Oscars 2021 Best Dressed

April 27, 2021

Hello Design Land readers,

We hope your weekend was peaceful and relaxing.

Last Sunday night on April 25, we witnessed the 93rd Oscars award ceremony take place at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Despite the ongoing pandemic, this year’s award ceremony was held in person and the stars served several stunning glamorous looks on the red carpet. Gowns styled and worn for this event brought each their individual magic, varying from golden yellow shimmering fabrics, beaded and encrusted silver tones, to vibrant red and empowering feminine silhouettes. We are here to deliver our Best Dressed highlights!

Youn Yuh-jung in Marmar Halim and Han Ye-ri in Louis Vuitton

Riz Ahmed in Prada and Fatima Farheen Mirza in Valentino

Chloé Zhao: winner of the best-director Oscar for Nomadland

Aside from observing and appreciating all the looks for this year’s Oscars, we also love to see women make history! Chloé Zhao is the winner of best-director Oscar for Nomadland, making Zhao the first woman of color and only the second woman in history to win this award.

Did you watch the Oscar award ceremony this year? At Design Land NYC, our favorite part consists of following all of the Stars’ red carpet looks, but we now have an ever growing list of films to watch. Tell us in your comments below what did you think of this year’s Oscars award.

Sending lots of joy,

Design Land NYC / Lori

London Fashion Week Fall/Winter 2021 Highlights

February 26, 2021

Hi everyone,

How has February been treating you? We hope you are keeping yourself warm, working toward your goals and enjoying life as it comes. As London fashion week came to an end, we are happy to offer you a brief distraction from your daily life and a glimpse into the highlights of Fall/Winter 2021 collections.

Simone Rocha

Simone Rocha’s Fall/Winter 2021 collection is a play between the soft and edgy, a coexistence of the feminine and masculine. Black leather biker jackets over frilly skirts, jackets and dresses with tactile satin roses, Edwardian balloon sleeves, tailored black leather jackets to emphasize waistline, ivory flowers cascading over pink tulle ballet skirts, are all elements fabricating this fantasy of a rebellious ballerina character. This season’s collection retains the soft femininity that characterizes Rocha’s work, with an additional dose of resiliency and sense of experimentation, all ornated with faux natural pearls, porcelain earrings and hand-painted roses.

"Embroidered tulles, Hand-painted flowers on pearls. Porcelain cameos, encased in gold. The Three Graces. Satin, leather, tulle."

Erdem

Erdem’s Fall/Winter 2021 collection is constructed to represent several stages of a dancer’s wardrobe, from rehearsal to performance. The conception of this idea originates from Erdem Moralioglu’s memorable experience of designing costumes in 2018 at the Royal Opera House, translating the excitement of observing ballerinas practicing in their transitional outfits from rehearsals to performance. Illustrating the ballerina’s everyday practice clothing and interlacing it with their embellished stage costumes, the lineup served a variety of feminine skirts, opera gowns, tailored jackets thrown over embellished, feathered skirts. Tops encrusted with jewels and ribbed knitwear, ballet slippers transforming into stilted platforms, and Swan Lake headpieces, made for an interesting fusion of in-between stages of undressing.

Art School

Eden Loweth’s Fall/ Winter collection carries a strong message of resistance, hope and strength to London’s queer communities. Through his work, Loweth aims to give a voice to marginalized communities, offer a safe space for LGBTQ+ identities to be seen, free of prejudice. This season’s collection was unique and completely focused on inclusivity, presenting garments easy to wear for all bodies and genders. The show featured two nonbinary contestants from Season 2 of RuPaul's Drag Race UK : Bimini Bon-Boulash and A'Whora, Loweth’s close friends, and members of London Trans + Pride. The prevailing theme in this collection stands that of Inclusion and Unity, all reflected in the coats and leather pieces, linen smock dresses and bias cut pieces, designed for different body types.

Matty Bovan

Matty Bovan’s Fall/Winter 2021 collection is an explosion of color, paint, exaggerated shapes, volume, interpreted through psychedelic effects of intentional blurring and smearing. With every outfit encrusted in crystals, splashes of color and light, to say that this collection is experimenting with the nontraditional of ready to wear would be an understatement. This season, Bovan labelled this collection Odyssey, referencing the theme and source of inspiration. All this, revealed in the backdrop of this presentation and the sound effects throughout the video, unfolds in the visuals and sounds of struggle through heavy waves out in the sea, shipwreck and survival.

Bovan confesses that this is a personal theme: “I’ve always been afraid of the sea. I suppose it’s that fear of isolation”

Vivienne Westwood

Vivienne Westwood Fall/Winter 2021 line-up was mostly made of recycled, previously used materials as a statement to reduce the impact fabric waste does to the environment. Fabrics used encompass a variety of wool, tartans, forest positive viscose, organic silk, along with a newly sourced recycled denim.

The collection featured a print of Daphnis and Chloe, a 1743 painting by by French Rococo painter François Boucher, becoming the main print for this season. The collection brought a pastoral mood, in a combination of clashing colors, herringbones, stripes, ginghams and King of Wales Check throughout various items of denim, suits, shirts, corsets and dresses. As always, the lineup carried over Westwood’s signature style of unruled draping and balanced chaos.

The focus of this season stays in the constantly improving efforts to become sustainable, as stated on Westwood’s social media posts on this collection:

We continually challenge ourselves to make our collections with greater care and contribute to a more sustainable fashion industry. We are proud to announce that for Autumn-Winter 2021/22 over 90% of our main-line collection is made from materials that have a reduced impact on our environment.⁠

Molly Goddard

Goddard’s Fall/Winter 2021 collection brings back tulle skirts and voluminous shapes, in a clash of textures, bright colors, metallics and patterns. Strategically large layered skirts reveal a sense of movement. While much of the designs are overly playful, many garments remain wearable and casual, including Fair Isle sweaters for men and women, tartan coats, tailored suits and taffeta dresses layered with casual denim. A joyful color palette of warm red, pink and bright orange, is balanced by charcoal grey, mint, and uplifting blue.

Duro Olowu

Duro Olowu’s Fall/Winter 2021 collection is comprised of various exhilarating prints and evokes an inspired outlook of a happier time. Garments manifest a union and blend of reinvented colorful florals, geometrical patterns, python prints in green, fuchsia, orange, turquoise. As stated on Olowu’s Instagram posts of these spectacularly cheerful silk chiffon dresses and swing coats:

Inspired by the work of the African American painter Barkley L. Hendricks and the French painter Édouard Vuillard. The collection is a homage to the wonderful palettes and pattern laden compositions in the paintings of these two amazing artists from different eras and continents.
It is also an ode to the power of style as an inspiring and uplifting weapon of optimism in these uncertain times.

Emilia Wickstead

Emilia Wickstead’s Fall/Winter 2021 collection, represents the idea of looking into a woman’s life. The concept was inspired by three films: Teorema (1968) by Pier Paolo Pasolini, I Am Love (2009) by Luca Guadagnino, and Rear Window (1954) by Alfred Hitchcock. Walking further away from casual ready to wear, and into a reinvention of Eveningwear, this collection featured tailored suiting in wool gabardine, pencil skirted dress, off-the shoulder charcoal wool dress, soft tailored flanella, and draped fabrics that serve as outerwear to offer comfort and a soft edge against the structured garments underneath.

What do you think of our Highlighted moments from London’s Ready-To-Wear Fall/Winter 2021? At Design Land NYC, we are loving the rush of creativity, the progress made towards sustainability in fashion, the bright uplifting colors and prints in place and all the amazing work that designer’s are doing in response to the challenges encountered in the past year. We are following the next fashion shows closely and cannot wait to report the next recap!

Sending joy,

Lori / Design Land NYC

Pantone Colors of the Year 2021

December 13, 2020

As this year slowly comes to an end, Pantone Color Institute has proceeded to release the forecasted color to best represent the upcoming year 2021. In a fairly unusual manner, Pantone CI has selected a two-color combo: Ultimate Gray and Illuminating [Yellow]. The forecast occurred much later in the year than expected compared to previous cases.

At Design Land NYC, we attended the official Online Webinar presentation of Pantone Color Institute, focused on the Pantone Color of the Year 2021 and the way this color trend is affected by the ongoing events. During the Webinar held on the Pantone Color of the Year 2021, Leatrice Eiseman, Executive Director of Pantone Color Institute, expressed that the delay was a result of perpetual consideration of current events, in areas of social, political and economic change. Working in forecasting color often has much more to do with the social and political climate in understanding what people will engage and react to most, than will mere aesthetic. Both colors picked each represent two different aspects of our recovery from 2020, and offer a peaceful rejoice for the year that is about to begin.

Yellow Flowers Laoyout.jpeg — **Why Gray and Yellow**

Meaning behind the colors:

Ultimate Gray: Gray stands for resilience, strength and emotional encouragement. It forms fortitude, a firm foundation and creates hope and clarity for the human spirit. Gray is our solid piece and commonly composes gravel, stones, everything that our feet stand on.

Illuminating: This hue of yellow represents brightness, brings a cheerful attitude into the future picture, adds optimism and brings light after the darkness.

The combination of Grey and Yellow is a splendid blend in its natural state. The two colors can be observed in nature together, in pebbles in the stream, bumble bee jasper stones, and sunlight radiating in changing leaves. Together these colors offer the much awaited reset and new beginning, reflecting the wanted strength to overcome past hardships and joyful attitude to the future.

Leatrice Eisemen pointed out that 2021 is not the first year that the Pantone Color Institute selected a pair combo, something that occurred once before in 2016 “a marriage between soft blue and pink”. During the 20 years the Pantone CI has been announcing their color forecast, this year is the first that is partially represented by a neutral color, something that has never happened before. Yet, although some colors of the year are derived from the same family they are always reinvented and Pantone CI has never repeated the same hue.

Application: In application, we can expect the colors to appear in combination, or on their own. They can be incorporated in prints, fabrics textures and accessories, in accent walls for interior, and in monochromatic creations.

The major telling factor in the decision making, was considering all major events occurring in 2020 to understand what emotions people are looking to find in the near future. This year, the Pantone Color Institute had a clear idea that the color should convey hope and resilience as to affect change in the ever less pleasant current reality.

It is generally accepted that one of the colors most people associate with feelings of joy and happiness, or perceive as bright and positive is within the family of Yellow. Yellow alone seems too happy and bright, and would not accurately reflect a recuperating and recovering society. Knowing how difficult and challenging it is too pair yellow with any other color that clashes, or adds on to the cheerfulness, the only best alternative was to pick a mute or neutral color that balances out the positivity with some physical grounding. Gray is one of the most common neutrals used in design, easily found in capsule wardrobes, interior decoration, and is simultaneously modern and timeless.

Our conclusion

After a year of a major global crisis, we are all in need for some bright colors in our environment. This color pairing, sparks a newfound affection for parts of nature that are fleeting, as the combination appears in instants of time that we can only catch a glimpse on, such as the first moments of sunrise, and certain reflection of light on still-water. This pair is also present in industrial elements, in the solid structure of cement and constructed roads foundations, in contemporary interior and futuristic raw designs.

We feel that this color combination is a proper one that will spark joy this year. How do you feel about this color after reading on the reasoning behind their selection? We hope you are healthy and happy and may your world be Illuminating next year!

Xoxo Lori / Design Land NYC

Bumble Bee Jasper Stones: Image Via The Crystal Council

Global Design Trends 2021 - 2022

December 7, 2020

Happy Monday, hope you are rocking your week!!

Today in this post we will point out and illustrate some of the emerging design trends for 2021 and 2022. As 2020 comes to an end, we look at patterns dominating the end of year to forecast their effect on the next. The following 10 top trends will help reshape the design landscape and prevailing visuals in advertising, social media and digital marketing, as well as graphic, product, interior and fashion design. Their applications are universal.

1. Reinvented Retro – Leveraging Nostalgia

In art and photography we see a rise in reinvented retro aesthetic, straying away from perfectly curated visuals and merging mismatched playful coloring into letters and symbols. This pattern involves evoking the past and leveraging nostalgia to live present time. Reinvented Retro also serves as a means to escapism, to take consumers away from the current disturbing situation the world finds itself into and offer cheerful optimism. This trend emerges as a result of individual’s longing for comfort, simpler times, security, the mundane and a craving for past moments of joy in their pre-isolation life. To deliver this security and optimism, we see brands tapping into the retro phenomena of recreating campaigns and products that utilize nostalgia to spark joy and place this nostalgia in the context of close future.

2. True Authenticity and Inclusion

In the scope of social media, the heavily curated images and perfected visuals will have a significant further disruption. In 2020 we noticed the growth of TikTok, a platform notable for its candid and raw video creations. This will continue on in 2021, translating into other social media platforms and influencing the way digital marketing visuals are perceived by consumers, especially Gen Z and Millennials.

This authenticity also expands in brand transparency and innovation. Consumers demand for all-inclusive designs and diverse representations. These initiatives are reflected in the brands’ and designers’ brand mission, and such purpose-driven innovations will help abridge the social climate with brand perception. We see human visuals that shift away from unrealistic beauty standards and an increase in appreciation of real human beauty. Inclusive accessibly will be of main focus in interior and landscape design, and media will reflect an enhanced awareness in neurodiversity, with brands becoming more socially conscious and take bigger steps toward all-inclusive goals.

3. Sustainability: Back to nature

After a long year of reflection and self-isolation, we have identified a need to better our relationship with nature. In packaging and advertising we will see an increase of organic art, repositioning nature as the forefront in design, as well as composition. Brands will feel more inclined to invest in sustainable product designs and packaging, finding ways to become transparent in their processes of sourcing and production and utilizing that property in brand image, efforts in sustainability and integrate it throughout their business model.
Customers show longing for the outdoors, in a time that they should contain in self-isolation. Thus, the uprise of more organic and plant dominated visuals will prove to be impactful and successful in connecting and communicating to the customer’s wants.

4. Optical Illusions and Engaging Visuals

Optical illusions and fun mixed-media texture manipulations will reach an innovative peak. Inspired from the 60s, we notice spike in psychedelic graphics, offering absolute freedom to artists in line and color exploration. Most emphasis will be placed on bright colors, engaging 3-Dimensional artwork, print and digital advertising that simulate integrated sensory action. This will be key in 2021, when most advertising unfolds online and aims to provide a most holistic sensory experience to clearly communicate to the consumer.

5. Calming Breaks

A new emerging trend this year is the engineering of micro breaks, with the aim of amplifying consumer’s happiness. These micro breaks are often executed in the form of peaceful social media ads, utilizing visual and auditory ASMR techniques, relaxing products and slow-paced browsing systems. Consumers are currently seeking for a soothing break and will likely pay attention to such visuals as another way to momentarily detach from reality.

6. Connectivity

More than ever, people are in need for communication and connectivity innovations. The lack of frequent human contact has led to a new era of seclusion, causing for anxiety and depression rates to spike up. Consumers are experiencing mental challenges and feelings of loneliness in a level that was not reflected before the pandemic. This is the right time for brands to push their limits in innovation and provide products and services designed to connect and bring people together virtually. There will be a redefinition of community groups and local people-focused coordination. Projects, companies that promote human engagement, long-lasting connections and community bonding as a brand strategy will help consumers feel well understood. These projects will include progress in the field of XR (mixed reality) and VR (Virtual Reality), developing tactile tools to mimic human touch and interaction.

7. Eco Action

As emphasized by the Sustainability in the Third trend explained in this post, Eco action aims to push the ultimate change in the mass-market industry and radically change the production system. There is little time to take action and retrieve some damage that the consumeristic culture has caused to our planet before it is too late to save. That is why in the next two years, we will see an increase in environmental awareness, corporate social responsibility and clear action points. Brands that do not shift their values toward long term sustainable goals, will risk turning irrelevant. According to WGSN, Biodesign will be mostly favored in research and development, with a new chain of materials and processes to work in nature, for nature and with nature. Design will be altered into new concepts of removing humans from the center focus.

8. Home Comfort

While 2020 marked the most significant increase in working from home phenomena, we will see its effect for the next two years as professionals find ways to adapt and build the new normal. During this time, products and designs created to give ultimate comfort and encourage productivity will be of utmost importance. Brands will find solutions to evolve and morph around this new reality by being flexible, resilient and creative. Innovation in this scope will also include creating high security items in a time that consumers feel uncertain and concerned. Utility and adaptability will be key elements.

9. Optimism

In the end, after an extended period of fear, discomfort, and grief, consumers will be targeted with a myriad of optimistic campaigns, carrying undertones of hope and understanding. Brands will cater to consumers’ want for utility, adaptability and resilience, by offering products and services that strengthen their connection with customers, as well as demonstrating their willful partnership to stay by consumer’s side. In this case, brands will serve as allies, who find themselves in the same place as consumers.

10. Materials

Following the Global Macro trends, materials will include the following:

Copper, Minerals, Soft Fabrics, Silver, Translucent Glow, Matte Surfaces, Nature-inspired, Antique metals, Natural Pigments, Artisan Wood, Grainy Textures, Biodegradable, Psychedelic and Holographic, Mosaic Tiling.

This was our recap for our top anticipated trends in the upcoming year, most of which connect to consumer’s craving for an alternative to their current time, finding joy in the past mundane activities that are no longer happening, and reminiscing a pre-pandemic reality. We see imagination reincarnating into technological innovations and playing a key role as a coping mechanism as well as whimsical design structures that play between characteristics of quirky and eccentric. The human spirit stays alive, and so does creativity.

As always, we hope you are safe and healthy!