The Rake Magazine

In July 2006 The Rake published an excellent essay by my good friend Peter Schilling in which he enthused about his SolarShield Fits-Overs - these, in essence, are some cheap and ugly-ass sunglasses that fit right over existing eyewear. Well, Mr. Schilling wrote today to inform he's not the only male, Minneapolis-based media figure rocking his $14.99 Fits-Overs. Writes Schilling: "Head on over to today's blogumentary to see Chuck Olsen's take on last Friday's critical mass. Watch the video. You will notice, about a minute in, that fearless filmmaker Olsen, braving the streets and risking jail, is doing so wearing SolarShield Fits-Overs!"

There was a lot of, ahem, visual stimulation at last night's Collage Fashion Show. But I must admit that after doing the MNfashion Weekend circuit last weekend (not to mention staying tuned to the various global fashion weeks), I find I'm a bit tired of looking at clothes. Sure, the threads looked awfully pretty last night but so too did the fellows (both on and off the runway), and I found myself admiring their beauty.

Here we have two of the male models (smiling and being all-around friendly after the show). Meee-ow.

Below: I often see this guy strutting about the warehouse district. He's a realtor, from what I understand. He also happened to be the date of one of the editors from Mpls./St. Paul Magazine last night. (jealous much?)

Below: The one on the right is Chris Schauf, frontman for the local band Catchpenny. And his bandmates dress just as well, if you must know. They even have an exclusive deal with the very fabulous Trovata, an Orange County, California-based clothing label.

If you (or a loved one) want to look as polished as those above, then you might consider swinging into Ivy Men's + Design this Saturday between three and seven p.m. for a DJ-ed shopping event with free beer. Ladies, if you heretofore have been unsuccessful at convincing your bedraggled boyfriend to upgrade his wardrobe, then you might be able to lure him in with free beer.

Well, first of all, I missed the first couple days. My boyfriend was sick, and contagious as all get out; so, I found myself nursing a sore throat and a serious case of fatigue, not to mention a general malaise. Then, I got stuck in a hail storm on my way back home last Thursday night--which doesn't go over well when you're suffering one of those onset headaches. When I finally made it home, I took a shot of Brandy and called it a night.

But I jumped right in on Friday at the Loves Labourers: Art as Fashion, Fashion as Art event. Three artists - Jennifer Davis, Adam Garcia, Eric Inkala - and three clothing designers - Annie Larson, Ra'Mon-Lawrence Coleman, Crystal Quinn - joined forces to make wearable art from ordinary American Apparel tees. It all unfolded right before mine very eyes, and in a party atmosphere (with gratis tuna-stuffed cherry tomatoes, no less). Slacker that I am, I failed to purchase my very own Art-as-Fashion tee before the actual date; I arrived only to find each of the tees had been spoken for, but of course. Pre-purchasers, however, we not allowed to pre-select a shirt that was, say, ANYTHING BUT CANARY YELLOW. And so, from what I hear, I might yet have the chance to procure one of these spiffs. Here are the outtakes, in any case. It was quite a happening scene, as I'm sure you can image:

On Saturday evening, I stopped by clecticoiffeur's invite-only fashion show, where the latest from Katherine Gerdes, George Moskal, Red Shoe Clothing Co., Laura Fulk, and Kjurek Couture was shown. I dug Gerdes's new jersey dresses with satin details:

She was up until 3 a.m. that morning, slaving away on last-minute details. Therefore, she isn't sure when - or how - these dresses will ever become available for purchase. I say you email her with inquiries.

But I ESPECIALLY admired this dress from George Moskal, who is probs my favorite designer in all the Minnie Apple. I adore his use of upholstery and vintage fabrics in creating striking, glamorous effects. Swoon!

How could I have forgotten? Wayzata's Bumbershute boutique is pitching in THIS VERY EVENING at the first-ever Wayzata Runway Show + Shopping event at the Northcoast restaurant (7 p.m.), where fall fashions from Valentino Red, John Galliano, and Just Cavailli will parade down the runway. For more information, call Kathryn at Bumbershute, 952-475-2685.

And, Alexis from Lola Red PR just reminded me that there's also a fashion-friendly happy hour at Gaviidae this afternoon between 4 and 7 p.m., which includes valiidated [sic] parking. Hardy-har!

Unfortunately, I forgot my digital camera at home today - it holds all the substandard pics I snapped during MNfashion Weekend. I'll report more on the affair (and my associated quest for commerce) tomorrow, perhaps in the p.m. But, in the meanwhile, check out this week's big fashion event, which you can still buy tickets for:

Collage Fashion Show
Thursday, September 27 at Nicollet Island Pavilion
Two of my favorite local boutiques are participating in this three-way of a runway affair: the refined, and yet funky, Ivy and super-girly Stephanie's. The third boutique, Bluebird, isn't a fave, but I have found fabulous vintage jewelry there in the past. However, I'm probably most excited about Bluebird's contribution to this year's (the third annual) Collage. They're planning to show clothes by Loeffler Randall, the shoe designer - a favorite of the shop's owners - who only recently introduced a line of apparel.