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FW16 DESIGNERS
AUGUSTO MANZANARES
New York City
Manzanares NY
Originally from Lima, Peru, Augustro Manzanares moved to New York in 2005 to realize his dream and passion for fashion and design. With a creative personality since he was very young, everything he creates has an eclectic mix of influences from his Latin background and his love for High Fashion. Starting as a child designing clothing for Barbie dolls, he has concentrated the last 10 years in women’s-wear designs and has elevated to become Assistant Designer for the design duo The Blonds. It was with this opportunity that he has made a name for himself in the NY fashion scene and decided to take his career to the next level at Uptown Fashion Week. His pieces can be found exclusively at Patricia Field in NY and include dresses, corsets, masks, and headpieces.
MARLENE H' COUTURE ( BRIDAL)
SOUTH AFRICA
Marlene Thomas started in the fashion business in South Africa on 1983.
Award winning International Couture Designer Marlene H' Couture has been successfully branding her name and label since 2011 through participation in multiple fashion events including International shows in the United States, Europe, Asia and South Africa. She is best known for her exquisite wedding gowns, formal evening wear and her couture pieces. Her high quality couture designs are truly one of a kind, always handmade with elaborate and intricate attention to detail. Her garments are created to make a statement, yet each piece effortlessly radiates elegance and femininity.
Marlene, better known as Marli, has her own unique fashion ideas and does not believe in following trends blindly. She can be identified by her distinct style and preference for quality fabrics. The Marlene H' Couture brand is truly timeless.
"I will always love fashion. Always."- Marli Thomas
MIGDOEL FIGUEROA (HAUTE COUTURE)
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC.
Migdoel Figueroa, was born to the east of the Dominican Republic. Oldest one of 6 brothers, his mother a woman housewife with talents in the gastronomy, his father a wood furniture maker, Raised in a humble home with very low resources and with difficulty to be able to have a good academic education. This does not stop this artist, at the age of 12 years Migdoel discovers his ability for designing and constructing wardrobe starting with one of piece of wood at his father tapestry. Migdoel began his passion for designing and constructing .
without the proper academic skills and education Migdoel developed his great talent in the confection of clothing and wardrobe from scratch using left over pieces of wood and fabric from his father furniture store. He then started making pieces for friends and family and sooner than later he was making wardrobe for different clients and occasions in the Dominican Republic. In 2010 Migdoel arrived to the United States, in New York City the Fashion Capital of the World to persuade his passion for designing, not having the financial resources and right connections in the big apple Migdoel humbly started working to expand his knowledge with several Latin figures and fashion Icons in local networks, he has now worked with several celebrities of the Fashion Industry like Charytin Goyco, Jessica Perreira, and many others and soon he became independent releasing a complete head to toe collection for the first time at the spring showcase Uptown Fashion Week in New York City 2015 which open many doors for Migdoel. Migdoel is now reaching to the stars designing for many celebrities including Miss Dominican Republic USA as well as recognized celebrities in Latino America, dressing successful woman for the Latin Grammy's and others., He is now preparing for his grand opening studio/store in the fashion district New York City this spring 2016.
DARIO MOHR (MENS WEAR)
NEW YORK
Dario Mohr is an American Fine Artist, Painter, Graphic Designer, Illustrator, Fashion Designer, and Curator and founder of AnkhLave Mind Media. Dario is Ceo and Founder of 2 lines intending to bring Fine Art to the forefront of Fashion under the Aliases Daft Minerva Fine Art Fashion and BuddhaHood Threads. Both of which have graced New York Fashion Week and have been featured in numerous publications including Lucky Mag, AfroPunk, and I-Fashion Magazine
PIPO PERE (TEEN)
PUERTO RICO
En Jayuya Puerto Rico nació este joven diseñador, quién obtuvo un Bachillerato en Humanidades con Concentración en Artes y Diseño de la Universidad de Puerto Rico. Al mismo tiempo, completó sus estudios en Diseño de Modas en la escuela Centro Moda, de la reconocida diseñadora Liza Thon.
Para el verano de 1999, estableció su propia línea de ropa bajo el nombre de Moda Pipo Pere, obteniendo una gran acogida entre la juventud.En su corta carrera como diseñador, obtuvo mucho éxito entre sus diseñadores colegas. En agosto del 2000, formó parte del evento “Fashion to the Beat”, un espectáculo que reunió a los mejores diseñadores de la Isla, en donde su colección fue reseñada y reconocida por la prensa como “una de las mejores”. Leer Mas..
ANGEL AYALA (AVANT-GARDE)
GUAYNABO PUERTO RICO
Designer Angel Ayala was born to a hard working, strong valued, Puerto Rican family in The Bronx, NYC. By the age of 6, Angel had already fallen in love with the world of fashion. Heavily influenced by his maternal grandmother, Cecilia Bahamundi, who herself was an accomplished couturier and worked at several fashion houses during the 1950s & 60s, taught Angel how to sew by hand. At the age of 13, Angel had been accepted into The High School of Fashion Industries and went on to enroll in The Fashion Institute of Technology. At age 17, Angel received an award for excellence in fashion design from The Lower Manhattan Cultural Council. Angel's work has been showcased throughout the US and Caribbean, from designing gowns for the Miss USA and Miss Universe organization, to styling numerous photo shoots . His work has been worn by various artists such as Lady Gaga on CBS, NBC, and MTV. He spends his time between NYC, Puerto Rico and the Dominican Republic working for his clients and volunteering his time to different organizations. Angel is well versed in all aspects of design, from Ready to Wear to Haute Couture for both men and women of all sizes, and prides himself on being able to cater to all.
WILLFREDO GERARDO ( HAUTE COUTURE)
NORTH HOLLYWOOD, CALIFORNIA.
First making his mark at Premio Lo Nuestro Awards dressing his very first Latin celebrity icon Ninel Conde that gained him confidence and international recognition in the fashion world. Now he’s more mature and comfortable expanding into his 4th collection that he will be debuting this upcoming NYFW Fall/Winter 2016.
Born and raised in North Hollywood, CA, early into his young age Willfredo was always interested and involved with fashion. Style and presentation was a main component of his upbringing that filtered into his career. After attending several performing arts schools in Southern California and Sarasota Opera House, he started to migrate from performing arts and immerse himself into fashion. He moved to New York where he worked in retail and stumbled into designing bridal gowns for high-end clients, and embraced his love for designing couture.
He opened his first showroom in Los Angeles, CA and created his first collection named Old Hollywood Glamour, constructed to compliment the silhouette and the lines of a woman’s body, a running theme of all the gowns he designs. After months of work and persistence his dresses had caught wind of international celebrities such as Marjorie De Sousa, Chiquis Rivera and were featured in such publications as Elle Bulgaria, Runway Magazine featuring Nancy O’Dell, and People en Español.
Since then he has gained status as head designer for Nuestra Belleza Latina 2015 & 2016 and seen his looks all across red carpet events such as the Golden Globes, Emmys, People’s Choice Awards, Latin Grammys, Latin Billboards, & Premio Juventud. With Chicago, Miami, and LA Fashion week under his belt, Gerardo is prepared for New York.
Willfredo now resides in Miami, FL currently expanding his couture line. Ninel Conde, Chiquinquirá Delgado, Alejandra Espinoza, and Daphnie Joy are known to be a few of Gerardo’s star studded client list.
CARLOS VIGIL ( HAUTE COUTURE)
LIMA, PERU.
Peruvian Designer Carlos Vigil he’s been in the High Fashion industry for over 29 years, specializing in Haute Couture evening dresses and wedding gowns, and is the founder and Creative Director of Atelier Carlos Vigil, a family ran business, where Carlos, along with his three daughters, offer a comprehensive one-stop-shop experience for all of his clientele. He’s a favorite among celebrities, diplomats and politicians who trust him to create the most exquisite dresses for their top events, as well as TV and Theatre productions, for which he creates lavish period pieces of art. He’s also designed for thousands of women from all over the world who gladly travel to Peru to have Carlos make their dream dresses and wedding gowns. His passion for his crafts translates in the personal attention he brings to each and every client who visits our Atelier, who become more friends than clients. Carlos gets his inspiration from the aesthetic and beauty of nature, but also from the unusual shapes and perfect lines of modern architecture, where he gets daring combinations of form and color. Textures, contrasts and play on shapes are some of the tools he uses to create exclusive Couture designs, with the finest fabrics, made meticulously by hand with attention to detail by a team of Peruvian artisans, trained personally by Carlos in all the High Fashion techniques used in our collections. At Atelier Carlos Vigil we believe in Fair Trade and we bet on Peruvian craftsmanship to create one-of-a-kind pieces of art to represent our Country in all the runway shows we participate in. Having wowed audiences in New York City, Miami, Paris and Dubai, The Atelier Carlos Vigil is back with a glamorous new collection, “Cao” filled with luxurious fabrics, rich textures and bright and daring colors to amaze new audiences all over the world. “Cao” was inspired by the pre-colombian Moche culture from the Northern coast of Peru, where Carlos was born, and especially by the “Lady of Cao”, the only woman priestess and leader ever found in Perú, buried in the most exquisite pyramid overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Geometric carvings, earthy colors and creative weaving are the inspiration of this collection, where culture meets fashion to bring Perú to the World´s best runways.
DENISSE WASHINGTON ( PLUS SIZE)
NEW YORK.
Denise Washington was born and raised in Harlem, New York where she began her career at the tender age of 13. Creating designs for her mother, aunts and sisters just to make their Harlem Nights special. As she grew, she began making clothes for her children, nieces, nephews and others. Studying fashion design at The Fashion Institute of Technology in New York, Denise knew this would allow her to fulfill her lifelong dream and launch her fashion line, 710 Fashions.
Upon graduating from FIT Denise began to work with many famous individuals in the music and fashion industry. The invaluable experience gained from working with these individuals gave her the drive to continue creating. However, she felt someone was being left out.When Denise is designing, she is inspired by shape, architecture, and color. Every design focuses on flattering a real woman's body. Denise’s’ technical knowledge of a garment’s proper fit and design, combined with her innate creative abilities, results in an effortless and wearable line that reflects the kind of woman she is herself; strong, sexy, fun, fearless and a little on the Plus Size of society.