Check them out when you can.

NEW UK PLAID PRODUCTS ARE HERE!!!

Walking through the University of Kentucky’s campus, you are bound to see the color blue. Perhaps one of the most recognizable forms in which the color can be seen is in blue plaid, but when and where did this trend start?

About three years ago, a group of Merchandising, Apparel, and Textile students were given a lesson in product development. This lesson turned into the UK Plaid project— the University of Kentucky’s official line of plaid apparel and accessories. Since the UK Plaid line has been introduced, it has quickly grown in popularity. The line has particularly become memorable for it’s signature ID holders and tote bags.

Some of the new products that have been introduced this year include a wristlet, carryall, garment bag, and hobo bag. Interestingly, it appears that a lot of the new products this year are kitchen related. For example, dinner and appetizer plates, napkins, oven mitts, and tea towels were all among the new products introduced. These new products allow the line to reach out to a wide variety of consumers, not just college students. Also, the prices are affordable so everyone can enjoy these unique products! 

If interested in purchasing some of UK Plaid’s newest products, they can be found right here on campus at the University and Kennedy Bookstores. These products are exclusive and a must have for all UK fans!

Who knew garbage could be so fashionable?: The Neighborhood Series

Life size scuba diver sculptures made of clear packaging tape, dozens of colorful bundled garments hanging from the ceiling, and a vintage flight attendant costume. What do these three things have in common? They’re all found in a neighborhood near you. That’s right, Lexington’s Tuska Gallery for contemporary art held The Neighborhood Series 2011 Art show and reception on September 25 from 6 to 9 pm. The show’s purpose was a community involvement that brought together Lexington Fashion Collaborative and local businesses. Instead of purchasing materials, all artists and designers used discarded materials from these local businesses. Their finished products reflected the store’s personality and merchandise. Models were sprinkled around the gallery as well wearing unique and recycled garments that represented a local store.

Each store had a completely different look that reflected the items they sold. A CD store had different prints covering one of the walls from various CD's that they had sold. The models also represented the feel of each store wearing creations made from garbage or previously used materials. Just walking around the room you could get a grasp of what items each store carries. The fashion show was a great idea to really showcase the art and products sold in each of the stores and to also give an idea of how much you could actually do with discarded materials. All in all, it was extremely interesting to see what the stores had come up with and the models were very eager to show off the unique designs!

Big Blue is Green with Jeans

 
Everywhere you go you hear people talking about going GREEN.  What exactly is going GREEN?  Going GREEN is more than just recycling; it consists of reducing the pollution in the air, conserving resources, reducing the consumption and waste, and protecting the earth’s environment.  On September 14^th UK held a Big Blue Goes Green Event, were a group of environmental folks setup booths to show how we can help the environment.  There were folks from the Ky Energy Club, Eco-Healthy Child Care, the Institute for Sustainable Manufacturing, and the Merchandising, Apparel and Textiles Club with their Denim Drive to name a few.

The booth that was most interesting was the MAT Club with the denim recycling drive.  It was very interesting seeing how any type of denim can be made into insulation for habitat homes.  In the picture above you can see where several pair of jeans have been converted into the blue block of insulation.  There was also a poster board on display showing the breakdown of how 1 pair of jeans equals 2.2 lbs of cotton, 3.32 sq. ft. of insulation, and 3.4% of a wall of insulation.  Last year the MAT Club helped insulate 24 homes and kept 8.5 tons of waste from the landfill by collecting denim.  This campaign is a great way to help those who are less fortunate to insulate their homes and to help the environment at the same time.