One of the most anticipated store launches in recent memory will come down Thursday with the noon opening of H&M at the former Niketown location at Denver Pavilions.

I previewed the store earlier today and shared my shopping tips at http://tiny.cc/jqz99

Shopping center management is welcoming the Swedish-based retailer by staging a full-on Street Style event with fashion shows from existing merchants like Banana Republic, a ballet performance and music on Glenarm Place and in the Denver Pavilions’ plazas.

If you’re heading to the Pavilions, be sure to check out the “Cut and Sew Challenge” sponsored by the Denver Art Museum and hosted by Fallene Wells, a contestant on “Project Runway” season 9.

The Denver Art Museum is hosting an exhibition beginning in March on the late French designer Yves Saint Laurent. To tie in, four local designers – Melissa May, Trisha Hoke, Heidi Busk and Rachel Marie Hurst — have just hours to create an outfit inspired by YSL. They pre-shopped for fabric and will be working at sewing machines on Glenarm Place in full view of the public. Various dignitaries will judge the results later in the day.
Murals focusing on Denver-based cultural themes designed by Like Minded For more information on the event visit www.DenverPavilions.com or www.DenverArtsWeek.com.

For those coming downtown who don’t know how to navigate the city’s core, the Pavilions offers these tips:
LIGHT RAIL
• Take RTD’s D, H, & F line trains to 16th and California then walk two-blocks to the Denver Pavilions or transfer to the FREE 16th Street MallRide. Take C & E line trains to Denver Union Station then transfer to the FREE 16th Street MallRide buses to the Denver Pavilions. RTD light rail schedules and fare information can be found at www.rtd-denver.com or by calling 303.299.6000.

TAKE THE BUS
• The following local bus routes stop in Downtown Denver: 0, 1, 2, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 20, 28, 30, 32, 38, 44, 48, and 52. Additional limited, express and regional routes also stop in Downtown Denver. RTD bus schedules and fare information can be found at www.rtd-denver.com or by calling 303.299.6000.

RIDE YOUR BICYCLE
• There are plenty of on-street bicycle racks at the Denver Pavilions and throughout Downtown Denver. On-street bicycle racks are unattended; park at your own risk. Don’t own a bike? Consider using B-cycle. The Denver Pavilions has a B-cycle station on Glenarm between 15th & 16th, and 6 additional stations are located within a five block radius of the Denver Pavilions. Visit www.denver.bcycle.com for information on exact station locations and rates.

DOWNTOWN PARKING AND FREE 16TH STREET MALLRIDE BUSES
• Downtown Denver offers approximately 44,000 off-street parking spaces. Use the parking guide at www.ExperienceDowntownDenver.com to find a lot or garage.

• Most parking lots in Downtown Denver are within an easy walk to the FREE 16th Street MallRide buses offering a direct ride to the Denver Pavilions. The FREE MallRide buses travel over a mile on Denver’s 16th Street Mall from Union Station (Chestnut Place) to Civic Center Park (Broadway St.) and back. It stops at every intersection along the 16th Street Mall and runs daily until 1:30am.
Denver Pavilions was instrumental in that process,” added Manning.

The Denver Pavilions will be the epicenter of the city’s fashion scene Nov. 10 with a design competition and fashion shows scheduled as part of Denver Arts Week. And while no one wants to confirm it, it’s also the day we’re hearing that the city’s first H&M store is scheduled to open.

In advance of next year’s retrospective of the late French couturier Yves Saint Laurent, the Denver Art Museum is hosting a “Cut & Sew Challenge” in which four local designers will compete to create a outfit in the style of YSL. Tran Wills, who is producing the event, says it will be like television’s “Project Runway.” The designers – Melissa May, Trisha Hoke, José Duran and Rachel Marie Hurst – will pick out fabric in advance, and on the day of the show will have four hours to create an outfit – with the public watching them. They’ll put their designs on the runway that afternoon and the public as well as professional judges will select their favorites.

Also throughout the day there will be fashion shows from such Pavilions merchants as Banana Republic, Express, Forever 21 and Gap.

H&M is opening in the former Niketown space on the 16th Street Mall at the Pavilions, which is between Welton Street and Tremont Place. The store will be 21,000 square feet and will have clothing for men, women and children.

Earlier this week, H&M announced that its Versace collection will be in stores and online starting Nov. 17. Including $300 leather jackets and $200 sequin dresses as well as a full range of accessories for men and women, the looks are more expensive than typical H&M merchandise. For its main line, H&M falls in the category of affordable fast fashion, with sweaters selling for $25, jeans for $40 and jackets at $60 and up.

In a fall season that’s all about neturals and muted design, Chris Benz brought a needed shot of color to town when he showed his resort and spring-summer 2012 lines at Lawrence Covell late last week.
From his neon pink hair to the color-blocked sweaters and dresses in the spring line — often played off of black and white optic prints — it is refreshing to see a designer so focused on making an individual statement. Read more…

When you see it at a distance, clothing by Brunello Cucinelli looks like the cool, casual sportswear that Americans love to live in.
But view these designs up close, touch the cashmere, zip up a jacket, tie a scarf around your neck and you’ll feel the all-out luxury. If this line were a car, it would be a Ferrari rather than a Ford, so any comparison to L.L. Bean or Timberland just doesn’t hold up.
From its start in the Umbria region of Italy in the late 1970s to its global distribution today, the brand has become synonymous with fine quality and a throw-away ease. Brunello Cucinelli, now 58, continues to be the brand’s best ambassador and supporter of cultural institutions in Solomeo, the small town where it is based. They have seven stores in the U.S. and more shops-within-a-store, such as in Denver’s Andrisen Morton. The longtime local menswear retailer Saturday hosted a fashion show for the Cucinelli brand that was part of the Global Down Syndrome Foundation gala.
Among those attending from the company was Massimo Caronna who has worked with Cucinelli since the mid-1990s. “We believe in getting involved in the community,” whether that’s in Italy or America, said Caronna, who is the company’s president for the U.S. and Canada.
Caronna said the clothes mirror Cucinelli’s own style and interest in designs with great quality and creativity. “It’s his closet, a way to dress seven days a week.”

The colors are warm and muted: gray flannel, camel, slate blue, burnt orange, sage. Buttery leather and four-ply cashmere are easy to touch, harder on the wallet (prices in the men’s line go from about $400 for shirts to coats in the four figures). What you won’t see is black or anything hard-edged.
“Men today want to dress in a modern way; they don’t want to look like their fathers,” Caronna said. Top items are sport jackets that fit close to the body and have only partial linings, casual jackets that might reverse from leather to nylon, sweaters in four-ply cashmere, spread-collar shirts and cargo jeans.
The women’s line is equally luxurious and also body-conscious, Caronna said. “Women want to look chic and sexy and young. They want to look put together whether they are taking the kids to school or going out at night.”
Chunky knits, fur-trimmed jackets, sweater dresses, cuffed shorts worn over tights and satin skirts are among the key items.

Denver area fashion companies put their most stylish feet forward Saturday for Fashion Group International of Denver’s biannial Rising Star Awards.
Braving a trip to the suburbs FGI members, friends and family members gathered at the relatively new venue District 475, which was a perfect setting for a reception and show. In the Inverness Main Street development, District 475 has an open, warehouse-y feel. There was clever art on the walls, sofas for lounging, spots for photo ops, bars, and high-top tables for parking a drink and plate while you mingled. The runway and backstage area accommodated what event co-chair Carol Engel Enright said was a crowd of about 350 who came out to toast the 13 companies being recognized.
Read more…

If you’ve always wanted to dress as Lady Macbeth or the donkey in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” for Halloween, now’s your chance.
The Denver Center Theatre Company has cleaned out its costume closet and for the first time since 1992 is putting more than 1,000 items on sale from Thursday through Saturday.
Prices will range from $1 to $250 on items from such productions as “Richard III,” “Carousel,” “Don Quixote” and “A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.”
Included in the offerings are handmade velvet robes and opulent gowns, picture hats and beaded shoes.
“My favorite is the Christmas tree that lights up,” says Alexandra Griesmer, DCTC public relations manager.
Griesmer says theater staff members will be on hand to assist shoppers and will have items separated into such categories as witches and zombies, show girls and Victoriana. There’s also a hospital section for would-be Dr. Frankensteins.
“There are a lot of accessories — hats and shoes and props,” Griesmer says. “It’s going to be fun.”
The Denver Center Theatre Company Halloween Costume sale is from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Thursday and Friday; and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, at the Orange Studio in the Newman Center for Theatre Education, 1101 13th St., second floor.

The fashion business is on fire in Colorado these days. While conventional wisdom might be that people wouldn’t want to take the risk of starting their own companies in a down economy, they are doing just that. And they’re finding success, in part because the business models have changed.
They are targeting niches and often selling to customers directly, bypassing traditional retail methods. Does this hurt brick-and-mortar stores? Not necessarily, as a number of these companies sell through multiple channels — directly from their websites, on sites like Etsy and in stores.
The beauty for those who don’t aspire to be the next Ralph Lauren or Calvin Klein is that they can make a living serving a set base of customers, just like the independently owned neighborhood tailor did a century ago.
Colorado design entrepreneurs are creating leather bags and wedding gowns, 1930s-inspired sport coats and fine jewelry, to name a few product categories.
A number of those who are showing such promise have caught the attention of Fashion Group International of Denver, which on Saturday presents its biennial Rising Star awards. FGI, a group of fashion professionals in retail, manufacturing and related industries, solicited entries in the competition last spring and selected 13 companies it felt have the potential to build national brands.

Denver Bespoke, for example, has multiple online sites devoted to showing and selling its custom men’s clothing, some of it period-inspired. Meggie Hodge designs cutting edge contemporary sportswear and denim for Fahrenkamp Apparel. Colorado native Dana Van Daele makes handbags from leather sourced in the state. Lindsay Backman has a budding national retail base for her Bloom contemporary jewelry, while Samantha Larkins’ fine gold and diamond jewelry is sold in just a few stores.

“There’s a huge variety of new businesses starting,” says Holli Gibson, one of the judges of FGI’s competition and a local children’s wear designer. She won the Rising Star Award in 2009.

“I think the tough economy is forcing people to get creative in many ways,” she says. “They’re not relying on big business to set their futures. They’re using innovative ways to launch and market products. There’s no one right way anymore.”

Gibson, who worked in other markets before starting LamaBlu here, says that doing business online paired with the ease of communications today allow people to set up shop just about anywhere. “Certainly there are challenges to working in areas outside of major manufacturing cities” but, she says, “it can be done.”

Carol Engel-Enright, who is co-chairing the FGI event and teaches in the fashion program at Colorado State University, says she’s impressed with the caliber as well as the quantity of talent the state is producing. “Brands are getting their niche down; they’re finding and addressing their target market and how they’re going to reach them.,” she says. ” You don’t have to be everything to everyone.”

As for the 13 companies FGI is saluting, she says: “These are people who have really made a commitment in (the) worst of economic times to risk their time and money to make things happen. … There’s room for it all.”

Event details
What: The Rising Star fashion show and fundraiser presented by Fashion Group International of Denver When: 6-10 p.m. Saturday at District 475, 10111 Inverness Main St., Suite T, Englewood. Proceeds benefit scholarships and educational outreach programs for fashion students, The Gathering Place and VOA’s Brandon Center

Tickets: $75 for general admission ($30 for students); $150 for assigned seating; and $250 for VIP and ramp-side seating; blacktie-colorado.com; event code: fgirisingstar; or call Nathalia Faribault, 303-697-1299

Info: More event details at risingstardenver.org

Fashion Group International’s Rising Stars The nominees are:

FlyLow Gear: Dan Abrams and Green Steen, outerwear

Bloom Jewelry: Lindsay Backman, contemporary jewelry

Tracey Lynn Golf: Tracey Blake, women’s active wear

Marie-Margot Bridal Couture: Maggie Burns, bridal/couture

Fahrenkamp Apparel: Meggie Hodge, women’s urban wear

Samantha Louise Jewelry: Samantha Larkins, fine jewelry

Denver Bespoke: AJ Machete, Lianna K, men’s ready-to- wear

Gabriela Designs: Gabriela Martinez, women’s evening wear

Natalee M. Designs: Natalee Moldenhauer, couture accessories

Panache Cycle Gear: Don Powell, men’s active wear

KaiT Design: Kaitlyn Thomas, women’s ready-to-wear

Grey Sunshine: Dana Van Daele, contemporary accessories

Studio Yoshida: Kotomi Yoshida, men’s urban wear

It was Denver’s time on the catwalk last week as Colorado Fashion Week took over the Buell Theater lobby.
Were we ready for our closeup? The five nights of shows weren’t without glitches, but the overall event showed a solid foundation for future fashion weeks.
Colorado Fashion Week is the longtime dream of founder Justice Kwesi Kwarteng, who assembled a good team to help him put on shows at the Denver Performing Arts Complex. Andrea Tucker, who runs Studio Salon, a collective of stylists, made the look of the shows consistently strong. Michelle Herrington coordinated dozens of models from several agencies throughout the week. Lakeysha Green worked on the choreography. And many others who I didn’t get to meet saw to lighting, sound, logistics and the myriad details that are needed to produce an entertaining fashion show.

Getting an event off the ground isn’t always easy, as the opening night demonstrated. Technical problems caused the show to be an hour late, and while the crowd was patient, this isn’t a precedent you want to set. The lobby of the Buell is a great setting for a show, with models descending a mezzanine staircase to the runway.

The hairstyles by Rebelle by Tootsie’s, Blondies, 3 Litlle Birds and Studio Salon collective were inventive, the makeup artistic. Next, Erroll Perkins, master makeup artist for NARS, showed his skill with color, butterfly eyelashes and dramatic lips.

Wednesday’s show highlighted wedding dresses by Deedee Vicory and her D’Lola Couture as well as the Fashion House of Rae Marie.
On Thursday, Dannnenmann-Pure from Aspen brought its fall collection to Denver, showing it as well as Johanna Christine by Johanna Alwin.
Gino Velardi had a full house for his show on Friday night. The presentation opened with a half dozen models in red posed on the staircase. The profusion of cocktail dresses and gowns made women in the audience hope for invitations to plenty of occasions to wear the frocks. The day wear – houndstooth sheaths, capelets – had a retro feel. Participants felt the week holds promise for future Fashion Weeks. Natalie Fletcher, whose Natalie Lynn Models provided seven female models and one male model for shows said she thought the shows were “on a New York level.”
She admitted attendance might have suffered because Denverites are used to going out later than the 8 p.m. call time: “I would think for the show they’ll do next spring, attendance will be higher because people know what to expect now.” she said.
The pure effort required to pull off an event of this size is daunting and Kwarteng says he is already planning the next fashion week, which will be held next spring.
He says his first priority is to get sponsors to help defray the expense of putting on shows.
One event that was part of last week’s schedule that didn’t occur was a pop-up market at which designers would sell items from their collections. Kwarteng said he hopes to schedule the market in about a month.

The bigger question that needs to be addressed is that there has been a proliferation of local fashion events in the past few months and you have to wonder if all the shows and markets dilute the efforts of the fashion community or bolster it. Crowded into four weeks time, there will be Colorado Fashion Week, Fallene Wells’ Forever Darling Show, Fashion Group’s Rising Star awards (Oct. 8), and 5th Annual Hair Show and 2nd Denver Fashion Weekend (Oct. 13-15. It would be nice to think the community can support them all, but is that realistic?

Talk about the jet set — more than 500 people are expected at tonight’s second annual Flight to Luxury, a fundraiser at Centennial Airport for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Denver. Presented by Cuvee Ventures and Jet Linx Denver, the event will feature tours of private jets, information on Cuvee’s vacation villas, and Ferraris. Food from Del Frisco’s, Morton’s and Strings will be served, and they’ll be pouring Silver Oak wine and Grey Goose vodka.

This is the second year for the event, and Cuvee spokeswoman Laura Quintana said to make the event more appealing to women, they added a fashion show this year. Larimer Square boutiques Cry Baby Ranch, Eve, Moda, Mariel and Roxy are providing fall looks, as will Tsagas Furs. Show director Cynthia Petrus has created luxury travel-themed segments: Fall in Manhattan, Hawaii’s Endless Summer and Winter in Vail. The event, 5-9 p.m., is at the Signature Flight Support Hangar, 8201 S. InterPort Blvd., Englewood. Tickets, $150 for singles or $250 per couple, are available at flighttoluxury.com and at the door.

Officially, fall begins at 3:05 a.m. Friday. But fashion keeps its own calendar, a fact brought home when the designer shows are underway in America and Europe. Yes, they’re showing the spring-summer 2012 collections even though consumers have yet to break out their fall clothes – or shop for them.

The fact is that the speeded-up fashion cycle makes the seasons blur. It’s often hard to tell from looking at runway photos whether the designer is showing looks for spring or fall. Sure, bright colors and lighter fabrics typically signal warm weather and heavy coats and dark colors spell winter, but any more, there’s little delineation of seasons.

Instead of retiring one set of clothes to the back of the closet, we just layer a sweater or jacket over a summer skirt, slip a T-shirt under a dress or add tights to a warm weather outfit. It’s the way to stretch a wardrobe and make the most of your favorite pieces – before trends change.

One big difference in spring and fall clothes is that designers tend to think more about what to wear on vacation and to parties than what to wear to work. At least that’s one of the major takeaways we got from the collections just shown in New York for spring summer 2012.
Exotic travels were evoked by such designers as Michael Kors, who showed ‘Survivor’-like camouflage and Donna Karan, who used tribal-inspired prints. Diane von Furstenberg is always enamored with prints, showing oversized florals in bright colors.

(And speaking of color, designers continue to be fond of vibrant hues for the warm weather – a welcome sight after a recent stroll through stores full of drab colors. Admittedly fall and winter tend to call for a more muted palette, but the predominance of gray, black and brown right now is likely to more shoppers feel more depressed than ready to dress up.)

When they weren’t having us pack up for holidays, designers were sending us back in time. Collections by Tory Burch, Ralph Lauren and Marc Jacobs had distinct 1920s overtones. For her first runway show, Burch channeled Coco Chanel in offering dropped-waist tunics, mixed patterns in blouses, tunics and skirts, and she accessorized everything with kilty flats and raffia bags. It was very Deauville in the 1920s.

Lauren’s collection looked like he went to the archives from the designs he did in 1974 for “The Great Gatsby.” He showed slinky bias-cut satin and lame gowns in sweet shades of pink or sultry platinum. Dropped-waist dresses, soft trousers and blazers and snappy his-for-her three piece suits filled the collection. Cloches, long scarves, T-strap heels and feather boas completed the outfits.

Marc Jacobs is always fond of the past, but puts a fresh twist on it – this time, literally. Fabrics were draped, pulled up and bunched in silhouettes that were otherwise straight. Shiny cellophane-like fabrics were used in tiered dresses and skirts and models carried clutches and wore close-fitting hats.

It made you want to pack up a steamer trunk and head to Europe.