Needless to say, it exceeds expectations. Abovegroup Ogilvy gave this publication a sophisticated and yet charming feel...
There were quite a few highlights for me in this debut of Lookbook:
I absolutely LOVE the writing and photography in '10 with Anya', a revealing and intimate sit-down with the formidable spirit that is Anya Ayoung-Chee, Trinidad's fashion warrior. The description of Anya running her trademark 'shield-like' ring against the placemat in Buzo made me feel like I was reading a poem...truly beautiful observation by the writer, who I believe is Ms. Gabriel, though the photography and writing is credited to BBS? (Edit: Seems BBS stands for Mr B.B. Sparrow, who was actually my first guess ;))
Wendell Manwarren, Catherine Emmanuel and Christiane Steel are incredibly convincing in Laura Ferreira's capture of a love triangle come to light. You believe the descent into despair and madness evoked by Catherine and the cool aloofness of Manwarren, who seems to defend his innocence to the end - a vicious and emotional screaming match between the two main protagonists.
Another of my favourite pieces is the Fashion Diary of Ayana Riviere...I loved dissecting her looks and I covet those green tassel loafers in the last photo on the right. The Look with Krista Clarke is just as intriguing and the fact alone that this woman has access to pieces of costumes as accessories...well that's just not fair! I liked the simple but interesting compositions, raffia clutch in the fridge below a shelf of nail polish and juice, shoes interspersed between the Harry Potter series and French textbooks. Well done to Remi Blunden who is a young and passionate photographer on the rise.
As usual, the consummate cover girl, Wendy Fitzwilliam never fails to intrigue in a piece written by Zindzi Morris-Alleyne. I remember the night Zindzi finished this interview and bbm-ed me to tell me how disarming she found the former beauty queen. In my opinion, Wendy is the personification of an 'it-girl'...'it-woman' if those exist? I echo Zindzi's question about who exactly Wendy means when she says 'people like me'. Who is like Wendy? I think there could only be one and all of the strong, independent, proud, ambitious females can only hope to one day stake their claim to a namesake like hers.
I was fortunate enough to have the opportunity to work on the Fashion Emergency editorial with Zindzi as an assistant stylist. We spent all day in Macqueripe with very little reprieve from the heat, shuttling our model Christie back and forth between the set and the makeshift changing room between two cars in the parking lot. Needless to say I learned A LOT in a very short space of time. It became clear to me that styling is something I want to pursue more seriously this year, and that would require paying close attention to the collections released by local designers and the clothing and accessories available in the less mainstream boutiques.
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| Look! My name! :) |
All these praises aside I do have one note of constructive criticism (I think anyway): Perhaps it is the type of paper or maybe this was a production 'flaw' but some of the photographs are far too dark, losing a lot of detailing in the clothing and accessories, which really, is the whole point of the thing. This was especially evident to me in the set with Manwarren, Steel and Emmanuel where clothing was described in the caption and I could not distinguish it.
As an aside, Robert de Gannes of Tribal Caribbean opened my eyes to an angle of this magazine that I hadn't considered before: the move from digital to print may seem backward to some, but it is exactly that zag to everyone else's zig that Mel believes makes this publication a stand-out work. Check out an interview Tribal Caribbean did with Editor in Chief, Mel Gabriel about Trinidad Lookbook becoming your new luxury collectible item...
Tribal + Trinidad Lookbook
Trinidad Lookbook Issue 1 is available now at Meiling, The Pallet Stick, Bang Bang, Indulge and Runway Street.
1 Response to Trinidad Lookbook
First of all, congratulations on being a part of the inaugural print edition of T'dad Lookbook! As you said, this is exactly what you needed to convince yourself that you need to take a career (or at least part-time career) in fashion and styling more seriously! I've only been here for a short time, but I can sense that the market is ripe for people like you to do truly incredible things. I imagine that you could make a name for yourself quite easily in the industry..and it's obvious you know what you're doing!
In terms of the publication, I share your sentiments exactly. It is the first local publication that I've read and ENJOYED immensely.. The features were well written, interesting, and insightful..even for people who aren't necessarily into fashion. The photography was on point as was the styling!! I really enjoyed reading it and will be writing a review on my blog Monday..hopefully. I also agree with you that the quality of the paper may have diluted the images a bit,,so that this should be addressed in the second edition.
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