The first-ever fashion week in Rhode Island’s capital city will take place June 6-12 with two invitation-only runway shows per day scheduled for the Marriott Providence, the Renaissance Providence Hotel and the Hotel Providence. A series of free receptions following the shows will allow members of the public to meet the designers and see creations up-close. In all, the work of 16 designers from New York, New England and "Elsewhere" will be featured (what Anonymous is to Biography, Elsewhere is to Geography) – including Woonsocket native and “Project Runway” contestant Jonathan Joseph Peters and at least one Rhode Island School of Design graduate.
The event is called StyleWeek Providence. Explaining the reason for bringing haute couture to DownCity, StyleWeek founder Rosanna Ortiz Sineal, a senior vice president at the Providence public relations firm Miamore Communications, was quoted in the ProJo as saying:
I just noticed that fashion events in New England are not taken seriously. I wanted to use Providence as a canvas to focus on the business of fashion.Not to rain on the fashion parade, but methinks there is a reason why "fashion events in New England" are not taken seriously. Because nobody around here really cares whether their lime green purse was so last season or whether ruffled shirts accessorized by live parrots and eye patches are back in style. This tends to be a place that prefers things that last to things that are trendy. We've got Colonial houses still standing from the 1700s and Pilgrim hats good for any occasion that look as if they've never been out of the box.
So go enjoy yourself looking at the "glammuh" next week, but just remember that in these parts a faded Red Sox cap and a pair of Keens can get you through a whole summer.
The question is: How would you describe Rhode Island style?
