Holiday trend

I just fell in love!

The color blocking, the animal prints, the metallic!

Yes, I am also a shoe person, it was actually my first love before handbags...but a much harder world to dive into.  But seriously, these are awesome! 

Plus, it looks like I should be sending samples to Rachel Zoe or Rachel Bilson, since their picks look very similar to my holiday collection!

We are calling it a "Starry Night" collection.  Since it's a beautiful evening handbag collection, filled with sparkle!  Besides the classic color blocking combos, metallic snakeskin and stud detailing, we added some great neutral grey prints with pops of pink. (that's what this picture is missing...a pop of color!)

Stay tuned for more to come on our holiday collection with a sneak peak from our photo shoot!

A Day at the Contractor

When I first started with Brynn, I had only worked with contractors within the company.  We work with an independent contractor; so working with them has been a whole new experience.  It has been very exciting setting up meetings with them, planning our production runs, making sure we have the materials inventory updated and ready for production, and then checking in on how the run is going.  When Brynn and I went to check up on the Fall 2012 line, they were in the process of working on sewing the Lauren Bags and cutting out the Sophie.  

To the left are the pre cut piles of Sophie bags ready to be sewn.  You can see some of the new fall colors, shown are Spill the Wine (oxblood), Imagine (blue/grey), Mary Jane (olive green), and Foxy Moma (burnt orange).  

We also went to make some changes to our overall order and some adjustments on a few bags. For example, we added a back pocket to the Sophie and changed the strap attachment on the Mini-Lauren.  Last minute changes are possible partly because we produce in Chicago!

To the right is the pile of half sewn Mini- Lauren’s waiting to be finished!  This photo shows the Spill the Wine, Mary Jane, Imagine, and To the Max (black).  There are also a few other leather and fabric colors not featured in these photos.  The contractor is hurrying to get everything done for our Liberation Collection debut next week!  Also, soon to come, sneak peek on Holiday 2012 colors!!

Love,

Your design intern Rebecca  :)

Pre-view of Fall Inspiration

Everyone always wants to know: What is your inspiration?

It's always a funny question to me because so many things inspire me, but because I try to avoid being too trendy, it's always a hard question to answer.  I consider my collection timeless classic pieces that will always stand the "test of time".

But in light of the question, here's my best answer:

Being a So Cal girl, color has always been a part of my life, EVERY season.  Moving to the Midwest, I've had to change that a little.  And I've actually had more fun finding inspiration for fall than I thought I would.  Growing up in the 70's (yes I am officially old), I can't help but remember the  browns, mustards, olives and oranges of the decade, from mixing them with your clothes to even wallpaper (yes, our walls and even our door had wallpaper.)  Believe it or not, I still love those colors, as well as, burgundies and vintage blues. These are perfect for our Liberation Collection.

Besides being inspired by color, one of my favorite movies of the decade was the iconic Annie Hall, Diane Keaton wore menswear so effortlessly and I loved that...from houndstooth to wool blends to tweeds.

Not having a design background, I always just pull inspiration from within and get so excited when I see that my gut instinct is usually right on track.  So when I saw this "Talking Tweed" promo on style.com for Fall 2012, I couldn't help but smile.

Our Fall collection is a 70's and menswear inspired line, honoring houndstooth and shaggy wools to the vivid colors in my memory of my youth. (I just wish I had a picture of the butterfly wallpaper covering our door to share with you!)

FashionChicago!

Seated left to right (me, Katie Sink and Allison Mack)

I was so excited that FashionChicago finally came! During the week, we separated and organized all the bags, so when Friday rolled around, we were all ready for it! It took a little over an hour to set up and put all the bags into place. Then within the first hour, we sold a Wyoming Yellow Edie and a Winchester Lauren with continued success throughout the whole night! While we interacted with the customers, we enjoyed h'orderves and Luna Bars, with a sneak peek at the runway show. 

Mercedes and me

There was a lot of good energy and excitement amongst the people and the vendors. On the second floor was the DJ, styles of Angie, she played awesome hip music as people were mingling and shopping around. On the third level was the fashion show that ran about an hour long. It highlighted some great Chicago Designers, such as Nora del Busto and from FashionStar, Barbara Bates! 

All the interns, Katie, Allison Mercedes and I, went and had a great time! Getting a chance to be part of that experience was really awesome and we're all glad we got to be a part of it. 

The Transition

It all comes to an end, and we are never prepared for it.  I am rounding out my last week at Brynn Capella Inc. along with apartment hunting and getting ready for a summer history course – can you say YUCK???

Taking my place is the beautiful Sasha, but when I first met her, I of course had to be protective of Brynn.  I mean, this is MY territory, right?  Wrong.  Sasha was amazing right when I met her.  She’s smart, hardworking, fast learning, and is going to make a great impact at the company after I’m gone.  I have no worries about leaving her to take over.

Allison (PR) and myself (Merch) enjoying pizza during set-up

 The things I am going to miss are the random conversations Brynn and I have in her car and our multiple stops to Taco Bell when we need our fake Mexican cuisine cravings satisfied. Why do they never get my order right by the way?  When I say I want a chicken Gordita Crunch, that doesn’t mean BEEF people! 

All jokes aside though, the most I am going to miss are the people that I have met during this internship.  I had great discussions with the ladies from Veronica Riley Martens, Juliet Jewelry, Red Belly, Squasht by Les, Stylish Girl, and Evon Cassier bags.  I hope to keep building relationships with them in the future.

Mercedes, me, Allison and Brynn (Blue in the front)

My number 1 group of girls, however, has to be the fine young ladies that I spend time with in the office.  We have had to get up close and personal in Brynn’s slightly tiny office, and I have become good friends with all of them.  We are definitely a dominating group of girls.  Look out future - here we come! 

Anna Hovet - Chicago Designer

I wanted to introduce you to another Chicago designer that is making a splash into the Chicago fashion scene, Anna Hovet. 

She has a very contemporary edge and her style includes abstract designs and patterns, she's very urban and innovative, not to mention highly creative. I met Anna at the Florodora Boutique last week, when both her and Brynn were having trunk shows.  I had the pleasure with talking with her, about her travels over Europe and a little bit about her line. Anna is super adventurous and a risk taker! She is a witty, small blonde and was wearing one of her very own designs! It was a cute red flowy shirt that within a split second she snapped in the back and made it a tight fit. Anna Hovet's styles are very unique and the most original designs I've ever seen. You can wear her clothes many different ways, upside down, inside out, the creativeness goes on and on! I've never met a designer like Anna Hovet, so be sure to check her out!

Behind the Scenes: Taste and Trend Event

Hello everyone! It's Elizabeth here to tell you all about the classy and fun event we participated in last night. The Taste and Trend event was held at the W Hotel on Lakeshore and was hosted by our friends at Left of Trend. Brynn and I packed up the red suitcase with the bags we wanted to showcase and headed over to set up. Once we got there, Jason and Jim from LOT were so helpful and we got everything unpacked pretty quick. Before we were even done getting organized we sold a Cher wristlet! The customer kept saying "I have to have this!" We agreed : )
Once we were all set up we were able to make friends with our neighbors BucketFeet and Whether Bags. We'll be next to BucketFeet at the Daley Plaza Sidewalk Sale next week so it was awesome to meet them and the Whether Bags were amazing! Eco-friendly and so cute. All of the designers, including our company, were offering a 30% discount on all products. There were also free drinks at the bar (according to Brynn they were ah-mazing!) and appetizers from the Wave restaurant in the hotel (we got seconds).
Overall the event went really well. We got a lot of interest in the bags and met great people. There were two women we talked to who both bought bags, and they were able to tell us about some boutiques that they thought we would work perfectly in. Of course, I am always on the lookout for boutiques for Brynn's bags so I had my pen and paper ready. It was great to get some input and advice from a customer. It really shows how much women love Brynn's bags and how much they can connect with Brynn and the company. We also sold one of our new Zee Satchels which we were very excited about! We love that people are wearing them out in the city and gaining interest. We adore the bag and firmly believe that everyone else should too ; ).
The event got me pumped for the Daley Plaza Sidewalk Sale event happening next week on the 19th and 20th from 9-3PM. I can't wait to meet more of our awesome customers and promote Brynn's beautiful bags.
Until next time...

Fall Fashion Week: Part II

Fall Fashion Week is such a fun time, but exhausting too! Now that I survived it...I wanted to share with you some "Behind the Scenes" moments.

Studio-808 is the brainchild of Erin Creaney, a PR executive with a near-athletic enthusiasm for emerging designers.

This year, she created the first ever Accessory Style Lounge to showcase Fall 2010 and Spring 2011 accessory lines. The shopping suite was filled with fashion, fun and was the perfect place to pick up pieces to complement any wardrobe.

From 3pm - 6pm, the music was pumping, people were shopping, drinking Vitamin Water (wink wink) and having fun.

Susan Eichstaedt, of Susan Elizabeth Designs, was there with her mixed metal artistry. From rings to cuffs, earrings to necklaces, everything is handcrafted by her.

I actually have several of her pieces myself and get tons of compliments wherever I go!

Check her out online at: susanelizabethdesigns.com

Squasht by Les is another great line out of Chicago. Besides her wonderful vintage petal headbands and signature reversible hats, she has a full clothing line as well. Lesley also recently opened up her own store on the edge of Ukranian Village. Her flagship store is located at 2556 W. Chicago Ave. in Chicago.

Another great thing about events like these is that most Fall Fashion Week events are centered around clothing designers and runway shows, which are a ton of fun. But this was "the accessory designers" chance to shine!

Here's our friends Agnes of Love, LuLu Mae and Jules! Both of them with their unique, handcrafted lines and the inspiration behind them.

If you are looking for "...a piece of vintage glamour in (your) modern life", Love Lulu Mae is perfect with her beautiful collection handcrafted from antique jewels, vintage fabrics and exotic feathers.

Jules is inspired by nature. This artisan jewelry line has deep color variations of gemstones, rich textures of raw minerals and blemishes on hand-hammered metals.

We are excited to share our "Behind the Scenes" look into Fashion Focus Chicago! Stop by on Friday for a look at the Finale Runway Show presented by Style Chicago and a look at the Fashion Chicago retail event...

ps: I tried to upload video, but it's not working! I will keep trying so stay tuned...maybe Natahsa will have to help me with that on Thursday!