A recurring trend at this season’s (capsule) women’s show was the hands-on approach many designers took when designing their own textiles and prints. At the booth for Alabama-based designer Billy Reid, attendees couldn’t help but admire a multi-color patchwork blazer that was hand-tailored from a decades-old antique quilt. Christina Fan, designer of womenswear label C / FAN, was inspired by the elements of geology, cosmology, anatomy and cellular symmetry, creating a unique K’anchaypacha (meaning “light” in the Quechua language) print by layering glass over a mixture of water and colored acrylics. Drawing her inspiration from a more personal source, H. Frederickson took digital prints of paint chipping in New York City subway and manipulated them in several color stories for the label’s Spring/Summer 2012 collection. Apparel wasn’t the only market receiving special treatment, though. For their current collection, Miami-based accessory label Citrine used Peruvian artisans to handcraft jewelry inspired by pre-Columbian metalwork while the cast and soddered pieces from its Spring/Summer 2012 line had an art deco theme. Watch out for all of these pieces (and many more) on store shelves next year. – Adrian Brinkley
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