insider - The Underfashion Club

I N S I D E R
CO-EDITORS
CAMILLE BLOCK
MARIE DEKENS
Issue number 2 9
March 2 0 12
BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2011 - 2013
PRESIDENT
WALTER COSTELLO
EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT
VICTOR VEGA
VICE PRESIDENTS
KAREN BROMLEY
BARBARA LIPTON
BARRY ROSS
TREASURER
DEBORAH EATON
SECRETARY
ROSA M. CHAMIDES
DIRECTORS
SUZANNE BECK
TRISTINE BERRY
CAMILLE J. BLOCK
GUIDO CAMPELLO
STEVE CHERNOFF
JEFFREY M. CLAIR
ANN DEAL
MARIE DEKENS
TERRI FISHER
MICHAEL G. FLORU
DEBORAH LONG GEDNEY
BERNA J. GOLDSTEIN
ROSLYN LANCES HARTE
GARY HUGHES
DAVID KOMAR
SETH MORRIS
KENNETH C. NATORI
MARTHA OLSON
MARK SANDLER
MEGAN L. SPANA
VICTORIA VANDAGRIFF
LANCE T. WHITAKER
TINA M. WILSON
DIRECTORS EMERITUS
ALAN J. FISHER
NORMA REINHARDT MASCAROTTI
JANET J. PETERS
JAMES P. ZENDMAN
LIFE MEMBERS
ROSLYN LANCES HARTE
DONALD LATORRE
RONALD A. ROSS
JAMES P. ZENDMAN
W W W. U N D E R FA S H I O N C L U B . O R G
PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE
BY WALTER COSTELLO
With pride and respect, I am happy to report on the great success of our 2012
Femmy Gala. It was a delightful evening from beginning to end. Congratulations
and sincere thanks to each of our Honorees: Fruit of the Loom, Top Form Brassiere
Mfg. Co. Ltd, Penn Asia, Century 21 Department Stores, and our own Executive VP,
Victor Vega, who made a particularly moving acceptance speech.
Carson Kressley, our special host for the evening, kept the program moving along
with wit and charm. Kenny Simmons and the band kept the dance floor hopping
until the very end.
The design contest for FIT students was another smashing success. Every year, we
are amazed at the talent and dedication of the students who participate. Please see
page 5 for details. Many thanks to Regina Miracle and Stretchline for generously
donating the prize money. And thanks to Professor Armillas for the many hours she
put into working with the students. Keep your eye out for the second edition of The
Best of Intima for an article on the gala and an artful photo spread on the winners.
Special thanks to Francesca Spinetta of The Best of Intima and to photographer
Andrei Jackamets for being so generous and supportive of the UFC.
One last thank you to everyone who worked so hard and gave so many hours of
their personal time to make the 2012 Femmy Gala one that will be talked about for
years to come!!
Finally, I found it very amusing that Mr. Kressley and several members of the press
wondered why the Femmy Statue, a miniature Venus de Milo, is not wearing any
underwear, in particular a bra!! Hmmmm
Ta b l e o f C o n t e n t s
PRESIDENT’S PERSPECTIVE
FEMMY HONOREES
THE 2012 FEMMY REVIEW
STUDENT DESIGN COMPETITION
SIL PARIS REVIEW
CURVE NY REVIEW
UPCOMING EVENTS
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March 2 0 12
Femmy Honorees
THE 2012 FEMMY GALA HONOREES
Accepting the Femmy award on behalf
of FRUIT OF THE LOOM, INC. was
President and CEO RICK MEDLIN.
Accepting the Femmy award for
TOP FORM BRASSIERE MFG.
CO. LTD. was Executive Director
KENNETH WONG.
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
recipient, VICTOR H. VEGA, is Sr. Vice
President of Inventory Production and
Sales Management at Wacoal America,
Inc. Currently Executive Vice President
of the Underfashion Club, Victor is also
very active in several industry and civic
organizations.
Accepting the INNOVATION AWARD
on behalf of PENN ASIA CO., LTD.,
was JIMMY YEH, Managing Director.
Accepting the award on behalf of
CENTURY 21 DEPARTMENT
STORES, was ISAAC GINDI, Executive
Vice President and LISA AQUILINO,
Divisional Merchandise Manager for
Intimate Apparel, Legwear, Sleepwear
and Ladies Accessories.
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ALL FEMMY PHOTOGRAPHS: © 2012 BY ANDREI JACKAMETS, PAGES 1–5
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March 2 0 12
Femmy Review
2012 FEMMY REVIEW
PHOTOGRAPHS:
© 2012 BY ANDREI JACKAMETS
Editors' note: A big thank you to all who attended the FEMMY DINNER and for supporting
the FIT students. Thank you Carson, for making it a super fun and "uplifting" evening!
(CONTINUED ON PAGE 4)
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Femmy Review
2012 FEMMY REVIEW
(CONTINUED FROM PAGE 3)
PHOTOGRAPHS: © 2012 BY ANDREI JACKAMETS
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March 2 0 12
SAIG
NINTH ANNUAL
STUDENT DESIGN COMPETTITION
BY SUZANNE BECK, SAIG CO-CHAIR
As always we were absolutely in awe of the creativity, attention to detail, and
exquisiteness of the six students’ designs. it was very hard for Femmy attendees to
choose just one.
1st place and $4000 was awarded to Nina Trimble for her creation, Deco Diamonds.
2nd place and $3000 was awarded to Yecca Zeng’s All the Right Angles,
3rd place and $2100 was awarded to Lauren Haron for Sheer Radiance.
FIRST PRIZE WINNER
Nina Trimble
Special praise for Professor Alexandra Armillas of FIT who volunteers her time and
expertise to mentor these talented student designers. The creativity of these original
works of art add such a special touch to the Femmy Gala each year, and underscore
the Club's efforts to support "education today for a better industry tomorrow."
FROM LEFT: Victor Vega–SAIG Co-Chair, Yecca Zeng, Nina Trimble, Suzanne Beck–Saig Co-Chair,
Walter Costello–UFC President, Lauren Haron, and Carson Kressley–2012 Guest Host
PHOTOGRAPHS: © 2012 BY ANDREI JACKAMETS
SECOND PRIZE WINNER
Yecca Zeng
The remaining finalists Amy Gianforcaro, Claudia Mesiti, and Nicole Ward received
awards of $300 each for their beautiful creations.
THIRD PRIZE WINNER
Lauren Haron
FROM LEFT: Lauren Haron, Claudia Mesiti, Nina Trimble, Suzanne Beck, FIT Professor Alexandra
Armillas, Victor Vega, Amy Gianforcaro, Yecca Zeng, and Nicole Ward.
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March 2 0 12
Paris Review
INTERFILIERE/PARIS REVIEW
EXCERPTS FROM ELLEN LEWIS’ BLOG, LINGERIE BRIEFS
AND THE 2012 INTERFILIERE PRESS KIT
This was a very positive exposition, with major Intimate Apparel trends reinforced
From an October 2011 panel study
of 1000 French consumers by
Kantar Worldpanel for SIL:
In Our Underwear Drawers
there Are . . .
• Less than five sets for almost 50% of
that will impact the design and merchandising decisions made in Lingerie businessFrench women.
es throughout 2012. Helped by the extensive research presented in the forums
• Mostly underwire bras and panties
and conferences directed by both Concepts Paris and at Nelly Rodi, the color,
• The bras are mostly 38/40 B cups.
fabric and silhouette direction was clear. Here are some of their major statements:
infusion of yellows,
greens, orange spices. Color infiltrates animal prints.
Purple and orange make this tried and true pattern new
• Technology continues its revolution as engineered laces
and cut layers impact design, especially in the exploding
• Color palettes are dominated by an
Shapewear category
• Soft,
airy laces with big repeats are prevalent
• Embroidery is an important decoration, but very light
and in place positioning on garments
• Digital floral prints make it
possible to have 25-30 colors
Photo credits: 2012SIL/Emmanuel Nguyen and Lingerie Briefs
in a pattern
• The impact of graphics on style construction
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is dominant. We see the mix and match of lines
and layers resulting in a modern take on established
silhouettes. The higher waistline is definite and
v-neck décolleté emerges in importance
• Classics like easy pajamas make a comeback as in
the search for “Timeless Beauty” there is an
aesthetic return to the 40’s
• Casual luxury harps back to the country side with
larger silhouettes, crochet trims, cotton
fabrics and a shabby chic allure.
• Fewer and fewer strings (the percentage of
bottom purchases for strings went from
30% to 25% between 2008 and 2011
• Few garter belts (only 28% of the women
surveyed owned one)
• And that one is not even worn once during
the year (for 36% of women)!
• A growing number of girdles and highwaisted briefs (1 out of 4 own one) and
more than 50% of women consider them
as practical products, slimming aids, or
products that are coming back in fashion.
• Colors are mostly white, then black and flesh
• Mostly cotton microfiber, not lace!
Lingerie’s Hidden Side . .
Women admit what they don’t show:
• 57% of women wear unmatched lingerie
every day.
• 55% change clothes when they come home
in the evening.
• For homewear, they mainly wear sports
clothes or old recycled clothes; only 35%
wear clothes specifically purchased for
homewear.
• For 85% comfort is primary with cotton the
preferred choice.
• No wonder 56% aren’t ready to be seen
dressed like that!
There was confident synergy at this show. Vendor feedback was very good.
I was very glad that I decided to go and hope that this vibe portends a successful year for both the intimates
industry and all those consumers who love to buy and wear gorgeous lingerie. Hats off to the muti-national
creative influences delivered from the saucy French, quirky English, modern Germans and the dynamic
Americans. Great Salon De Lingerie and Interfilière gestalt!
March 2 0 12
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Curve New York
•CURVENY REVIEW
EXCERPTS FROM ELLEN LEWIS’ BLOG, LINGERIE BRIEFS
AND THE 2012CURVE EXPO PRESS KIT
Photo credits: ©CURVExpo 2012 and Lingerie Briefs
Y
ou know something is a trend when its synergy begins to
creep into your daily conscious. I am not sure why or how,
but I sense a sea change in our cultural atmosphere: a slow
shifting of the tides. It was apparent at the Paris shows and
reinforced again at CURVENY, February 21–23 in the Javits
Center. There is always a broad sweep of interesting ideas, but
I like to zero in. Nothing spoke louder to me than the infusion
of vibrant colors prevalent throughout the show. Brands were
replete with bold colors applied with an interesting twist.
There was a definite halo of optimism.
Juxtaposed with this surge of vitality was a return to the
grace and elegance of classic intimates, albeit with a modern
edge perpetrated by the use of light airy laces in graphic
architectural designs. One gets the impression that less is
more and having plenty is not as meaningful as the sensuality
of owning a unique and gorgeous piece of lingerie. Jane
Woolrich’s exquisite handwork tells the entire story.
Combining the kick of color and the impact of strategically
placed laces, as well as the technical fabric evolution apparent
in the shaping industry, shapewear continues to evolve from the
utilitarian undergarment of the mid 1900’s into contemporary
design pieces required to play the dual role of function
and fashion.
Discovery is the central focus of any successful encounter. The
introduction of new lines, with unique products demanding a
new perspective, add value instead of excess to the Intimate
market contributing to a prescient message about our future.
“If You Change The Way You Look At Things,
The Things You Look At Change.”~Wayne Dyer
The Underfashion Club, Inc. supports education today
for a better industry tomorrow.
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March 2 0 12
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Upcoming Events
UFC PANEL DISCUSSION: SHOPPING 2.0
(EXPLORING HOW THE INTERNET, E-COMMERCE,
MOBILE-COMMERCE, AND SOCIAL MEDIA HAVE
IMPACTED THE SHOPPING EXPERIENCE)
WEDNESDAY MARCH 14, 2012
ST GILES HOTEL (39TH AND LEXINGTON AVENUE)
5:30 - 6:30 NETWORKING SOCIAL
6:30 - 8:00 PANEL DISCUSSION
RESC
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BE PRESENT FOR THE NEW iPAD 3 Raffle!!
INTERFILIERE
HONG KONG
March 29–30, 2012
HONG KONG CONVENTION
AND EXHIBITION CENTER,
WAN CHAI, HONG KONG ISLAND, HK
SALON INTERNATIONAL
DE LA LINGERIE
JULY 7–9, 2012
PORT DE VERSAILLES, PARIS, FRANCE
INTERFILIERE SHANGHAI
OCTOBER 22–23, 2012
SHANGHAI EXHIBITION CENTER,
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