#eastonpearson

[themelbournesupremacy]

Checking out some of the finer details at the Easton Pearson somewhat truncated retrospective at RMIT Gallery, which closes tomorrow #eastonpearson #rmitgallery #rmit #swanstonstreet #melbourne #melbmoment (at RMIT Gallery) https://www.instagram.com/p/COkbauNJPzz/?igshid=2g50fhief6gh

[hairstylesdaycom]

Loopy beehives for created by Renya … Loopy beehives for #eastonpearson #mbfwa created by Renya @valonzhaircutters

[arshisjaveri-mua]

Take 3... #lfw #eastonpearson @lakmefashionwk #catwalk #fashion #style #fun #instapicture #instagood #instafun #fashionshow #India #mumbai #fashionweek #lineup @eastonpearson

[oneporktaco-blog]

brisbane fashion festival: easton pearson

(images via fashionising)

so, kids, i've both good and bad news, and i suppose we'll go with the good first, as it presages the bad: we've (finally!!!) come to the end of our coverage of brisbane fashion week (really, i'm proud; it does feel like we've been wrapping up some back stuff rather rapidly of late), and we get to close it out with a particular favourite australian house of mine, designers lydia pearson & pamela easton's easton pearson s/s 2013 range!

now, of course, comes the bad.  though we've generally encountered the designers' work at the smaller australian venues (such as the f/w 2010 in melbourne, and the s/s 2012 in their home city of brisbane), i was able to find all of noth.ing regarding their current collection in the press. what the bloody hell, right?  i mean, we all know that the brisbane fashion festival doesn't get the love it deserves, but...well, let's try to make the most of it anyhow, non?

in a swingin' sixties turn that was quite graphic and oftentimes for me evoked more than a little of the s/s 2013 louis vuitton show, with some of the same bold checkerboard prints (along with marc jacobs' s/s 2013 stripes, and maybe a little of the s/s 2013 prada kitsch?), and although i'm aware i'll be burned in effigy by hardcore lvmh/jacobs fans for saying this, i'm going to argue that for me, there was something a little more natural in the way easton pearson channeled the decade and its hippies, with some eclectic mixes that almost bordered on tacky, which...isn't that part of the heart of the movement?

furthermore, for me, at least, there's always been something more believable in these smaller labels that want to channel some of the counter-culture movements; to be sure, i think we can all agree that most hippies probably wouldn't buy many of their own clothes, much less designer (when i was in high school, my dad told me he hated the smell of my patchouli oil, because it reminded him 'of all these hippies girls i knew that wouldn't take showers; they'd just put patchouli oil on to cover their body odor, so they'd still stink, but another strong scent would be mixed in, too').

however, all the same, seeing, yannow, balenciaga or balmain try to go punk feels, at least to me, a lot more problematic than an independently-owned, small house that at least probably has some ties to, yannow, reality in the way many of those connected with the aforementioned brands...likely don't. but i'm rambling on that issue, and not focusing on the charming easton pearson range, which really, sometimes maybe felt a little flower child costume-y, perhaps in some of the sack dresses and long, wide peasant skirts, but on the other hand, there were some stunning pieces (particularly those sundresses and skirts in that stunning orange floral-print material).

overall, too, and this may have been the styling, but...there was something about the hippie movement the designers just seemed to get. nothing was overdone, it all felt cheerful, and it didn't feel like an up-sell to try to make the period or theme more 'glam' or 'sexy'; to be sure, these were adjectives i should have chosen at all, although one would be hard-pressed, i should say, to see a girl in her cheerful checkerboard adorned with florals and not find her ever-so-adorable. sometimes we're introduced to a collection that may not break any sartorial boundaries, but just really seems 'in the zone', as it were, a forming of kinship between the house and its theme, and really, i'd say we definitely found it here with easton pearson today.

[oneporktaco-blog]

brisbane fashion festival: ep by easton pearson

(images via fashionising)

even though i'll readily confess i'm no expert on the archives of brisbane-based label easton pearson, i've held an affection for them all the same, as i've confessed in the past, thanks to some absolutely awesome hair and the casting of the then-rising model gemma ward on their s/s 2003 catwalk.  well.  since that time, we here at opt have had the opportunity to check out designers lydia pearson and pamela easton's work on a handful of occasions around the country--see a/w 2010, s/s 2011, and s/s 2012--but now i've also had the good luck to happen upon their secondary line, ep by easton pearson, which showed its charming s/s 2013 range at the brisbane fashion festival!

unfortunately, as i said just yesterday when discussing the scanlan & theodore collection, brisbane receives hardly any of the love its big sister sydney does, and in turn, we don't get much in the way of back stories on the collections we're looking at.  however, as we know the label at hand a little bit, i think we can pretty much deduce that we're seeing a more youthful and flirty (and, of course) cheaper version of the globe-trotting colourful and (and i really hate to use this term, but it seems to apply rather well here) free-spirited feelings of the house main line. 

certainly the designers didn't mean for us to take the collection wholly seriously, anyway, when they plied their models with playful props like ukeleles, plastic (or was it paper?) fruit that evoked carmen miranda, castanets, and pom pom-ed necklaces and head garlands.  of course, that isn't to in any way suggest that the clothes weren't completely wearable or charming--just that they seemed to impart a laid-back, summery flavour that thanks to bright pops of colour (cobalt, chalky pink, black, lime, aquamarine, white, and tangerine) and plenty of zany motifs (checks, zig-zags, stripes) was meant to be more fun than deeply penetrating.  

anyway, although i wasn't able to uncover much--or anything, really--in the way of critical reviews on the subject of the collection, i did unearth a little snippet on the label's facebook page that revealed that the designers see the range as "'(a) Retro-Futuristic Roman Holiday' featuring quirky mix & match prints, hazy sunset colours. For the Audrey Hepburn in all of us!"  indeed, there was probably a certain fifties-sixties overtone in the silhouettes of the dainty little shirtdresses and shifts, babydoll frocks (that to me read a little more mia farrow in rosemary's baby, but then, i'm usually predisposed to see the horror film in all things), and sweet little onesies and shorts. 

in all, there wasn't much to complain about (save maybe that i wish the designers hadn't repeated that checkered black-and-blue or black-and-pale pink motif quite so much), because they did a fairly good job of mixing things up and providing more than a single type of look, something that haunts the annals of fashion sites these days--when designers hit on a particular, um, hit, and no one wants to buy (or, indeed, design) anything else, but no, i'd say there was enough variety here to make up a good summer or vacation wardrobe, if one was looking for the lot of it in a single sweep of purchasing power. 

like many of the more affordable lines, however, if there is one question left to beg, i'd say it was this: why do they always feel the need to cater to the early twenty-somethings?  to be sure, those girls have less money than their counterparts in their forties or so--generally speaking, at least--but let's not forget that even the lesser-priced, contemporary labels aren't known for being affordable to most, anyway.  thus, it always leaves me to ask myself whether they've caught on the right formula here, or what might happen if they indeed designed for older girls, or perhaps even the same customer, just one with less cash money? 

[oneporktaco-blog]

brisbane fashion festival: easton pearson

(images via fashionising)

easton pearson first came to my attention some years ago, for their s/s 2003 range, during which they not only presciently cast then-mostly-unknown model gemma ward, but gave their models possibly the best hair the catwalk has since seen.  and though i was thus friend-ily disposed towards the house, they escaped my notice for a couple of years once again, finally arriving back on my radar with solid f/w 2010 & s/s 2011 shows in australia. 

anyway, for the s/s 2012 season, they're back exhibiting in brisbane their new diffusion line, ep easton pearson.  with designers lydia pearson & pamela easton explaining to ragtrader that this is a "little sister" brand, they also noted that "(o)ur buyers kept telling us that young women are desperate for our clothes but can’t always afford them," thus the range is aimed at a more youthful audience than the signature line.  "EP by Easton Pearson is a true diffusion line. The clothes have a very distinct attitude, and their own spirit and direction. EP has a younger feel than the Easton Pearson range, and we get to try out new things, and  work up ideas that we’ve been percolating for years," ms. pearson said. 

and truly it was in keeping with the verve of the spring collections, awash in colour and print (and preceding the new york shows that are now all over that business): fruit patterns, polka dots, stripes, bohemian flower-y motifs, geometric prints, and embroidery (fish, flowers, swirling designs) all came together in vibrant shades of lemon, teal, peach, navy, grass, cherry, black, and white (often many of which, again like nyfw, were worn together).  models wore flat ethnic sandals and multicoloured tiaras to help suggest a sort of tribal princess-y idea. 

a little indigenous bohemian and a little fancy retro girl, maxi and midi-length dresses and skirts were particularly important, with sleeveless or off-the-shoulder varieties suggesting readiness to go sip delicious fruity cocktails in the shade of the poolside cabana.  it might not have been as deep as the pair's signature line, but nevertheless it evoked summer with unrestrained enthusiasm, and knowing one can pick up these pieces for less feels as good a way as any to welcome the season (or, for the northerners, beg it not to go).