In Style

Vancouver all-star designer sounds off

Seth Aaron Henderson, winner of season 7 of ‘project runway,’ weighs in on ‘all stars,’ awaits debut of new line

Vancouver fashion designer Seth Aaron Henderson was in New York City during filming for the “Project Runway All Stars” premiere and saw portions of the episode unfold live. However, he didn’t know the results until he watched it on television like everyone else.

Fall trends go retro

Vintage fashions that evoke the ’70s and ’80s can be found new or used at local stores

Fashion is cyclical, and many of the hot trends for fall pay homage to looks from decades gone by.

Nonprofit helps clients dress for success

For most of her adult life, Krystal Templeton struggled with drug addiction and found herself gravitating toward abusive relationships. Those issues, though, are in her past. Templeton now has a place to live through Second Step Housing, a Vancouver-based nonprofit that provides affordable housing, case management and life skills classes for women and families in Southwest Washington.

Clark County residents stop, shop, roll

Flash-sale sites offer big discounts on designer items for limited time only

At 8:45 a.m. each day, Suzi Morse gets down to business in her Fisher’s Landing study. Poised in front of her computer, Morse looks through the collections that the online flash-sale site Gilt Groupe is offering that day.

Headwear popularized by royal wedding finds fans in county

Starting with Prince William and Kate Middleton’s engagement announcement in November and ratcheting up with the royal wedding and tour to North America, photos of Brits and other Europeans in elaborate head adornments have captivated audiences worldwide, including here in Clark County. On this side of the pond, people are fascinated by fascinators, those close cousins of cocktail hats that range from the relatively subdued Lock & Co. red maple-leaf topper Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge, wore on Canada Day to the outlandish Philip Treacy creation Princess Beatrice wore to the wedding of Prince William and his new bride (formerly Kate Middleton).

Producing cotton tough on planet

Some makers go for smaller eco-footprint

Leather, tulle and silk may be the stuff of runway dreams, but when it comes to most U.S. apparel, cotton is king. Almost 75 percent of clothing sold in the U.S. contains at least some of the tufty fiber, according to the 2010 Cotton Inc. Retail Monitor, a survey of mass retailers.

Green textiles grow in popularity

Here’s how plant-based fabrics flax, hemp, bamboo and Tencel stack up in terms of sustainability

Much as they’re trumpeted by so-called eco-designers, plant-based alternatives to cotton are a minuscule piece of the fashion puzzle. Dwarfed by cotton and synthetics such as polyester, spandex and rayon, textiles made from flax, wood pulp, hemp and bamboo make up less than 2 percent of the market. But that percentage is growing because of consumer and corporate demand, as well as technological advancements that make natural fibers easier to transform into wearable fabrics.

Yellow not so mellow this season

I ran into my very cool and always fashionable friend Ali last week at (not surprisingly) the nail salon, and she was toting a season-old, but very current-looking, neon-yellow Celine chain-strap bag that brought incredible life to her simple ensemble of a charcoal gray blazer, black skinny trousers and white T-shirt. It was the pop of yellow that tied her sleek basics together so well and worked perfectly to update a classic look. A burst of the sunny shade is a great tool in this transitional weather — you can wear layered pieces from fall or winter and just update them with a hit of summery, sunshine-y color. Another plus: Pairing the yellow bag with a tailored charcoal blazer made for a fresh and interesting combination.

A feathery phenomenon

Feather hair extensions are shaping up to be one the year’s hottest trends

Never have rooster saddle hackles been as in-demand at The Greased Line Fly Shoppe as in the past two months. That’s because the feathers, which are typically used in fly-fishing to tie flies, now are being snapped up by women to use as hair extensions. “It’s a phenomenon,” said Mark R. Noble, owner of the Vancouver fly-fishing and adventure travel shop. “After 36 years of business, I’ve never seen anything like it.”

Legging out an outfit

Many women — but not all — like versatility of leggings

A public service announcement: Tights and leggings are not one and the same. “Tights are meant to be worn under a garment. Tights are not meant to be worn as an exterior piece,” said Vancouver designer and “Project Runway” winner SethAaron Henderson.

‘Lemonade Mouth’ stars groom their own style rules

Hayley Kiyoko and Naomi Scott, the next generation of Disney Channel starlets, hit the media circuit this week and had a premiere to attend before today’s debut of the TV movie “Lemonade Mouth,” the story of kids who form a band. But if this whole experience has been “just weird, just crazy,” as Scott says, dressing the part hasn’t. Kiyoko, 20, seems poised to become a fashion force, gravitating toward funky styles such as wearing a leather cowboy shirt and shorts with tights. She even pulls off a leather fanny pack.

Whales, dogs preppy favorites

Spring welcomes a rebirth of clothes covered in critters

Not all critters are created equal: Dogs and waterfowl are popular, but cats barely make it onto the radar — at least when it comes to creatures featured on the preppy clothes and accessories that seem synonymous with spring. You also can’t go wrong with a whale or crab; girls love their ponies and butterflies; and boys have a thing for sharks.

Fashion world taps Coachella festival to see and be seen

LOS ANGELES — More than 100,000 people are expected to descend on Indio, Calif., starting today for the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, and the fashion world will be watching. While Arcade Fire and Kings of Leon are jamming onstage, fashion and lifestyle companies will be vying for the attention of festival-goers offstage, with branded cooling tents, beach balls, Coachella “survival kits” at the Empire Polo Club grounds, plus pool parties with bottomless cocktails and their own live music at hotels and estates offsite. In 12 years, the three-day spring break for adults has become a branding juggernaut approaching Sundance Film Festival proportions. At Sundance, gift lounges dominate the freebie scene, but at Coachella, brands want to reach a wider audience of “influencers” with events such as the G by Guess Artist Retreat Pool Party and BBQ, the A/X + 944 Neon Carnival, the Mulberry BBQ & Pool Party and the fourth-annual Jeremy Scott + Adidas Shindig.

SethAaron takes fashion to the beasts

Vancouver designer and “Project Runway” winner SethAaron Henderson is known for creating fashion-forward women’s clothing, but he recently showed once again just how versatile he is. Henderson, 39, designed outfits for a chicken, an alpaca and a pug for a fundraiser for the DoveLewis Pet Loss Support Program. It was his second time contributing to the benefit. Last year, he designed clothing for a llama and a rabbit.

SethAaron makes splash at Portland Fashion Week

Industrial shipyards on Portland’s Swan Island turned into a sartorial epicenter Saturday evening as models, designers and fashionistas descended to see SethAaron Henderson and three other “Project Runway” alumni present collections. The show was part of the seventh annual Portland Fashion Week, a five-day event that wrapped up Sunday and featured local, regional, national and international designers’ spring and summer collections.