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Entries in Isabel Toledo (14)

Sunday
Dec132009

Christmas in Washington

Photo by Joshua Roberts/Getty Images

In the company of four darling little elves (note their belted waists), the president and first lady hosted the Christmas in Washington celebration this evening at the National Building Museum in Washington, D.C.

The first lady looks positively radiant in a black party dress, featuring a v-neck, banded waist and full skirt. We wonder if this might be the Isabel Toledo dress that the designer described as, "a pleated jersey number with some real swing. It's very Marilyn Monroe."

Update: Indeed this is the stunning work of Isabel Toledo. Gorgeous!

Tuesday
Jun162009

Fashion from the Inside Out

The highly anticipated mid-career retrospective of Isabel Toledo's work opens tomorrow at The Museum at FIT in New York. Included in the exhibit is the famed lemongrass ensemble, on loan from Mrs. O for the next few months. Of the dress and coat, Mrs. O said, "I absolutely adored my Inauguration Day ensemble designed by Isabel Toledo, and I am happy it will be part of the exhibit so that others can appreciate the creativity and craftsmanship of one of America's great female designers."

We went for a sneak peek of the exhibit this morning, and must tell you, it was magical. The garments are organized by theme: Origami, Suspension, Liquid Architecture, Shadow, Shape, Organic Geometry and Manipulated Surfaces. Many of the pieces are accompanied by their pattern, which makes one pause to contemplate the remarkable transformation from 2-D to 3-D.

The lemongrass dress and coat are in their own room, accompanied by a series of photos taken inside Isabel Toledo's studio. We learned more about the garment as well. Though the fabric often appears yellow in photographs, it is truly a sage green in person. The coat also appeared to feature two, small front pocket flaps when first created.

The exhibit, Isabel Toledo: Fashion from the Inside Out, opens tomorrow and runs through mid September. We would love to get a group from Mrs-O.org together to attend the exhibit, which is free to the public. Tentatively we propose the early afternoon of Saturday, July 11 if anyone is interested!

Check out this fabulous video from NYMag:

Wednesday
Apr012009

Tea with the Queen

Photo by John Stillwell /Getty Images Photo by Stefan Rousseau / Getty Images

For her historic meeting with the Queen, we were delighted to see First Lady Mrs. O choose an ivory and black silk crepe dress by Isabel Toledo, paired with a black satin opera coat by Jason Wu. As many will recall, Mrs. O wore ensembles from the same winning combination of designers for the Inauguration. We cannot help but think back to the morning of January 21, when both Ms. Toledo and Mr. Wu were guests on the Today Show, exuding pure joy, excitement and gratitude.

It is wonderful to see both of these American design talents, heralded for their craftsmanship and artistry, brought to the world stage once more. Mrs. O's Isabel Toledo dress features an origami-inspired bow detail at the waistline. She paired the dress with a black cashmere cardigan by Alaia and a double strand of pearls.

Thursday
Feb122009

A Lovely First Lady

Photo credit: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

First Lady Mrs. O looked so lovely at the grand reopening celebration of Ford's Theatre last night. And her dress! We love the girlish silhouette created by the empire waist and full skirt, and the unusual pattern (a plaid made up of mini-houndstooth). This feels unlike anything we've seen Mrs. O wear in the past. Could it be Tracy Reese? We've confirmed the dress is not designed by Tracy Reese, which leaves this somewhat of a mystery. Any ideas?

Update: Thanks to reader Alexa, who relayed that the dress is designed by Isabel Toledo (as reported by ETOnline.com) Additional images can be seen at the Huffington Post

And as requested, here is the video from YouTube so that we can admire the dress in action:

Friday
Feb062009

Isabel Toledo Musings on Style

isabel_toledoImage courtesy Isabel Toledo via People Paging through the February 9 issue of New York Magazine, our eye was immediately caught by a photo and great quote from one of Mrs. O's Inaugural designers, Isabel Toledo. NY Mag: Michelle Obama wore your clothes to the swearing-in. Have you met? Isabel Toledo: "Just once. And I have to admit, I hugged her and thought, 'Let me see ... what size?' She's got an amazing torso and long, beautiful arms. She's like a spider." In turn, this reminded us of one of our favorite passages from Nina Garcia's, "The Little Black Book of Style", illustrated by who else, Ruben Toledo, Isabel's husband.  In the same way Isabel Toledo's account of how she chose the lemongrass color and unusual Swiss wool lace for Mrs. O's Inaugural look thoroughly charmed us, so too, did her broader musings on fashion and style for a Q & A session with Nina Garcia. From "The Little Black Book of Style":

Q: What is the secret to buying and wearing a strong shape?

A: The secret to wearing strong shapes is body language - a woman has to be comfortable in her own skin to make strong shapes work for her. Once you know yourself and understand how to use your body language, clothes with shape can enhance your graphic presence and help to project your own personal style.

Q: What is your secret to mixing the practical with the fantastical?

A:  This is the essence of style for me. How you mix opposites and rearrange realities to get at a deeper truth. I love the practical and build everything around it first. Fantastical just happens when you are open to it and can evaporate just as quickly. It has been my experience that from the fantastical, often the practical is born.

Q: Who are some of the most stylish women you know?

A: I adore the classic generations' sense of ageless style. Maria Felix, Louise Bourgeois, Iris Apfel, Anna Piaggi, Louise Nevelson, Frida Kahlo - they have all shown us that an independent and confident sense of yourself is what it is all about. Diana Vreeland, who I had the fortune to intern with at the Costume Institute at the Met, had that gift all through her life - the joy of living and dressing up or down for any challenge. We had the same shoe size and she would insist on trying on my picks that I found on Canal Street. The curiosity and enthusiasm is a real gift and the reward of a fertile mind and an open spirit - that is what fuels fashion!

So how has dressing the First Lady on the most historic of events affected the designer? When speaking to WWD, Isabel's husband Ruben, described the aftermath as "Obamathon". For lucky Buckeyes, Isabel Toledo will visit the Kent State Museum in Kent, OH on Feb.19. The museum houses the largest collection of images of her work, remnants from an exhibit in 2000. The rest of us will be able to listen in via NPR.