Tribeza Fashion Show
Last week, Tribeza held their 11th annual style week in Austin full of great food and even better fashion. They had events like Smoked Meat & Metal with skate boarding demos, a rum garden and a live performance; a southern brunch with a lavish menu, cocktails and live bluegrass music; Blooms + Butter dinner with famous chef Gabrielle Hamilton with food prepared straight off the menu from her New York City restaurant Prune. However, we were able to attend their fashion show presented by Lexus of Austin.
The night started out in a beautifully decorated yard outside an industrial space in downtown Austin. I arrived early so I took a look around at the food and drink vendors to see what they had for the night. My first stop might have been my favorite stop. The Austin Winery is located just a few minutes from downtown on Austin’s east side. They work with family owned vintners and grape growers before they go to work crafting their wines. The CEO and founder, Ross McLauchlan, was running the table and he let me sample before choosing one and they were all delicious. I ended up choosing a glass of chardonnay and it may have been one of the best I’ve ever had. They also hold private wine tastings- I may have to have a mother daughter date there.
The food wasn’t quite ready so I made a second stop at Austin Cocktails where they were sampling their four different cocktails all with delicious sounding names. The Vodkarita, the Cucumber Vodka Mojito, the Tea Twister, and the one I chose later to have for the fashion show, Paradise Found. It was a mixture of vodka, natural coconut water, stone and citrus fruits, basil, and organic agave nectar topped off with a couple fresh raspberries- absolutely delightful. I’m not sure how I had never heard of Austin Cocktails. They pride themselves on creating better tasting cocktails made with better ingredients like natural herbs and fresh fruit juices.
From there I went to sample delicious foods from Fork & Vine, Chinatown, Barlatta and Delish. I wasn’t able to make it to Winebelly. Fork & Vine served the most incredible tacos I’ve ever had. Scallops, Cabbage, fresh lime juice and some sort of delicious sauce. I can’t wait to check them out after they finally open next week. Chinatown stood out from the crowd. Instead of serving on a plate or napkin like other vendors, they filled up the typical Chinese take out boxes for people to eat out of. Barlatta was my favorite. I love tapas and I feel like good tapas is hard to find. They were serving a dish called Arros Negre that had a mixture of black rice, squid, clams, and a few other ingredients thrown in. Delish supplied yummy cupcakes for dessert.
After everyone enjoyed a drink and a bite to eat, we all headed inside to our seats to enjoy the show. Reflecting current styles and Austin’s easy style, the show was broken into four parts- Yourself Exposed, Rugged Beauty: The Texas Landscape, Street Chic, and Steal the Party with music by The Nightowls.
Yourself Exposed featured delicate pretty lingerie in pastels and neutral colors styled with denim jackets, jeans and even a shawl that looked almost like a sarape blanket. The delicates came from designers such as Elle McPherson, Stella McCartney, Fleur and Simone Perele. If you loved any of them enough to purchase, you were in luck because they were all from two stores- Teddies for Bettys and Underwear.
Rugged Beauty: The Texas Landscape featured easy and relaxed style in colors that you would find throughout this state of ours. Flowy white dresses, gray jackets, blue button down shirts and cozy yellow sweaters were shown on the runway. Every outfit looked comfortable and fit perfectly with that Texas style. Pieces were from designers such as Hermès, BB Dakota, Creatures of Comfort and Billy Reid and were from many local Austin retailers like MOSS, Hoiden Supply Co., and Raven + Lily.
Street Chic was surprisingly wearable. Usually when a collection is “street chic” it’s not easily wearable for the everyday person. Street Chic featured bold pops of color paired on a fairly dark background. Stripes and polka dots seemed to be the prints of choice on the runway. Pretty scarves, bright pants and a sort of sophistication was the idea of Street Chic. I wish I could wake up every morning and have all of it in my closet. Some of the designers included were Saint Laurent, John Varvatos, and Nicole Miller from retailers like The Garden Room, Olive, and By George.
Steal the Party was exactly what is said. If you were to wear any of the outfits they showed on the runway from Steal the Party, you would do just that. Sparkle and shine was in every outfit and all the models even carried sparkling motorcycle helmets by Daytona Cruiser as they walked. If I was to ever own a bike, I would need one of those helmets. Glittering gold dresses and fun pants were available from designers such as Pauline Trigere, Babette, and Alice & Olivia. A few of the retailers were Kick Pleat, Beehive and Feathers Boutique.
Thank you so much to Tribeza for having us there and holding such an incredible show proving Austin fashion is still alive and strong. We can’t wait to see what next year has in store!
Photos from Tribeza, Amy Gentry from The Austin Chronicle, HungryGirlAustin and myself.