As I opened up my eyes, the sunbeams were dancing on my face. I couldn’t help but smile, knowing where I am and my couture mission for this amazing event. I jumped up, knowing that I have some spare time this morning to enjoy the fabulous Occidental Hotel pool and wellness area. I ate my healthy breakfast – carb free again – only scrambled eggs, a local delicious sausage and some fresh fruit. I remember coming to Puerto Plata with my parents in the 90s, and the trend back then was to eat a fresh passion fruit directly after a meal. This was supposed to turbo-charge the digestion. I laughed at this silly little blast from the past memory, ate my passion fruit like a good girl, and made my way to the chic pool area.
The first thing I saw was the super cool Jean Paul Gaultier, walking back from the Garden Tent, fully clad in black and followed by 5 men – all eager to fulfill his every wish and command. I thanked him again for the wonderful drawing that he made on my phone cover. Mr. Gaultier smiles and asked if I will make it to his show tomorrow evening. I gave him the brightest and biggest grin that I have and told him that I wouldn’t miss it for the world! I was in 7th Heaven – imagine, Mr. Fashion himself asking me if I will attend his show! That’s an honor beyond believe for me! With a small skip to my step, I took off my Blumarine summer dress and jumped into the pool, refreshing myself with a cold shiver of excitement!
After swimming a few laps in a mini attempt to do some sports, it was time to change and make ourselves look sexy for the fashion shows. Again I didn’t know what will be presented, so each individual show was like unpacking a surprise suitcase that was replaced with yours at the airport! I found the Istituto Marangoni – Warrior Show to be quite interesting. It was a show displaying the works of their best fashion students from Shanghai, Milano, Paris and London. If this was a small glance into our future designers, then I can say that we have something unique and wild to look forward to! True to its name, the warrior show started off with a collection that one would imagine a futuristic army on Mars wearing. Next came some feminine cuts, ethno styles and a wicked warrior meets ballerina look! Most of these designs were probably too crazy for the mass public to wear, but I would definitely sport a few in good old-school Europe, to shock people and see their reactions! Provocation can be a really fun and exciting thing.
We worked up a nice appetite after the show and had a lovely long dinner. The Dominican people definitely like their meat, so we joined in on their festivities and savored their delicacies. People were moving around from place to place and one could hear the deep house beats from the different after party locations. What a rush! There was lots of energy and dancing around us.
Next up were Guerrero and Budet, who threw bright colors directly into our thirsty eyes. Now I understand even better what Jean Paul Gaultier was saying about the colors here. Not only is the nature so colorful and beautiful here, but people also design and wear really bright colors too! It’s like a breath of fresh air to me, because I have gotten so used to the black, natural and gray shades of Europe. I enjoyed looking at the extravagantly colorful and flowing ball gowns. It would be definitely fun wearing something like that to the Sport Press Ball or La Scala – believe me, nobody would ever forget you! Now that we were definitely awake, the male models started coming out in funky-printed swim shorts. Who can complain about tall, handsome, exotic and muscular men walking around in tight shorts? Now that’s what I call the sweet advantages of sitting in the front row – up close and personal!
Last but not least was the Moisés Quesada show. It was an interesting concept because the entire length of the runway was filled with glass tables, vases, flowers, cutlery, dishes, flutes and other interesting home accessories. The setup allowed the models to walk around the entire runway. The collection was small but tight. Less is more – I always say rather a smaller collection but with killer pieces! And that’s what Quesada did. He played a lot with black, white and red this season. The designs were form fitting, very feminine and some fully see-through. The models looked like live man-eaters, and it felt like being in the middle of a secret vampire meeting. His Pièce de résistance was a long white wedding dress that came out at the very end. What a fitting and innocent ending to a dark and intriguing tale! The vampires left the room, the lights came on and the show was over. My jet lag was not loosening its tight grip on me. In fact, it was possessing me from the inside out. While everyone made their way to the loud and lavish after-show party, I only had dirty thoughts of my skin caressing the cold crisp bed sheets. Besides, tomorrow was the big day! The last day of the Dominicana Moda, and the evening of Jean Paul Gaultier’s long-awaited fashion show! I wanted to look well rested and fabulous for his amazing event! I bid my team farewell and disappeared into the gold-mirrored elevator.
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Istituto Marangoni – Warrior Show
Guerrero and Budet show
Moisés Quesada show
