BRIGID CATIIS AT GEN ART

Last Tuesday night saw seventeen “alumni” fashion designers being honored by Gen Art at the classic Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood, LA. Hosted by the organization that has served as a springboard for emerging talent, the event was a kick-off to LA Fashion Week. I followed up with one of the designers, who helms an eco-friendly line made from vintage garments and fabrics. Raiisa Gerona is founder and chief designer of Brigid Catiis, a line called after her grandmother). In 2008 she was selected as one of 15 green designers for Gen Art’s "Fashionably Natural" runway show featuring Spring/Summer '09 looks. "I felt so lucky," Raiisa exclaimed, "I was just getting started and here was this big runway production hosted by Maggie Gyllenhall, and we got so much exposure." I caught up with Gerona and the conversation took an illuminating turn when considering what it’s like for a vintage/reconstructed line to attain higher levels of production and distribution and still remain true to the craft and sustainability. With demand growing, Gerona had to innovate, explaining: "[Wholesale] buyers want certain numbers of the same items, not surprise shipments [of one of a kind pieces]." Adapting to greater demand has led Gerona to build a model that mixes deconstructed garments with "dead stock" vintage fabrics that otherwise go to a landfill, or gather dust in a warehouse while new fabric gets produced in its place. This remains very labor-intensive, and finding a manufacturer who was both local and willing to deal with the intensity of the process was a big challenge. "They just turned me down all over the place," Gerona explained, "even though I was willing to pay, because to them it was just too much of their time. They want to produce a thousand shirts in 3 days, and here I am asking them to produce 100 shirts in 5 days!" Some went so far as to discourage her from even pursuing it. Perseverance and exposure-boosts from Gen Art have paid off, and Gerona found a downtown LA producer, keeping the economic benefits within her community. "They still have to charge me quite a lot for labor, but they were willing to collaborate with me on how to make it [feasible for both parties]." Her runs are still relatively small, owing chiefly to the fact that recycled garments and dead-stock vintage fabrics exist in limited quantities of any one particular look. However, the manufacturing collaboration has allowed Gerona to expand and develop the line greatly. Looking at the Brigid Catiis spread, the stepped-up production adaptations together with Gerona's design personality result in a line that is "vintage" in the sense of carrying some classic vintage elements, and using recycled garments and fabrics in an eco-friendly process. It’s a well-rounded and contemporary collection of apparel that hangs happily beside any brand of similar quality. This prompts some customers to discover only after their purchase that they have been kind to mother earth, something Raiisa Gerona is understandably, and justifiably proud of. That kind of invisible demarcation between “conventional” and “eco-friendly” styles is one way mainstream consumers become eco-conscious, and eco-willing. Gerona’s demeanor remains distinctively humble, but the last word goes to Jennifer Egan, Gen Art's Vice President of National Development. Egan has made a virtual habit out of recognizing future stars before the fact, and in a follow up on Wednesday she exclaimed: "Raiisa is one of the most amazing visionaries that I have come across. She continues to produce beautiful and stylish lines that resonate across a large audience and holds tight to her belief in eco clothing that can still be stylish and viable. I am so proud of all she has accomplished." Chris Cone is executive producer of Portland Fashion Week.