LamanBlu Releases its Spring / Summer 2010 Photo Album

LamanBlu today released its Spring / Summer 2010 Collection. There are three stories for the season, Aruba, Eco-Couture, and Viva la Couleur. LamanBlu continued with its mix and match philosophy, even across stories, enabling the stores to customize their sales floor presentations and enabling the customer to pull together their own unique look for their child. Their signature attention to detail makes each piece in the collection a stand alone “must-have item” for the season.

The Aruba story focuses on tonal color washable linens with ladder lace detailing, natural shell buttons and freshwater pearl beading. An environmentally friendly custom seahorse print rounds out the story. It provides nice crossover options with the Eco-Couture story, which focuses on tropical brights and white in LamanBlu’s signature bamboo/lycra knit. This story also features their signature embroidery on many of the pieces. A yarn dye stripe in bright colors provides accent. Eco-Couture also works closely with the Viva la Couleur story, which features cotton stretch sateens in bright citrus and other tropical colors. A cotton voile couture print rounds out this story as well as contrast color piping and topstitching. Organic cotton t’s with embroidery work across the entire spring/summer collection.

“I’m always inspired by the ocean and wanted to bring finds from the beach for our Aruba story. The seahorse print was actually designed from a photo I took of a seahorse on one adventure.” says Holli Gibson, designer for LamanBlu. Cotton rope ties on sundresses and waistbands continue the beachy feel. Styles include sundresses, suntops and skirts with high “twirl” quality, as well as cuffed clamdiggers and shorts. A reversible bucket hat tops everything.

The Eco-Couture story in bamboo knit shows a ruffled ballerina dress, a short sleeve poet jacket and a ruffled bustle skirt on the dressier side, as well as embroidered tank tops, swing T’s, clamdiggers, ¾ leggings and a full circle skort on the sportier side of the spectrum. Lettuce hemming is a major detail in the story. “We’ve selected a heavier weight bamboo with a touch of lycra which is a true designer quality fabric and is unique in the children’s wear market. It really has a luxurious hand and wears fabulously,” says Gibson.

“Isla Mujeres inspired the citrus brights of the Viva la Couleur story,” says Gibson. “The spirit of Mexico, the bright color combinations, even a bit of the flamenco played into the design.” The backs are as important as the fronts in this story. The short sleeve jacket is beautiful for spring, from its low yoke and flared back to its shell buttons and portrait collar to its Juliette sleeve and front pockets. Also in this story are a voile skort, cuffed clamdigger and fishtail skirt. Tops include a button back tank which is made special by the front topstitching and back detailing as well as a peter pan blouse with piping. On the casual side, organic embroidered t’s top flared shorts with piping and a board short made just for girls. A reversible bucket hat tops it all.

To see the Spring / Summer 2010 Collection photo album, visit www.LamanBlu.com/Gallery.htm

Holli Gibson, Designer of LamanBlu, Wins Children’s Wear Category for the Rising Star Award

LamanBlu by Holli Gibson is the winner of the Children’s Wear category for the Rising Star 2009 Award. The Rising Star is awarded to an outstanding designer by The Fashion Group International, Inc. The field was narrowed from 27 finalists to 10 category winners. Category winners will participate in the prestigious Rising Star Fashion by Design runway gala, the biannual signature event orchestrated by Fashion Group International of Denver, on October 23, 2009. “I am honored to be chosen as the category winner for Children’s Wear. Fashion Group International has such a wonderful reputation and history in the industry,” says Holli Gibson.

Designers will present their collections in this runway gala at Mercedes-Benz of Westminster, the presenting sponsor. The event, which will include silent and live auctions, benefits FGI’s scholarship and educational outreach programs. Tickets are $50-$250. Find more information at denver.fgi.org or blacktie-colorado.com; 303-809-3595.

FGI is a global non-profit where fashion industry professionals connect, create and move the fashion industries – apparel, accessories, beauty and the home. The first non-profit fashion organization that now boasts 6,000 members worldwide originally became a force in New York City, the organization’s headquarters. Helena Rubenstein, Eleanor Roosevelt, Edith Head and others with early New York fashion careers are responsible for FGI’s founding.

The concept of Fashion Group International began originally in New York in 1928 when 17 women, gathered by Edna Woolman Chase, Editor-in-Chief of Vogue, met for lunch in a modest midtown New York restaurant. They had three things in common: Each held a job of consequence in the business of fashion, each held all the others in high regard and together they held a belief that fashion needed a forum, a stage, or a force to express and enhance a widening awareness of the American fashion business and of women’s roles in that business. The Fashion Group®, conceived at an informal luncheon in 1928 became an organization in 1930, with a place, a purpose, by-laws, officers and women eager to be members. The Denver chapter of Fashion Group International was founded March 1958 by Gretchen Weber.