Just the other day I attended Style Wars by House of Diehl in support of stylist and fashionista friends Deoshia Hopkins (known as Dee Dee.. Deedub), and her partner in crime Lisa Davis. When I checked out the site to buy my tickets ( http://www.houseofdiehl.com/stylewars/ ), I didn’t know what to expect as this was the first time I had heard about this competition. My first thought while scanning through the site was; what a great way to promote up-coming fashion stars and I was all for it. Some of the most talented friends I have are in fashion and most were not formerly trained or schooled. They just seem to have a natural sense of fashion and elegance that proves that training is not a prerequisite for great style. For me there are three kinds of fashion personalities. 1). The general population- people that look at ads, catalogues, shop at malls in search of what they saw that looked good on someone else. 2). The bourgeois- the seeker of labels (label whores if you will), as if the only way to real style was through designer labels and your pocketbook 3). The uncompromised- seekers of their own personal affinity with good looks and great feel, not dependent on popular vote or price tag. The problem with the third group, the one that most accurately describes our Dee Dee, is that sometimes it can be difficult to catch the eye of the more established fashion machine and get promoted.
Enter Style Wars--A project runaway type event on a racetrack. Side by side, 2 teams are given design themes, and armed with a small collection of personal supplies and a selection of objects provided by the host, they are challenged to re-invent style in under 5mins. The audience cheers with exhilaration in anticipation of what these stylists will conjure up to dazzle them with their unique vision.
So there I was, standing on my seat, wide eyed and exhilarated as each concoction Team Dee Dub came up with seemed to out style the last and dominate their competitors. I knew DeeDee possessed great fashion sense but the ability and confidence to whip up cool, edgy, wearable garb in just under 5 mins. WOW! Team Dee Dub killed it, winning over the judges handily. With each passing challenge they displayed an almost sixth sense for how each swath of fabric, metal screen, strip of tape and even parts of a lawn chair would meld together to create a runway ready showpiece. As the time came for the final round, we were sure that Team Dee Dub would emerge victorious against the more established industry challenger who had competed in previous events. The final theme was "Pimp my Bride" and the last two teams were given a box that contained a secret ingredient that they were to use in their ultimate creation. Team Dee Dub opened the box to find a fully completed wedding dress and the other team discovered a box of trash bags. Now at first glance, getting a completed wedding dress would seem like a blessing, but being tasked with creating a unique look and to think outside the box, it would prove almost useless as they would surely be labeled as cliche. As the other team was hurriedly slapping trash bags all over their model, Team Dee Dub was creating a truly unique wedding dress out of the ripped train from the dress, a colorful armor like chest piece and lace belt. I mean this dress was amazing, it was as if it had come off the runway in Milan and all in under 5 min. As for the other team, their wedding dress looked like, well... trash, layers of clear trash bags, bunched together in an awful mess. The only part that looked like it belonged on a pimped out bride was the head piece and that was something that was provided in the kit.
At this point we were all certain that Team Dee Dub would take it, they had done an amazing job and everyone seemed to feel truly inspired by the work... boy were we wrong. The judges, despite overwhelming audience support for our champions in cheers and applause, voted for the trash bag bride, a look that was decidedly "un-pimped". In defense of their decision, the judges cited the creativity of using trash bags, mind you that was a prop that was given too them to use not selected by them as part of their unique sense of style. We were robbed....
To be fair, fashion is largely a matter of opinion and it would appear that the judges have achieved some degree of personal success in their careers, demonstrating an understanding of what fashion works and what doesn't. What I feel was really in play here was a bias towards a more "trained" veteran designer over an unknown that just has good taste and talent on her side. In the end, much to our disappointment, the judges opted for a familiar face over the renegade newbie.
Bravo!! Dee Dee and Lisa Davis, your sense of style and sophistication impressed many that were out that night, including me... This was only the beginning, you have a bright future ahead.
All Photos taken by Justin Johnson
