Panamania! - Embracing Ethnic Roots into Fashion

The NY Times ranked Panama as the #1 travel destination in 2012. National Geographic and Forbes also mentioned Panama as a top travel destination, and the U.S Ambassador of Panama launched a campaign called "Panama esta de moda". So is it any wonder that Panamanians have a sense of national pride that we are now seeing cascade into all aspects of fashion, art and design?

For years tourists have traveled to Panama and fallen in love with the ethnic prints, jewelry and handicrafts from Panama's indigenous communities including Kuna, Embera-Wounaan, Nôbe-Buglé, Guaymi, Talamanca, and the Bokata.
 
Panamanians are very patriotic about their homeland and in the last few years we have seen a shift in their perceptions towards their ethnic roots. As the world is visiting and embracing their style, Panamanians are now also beginning to incorporate elements of their culture into their fashion and lifestyle.

Designers that have embraced this growing trend include Annie Chajin, Helene Breebart, Annabell Quintero, Alessandra Grau and Fernanda Quiros. This year, in Fashion Week Panama FWP2012 we watched national designers incorporate more local ethnic inspirations into their designs with growing sense of national pride.

Photos by Miss Moss, Antoinette Jolie and Eventos Top - Durgan and Sabbi Durgan.

Miss Moss ♥s Vintage & Thrift

Most people in international fashion destinations around the globe embrace second-hand stores and see the value and uniqueness in purchasing vintage items. However, in more developing/conservative countries like Panama, although there are a select few 'fashion forward' people here that love vintage, there is still somewhat of a stigma attached to the concept of buying other people's second-hand and vintage items. If only more people bought into the concept and contributed to it, there would be the opportunity to find more unique and high-end pieces at incredible prices. 

Street Pepper - thriftedandmodern.com/blog

Vanessa Jackman - thriftedandmodern.com/blog

Trend-a-porter: Fall 2012

For Fall 2012 designers proposed bolder ideas such as androgyny, oversized outerwear, prints, gothic, military and baroque trends. From the XVII century to contemporary styles, there are a lot of options for mix-and-match. Innovative souls will trigger the trends and the rest will be coming on board. Will you take a step on the ship or sink underwater? Here is the Miss Moss trend-a-porter for Fall 2012...

Miss Moss Welcomes Laura Díaz

Laura Díaz has a passionate soul that's in love with life. She believes life's not black and
white and her personal mantra is "only those who dare truly live" (Ruth Freedman).

Art, style and culture are her passions. Laura is a University of Louisville communication graduate with a minor in business. Her strongest fields of study were creative writing and advertising. She has interned at Stratego Communications and Creative Alliance; assisted at Couture magazine - for Fashion Week Panama (FWP) and written for The Louisville Cardinal, Lou Magazine, Ellas, IT Now and now she is the latest member of the Miss Moss team. 

Photo by Alain Jiménez.

PLASTIC PARADISE - MELISSA POP UP STORE

Plastic Paradise was a unique shopping experience for international shoe brand Melissa at the new Panamericana Hostel in Casco Viejo, Panama. Here it is unveiled for you with an exclusive behind the scenes exposé.

Plastic Paradise was an event that aimed to consolidate Melissa’s brand values which promoted design and plastic, with the goal of bringing awareness of fashion, art, recycling and music in a candy store inspired theme, blending an exciting artistic and shopping experience. 

Travelling tips - What to pack and still look stylish

When I told resident stylist Liz Moreno I was going on a trip to New York and then on to London, I asked her for some advice on what I should pack as I wanted to look stylish, but still have enough room in my case that I could fill it with all the shopping I knew I would end up buying! 

Here are some of Liz's top travel packing tips:

"When packing for a trip try to think about all the places that you are going to visit, and most importantly make sure you are taking the right clothes depending on the weather, it doesn't matter if it's Summer, Spring, Autumn, or Winter, we all know places can experience many seasons in a day so it is always best to be versatile and well prepared for every kind of weather behavior.
There is nothing worse than packing summer dresses and bikini's and finding out its the worst summer on record in London ;) The best policy is to pack clothing that can be worn layered. Lightweight, easily layered clothing is convenient because layers can be added or removed as necessary depending on conditions."

On the Creative Campaign Track - Our latest Inspirations

The best creative communication campaigns should bring about unique and unforgettable experiences for the target demographic. A current trend in campaigns is that the brand not only seeks to define and over-expose the image of a product, but to make the masses feel identified with it and with the whole lifestyle it represents. The identity and personality of a product say everything about its target consumer, and can even define it.

Converse Color Barcelona Campaign 

This campaign created a hype through guerrilla street-marketing actions in the most emblematic areas of Barcelona, allowing people to keep painted items in the Converse colors as a souvenir of the Campaign. 300 bikes were painted with the colors from the new collection and spread in key places in the Catalan capital.This action consisted in doing something very altruistic like leaving bikes in the street, that people could try and go away with, for free. It was possible to locate the bikes through the Converse profile on Facebook, thus also exploiting the power of social media. At the end of the party, a mosaic with the Converse colors was created with beach accessories (sunshades, mats, balls and beach bags). Like the bikes, all those elements were given to those who found the beach.

Top 10 80's Style Trend Inspirations

As an inspiration for all of those going to the 80's night at Relic tonight we have put together a few inspirations for you all on how to rock the 80s trend, featuring the good, the bad and the down right laughable. We can't wait to see everyone's look, please make sure you send us photos and share them on the Miss Moss facebook page 

Shoulder Pads
Shoulder pads may very well be the worst of the top 10 80s fashion fads. Whatever the reason, we wore shoulder pads often and we did so with pride. 

Mini Skirts
The shorter the better ... women and girls loved miniskirts. Denim was the most popular, but miniskirts were made in a number of other materials including knit and leather. These were often paired with leggings.  This particular look has made a big comeback recently.  The only people who weren’t wearing miniskirts in the 80s were men (ok, well some did) and elderly women.

Leg Warmers
Another of one of the top 10 80s fashion fads that didn’t make a lot of sense was that of leg wamers. Maybe we all had really cold legs because of the miniskirts we wore or maybe we just thought they looked cute. Whatever our reasoning was at the time, at least one or two pairs of leg warmers could be found in every girl’s dresser.

Huge Earrings 
You know how cute Christmas ornaments look on a tree? During the 80s we thought the same would apply to our ears. Huge earrings from various costume jewelry collections were all the rage and if your earrings didn’t touch your shoulder, they weren’t big enough.

Fingerless Gloves
Fingerless gloves were another odd 80s fashion fad, and it seems to be coming back into style. From romance enthusiasts to punk-rock fans, fingerless gloves were popular with quite a variety of 80s genres.  The fingerless gloves are forever interconnected with Madonna's look in the mid-80s in her boy toy phase.  

Parachute Pants
Oh yes… and then there were parachute pants. They started off skin tight and ended up baggier than a potato sack. Parachute pants may very well be the one piece of clothing that can sum up the ridiculousness of the top 10 80s fashion fads.

Members Only Jackets
Who didn’t want a Members Only jacket in the 80s? If you didn’t have one, you could forget about getting in with the “in” crowd. Members Only jackets were all the rage, and imitations were completely unacceptable.

UNITS
A one-size-fits-all clothing store featuring knit skirts, shirts, belts and leggings in coordinating colors. The clothes were sold in UNITS boutiques located in malls throughout the United States. You could buy six different pieces of UNITS clothing and create an entire wardrobe from them. It goes without saying that UNITS did not make it out of the 80s.

Stretch-Stirrup Pants
The stirrup pants version of this particular fad had to be the worst. Presumably the idea of fashion and being in fashion is to look as good as possible. These pants made NO ONE look good. They created a triangle-leg effect that made even the thinnest person look big. While many of these 1980s fashions are making their way back on the scene and into our stores, the stretch pants/stirrup pants trend needs to stay tucked safely back in the 80s.
Oversized Tops
Last, but not least, we have the 80s fashion fad of oversized tops. Big sweaters, sweatshirts and t-shirts were totally hot and wearing them over a miniskirt or a pair of leggings made them even hotter. These tops were most often belted with big and gaudy, low slung belts with the top bloused over the belt.

Miss Moss Pinterest

Follow the Miss Moss Pinterest - our influences portrayed in images. And also, a great addiction.

Nosotras Corremos: On the run with Nike and Miss Moss

Nike and Miss Moss have joined forces with "Nosotras Corremos" all-women's race to train Leanne Moss (Miss Moss), Liz Moreno, Angélica Balanta and Sarah Tyler as the ultimate representatives of the Nike Woman as they all share passion and a dedication to 'Just Do It', in the 5km race they will run on Sunday, May 20th, 2012. The strength, the motivation, the female empowerment and the thirst for success these girls possess has been continually documented by our friend Sarah Tyler through her video and photo diaries showing these women training in true Miss Moss style celebrating the opportunity to train together, work out their bodies and minds and have a lot of fun along the way, not to mention the sense of style they will be bringing to the race on Sunday as they all have their unique sporting fashions. 

Knit on fire: trend in Panama's weather

Panama's unique rain forest/tropical climate directly influences the fashion and clothing that people can wear, as we need materials and fabrics that can be worn comfortably in the heat and humidity as well as when we enter the freezing air conditioning which is also so typical here as a respite from the heat.

In the spirit of versatile clothing and having our wardrobes packed with pieces that can be worn in all seasons we have spotted a new trend in the International fashion scene, where winter pieces are gliding into the summer months and therefore could be a perfect solution to the Panama heat/freeze combination of inside and outside dramatic temperature changes, as well as the transition into our Winter months.  

Cable knits are entering the limelight as a summer fashion statement. The thought of wearing sweaters in the tropical heat may not immediately spring to mind, but cable knits are offering a less 'oven-like' and more 'chic' look. It doesn't matter if you get these pieces from your grandma (the more retro, the more cool you look in our opinion) or from the latest store collections, just make sure you introduce your wardrobe to these classic season must-haves. Cable knits are not necessarily worn to make you feel cosy and warm, but these will make you want to reveal more skin.

Isabel Marant

Trend-a-porter: SS2012

This Summer/Spring 2012 the runways are showing glimpses of pastels, sportswear, structured floral print pieces, the time machine (20’s – 60’s styles meets alternative sophisticated woman) and collars are everywhere and look like they are here to stay a while.

Neons, Pastels, Mint, Peplums and Tangerine are the colours to paint your spring outfits and even your hair and nails. Its a season to take some risks and experiment with new styles, prints, textures, colours and to get adventurous with your looks.

We want to introduce you our favorite inspirations and strongest trends of this season.

Miss Moss Presents Andres Castañeda

Originally from Bogotá, Colombia, my background is in advertising and I have a great love for the visual arts and graphic design. My work at Miss Moss reflects a combination of marketing and advertising skills with powerful visuals to portray the entire concept of our company and our clients' brands.

Tántalo Hotel/ Kitchen / Roofbar Grand Opening

A night packed with entertainment to tantalize the senses.  The Grand Opening Event of Tantalo Hotel / Kitchen / Roofbar by Blesso Properties of New York, produced by the Miss Moss productions team included art, music and performances by Panamanian artists in the hottest new platform for creatives in town.

Inspired by the funky New York art and fashion scene, we created an evening with a brand new vibe for Panama City, where guests were able to enjoy the unique "Boutique Art Hotel" concept were the exclusive guest list was invited to explore the 12 rooms of the hotel each uniquely designed and installed by local artists, coordinated by local artist Mariery Young.

With something to cater for all tastes, performers included Diego Bowie, who created an installation as a commentary on current online policies, and a contemporary circus aerialist show in the atrium by La Tribu. We also combined electronic sets from popular DJ's including the K.E.E.N.E, DJBBOYRYTHMX, Gisso Oro and Murli with live performances from an acoustic solo performance from Jason Marcus and the Jose Andres Santana band which were all enjoyed by hip guests who knew how to party in style.

With the key always in the details, we also worked with Tantalo to provide unique presentation ideas for serving their food, which included serving guests from artist palette platters with color representing the artists paint mix and fish and chips served in mini cones.  Perrier water was served in Martini glasses packed with pink cotton candy from trays draped in bright colored belts provided by Crimsonette.

Backstage @ KREL Wear DiscGlo

Sneak Peaks directly from room 206 at Tantalo Hotel where the Miss Moss style team recreated the looks for the DiscGlo Collection.

Stylists - Liz Moreno & Miss Balanta,

Make up Artists - Diego Bowie and Kenny Sinclair

Hair Stylist - Katie Garstin

Krel Wear DiscoGlo Event Blog Coverage

Panama Street Style

Mira Moda Pty

Miss Balanta 

Fashion Seeker

Modeikone

Miss Moss Take on Neon Trend

Fleur tones, citrus-hues and neons are creating a big statement in this seasons Spring/Summer 2012 collections and have been featured in runways from Peter Som, Jason Wu, Nanette Lepore, Thakook, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Rag and Bone, D&G among many others. Neon brights are presented in a range of looks, whether its head-to-toe neon, color blocking or in architectural lines and structured pieces, featuring graphics and prints.

The neon trend, gives an immediately funky vibe to any style either chic, elegant, casual or urban and its a favorite for the most alternative styles, it is a trend you can mix & match with any type of look.

There are many fun and creative ways in which you can present this trend through photo shoots and editorials playing with a palette of bold colors that reflect joy and generate a very positive energy into the imagery, filling it with life.

All color tones are compatible to develop a story with this trend, depending on which emotion you want to convey and the imagery and message in general. Fashion brands and designers can present a really fun experience through featuring these colors and this trend through props and backgrounds in neon tones, or inspiration from key decades or icons (including 60's, 80's & 90's) through make-up, hair and accessories.

Neon was also presented in other trends in season such as: Athletic; Art Deco; Kaleidoscope; Graphic Florals; Pyjamas and Tribal.

These are all good inspirational sources to create a whole new story for photo-shoots, look-books and catalogs.

D&G Spring/Summer 2012

Miss Moss presents KREL Wear in Panama

Two-time Style Wars Champion, also named as Best Local Fashion Designer in Miami New Times (2005 & 2010) is now presenting her DiscGlo Collection here with us. Karelle will be showcasing her designs which blend fashion, dance, music and performance, an experience that has been traveling the world from Miami to New York, Iceland, Berlin, Costa Rica, Los Angeles, San Diego and soon here in Panama.

Karelle Levy is the girl behind KREL Wear, she is a performance artist that met fashion. After discovering a knitting machine at college, she is now unstoppable.  Karelle knits her own garments, using the "toobular" technique in sweaters, dresses, skirts and accessories, which consists of reconfiguring garments using few or no seams in her knitting technique.

Each piece is a completely unique, creative and fun experience. There are no rules for Karelle when it comes  her to designs, they are all one of a kind, interchangeable and convertible pieces, and were made to be worn just the way their owner wants and feels. 

We are thrilled to have the opportunity to share KREL Wear with you for this one night, where you can expect more than a typical fashion event. Come and enjoy the artistic party night, and discover the many sides of her designs.  

Miss Moss Welcomes Liz Moreno

Liz Moreno is a wardrobe and fashion stylist currently based in Panama City. Specialized in personal shopping, advertising, and consulting. After some successful experimental works, she moved to Milan, Italy where she got a certified of Fashion Image Consultant from Istituto Marangoni, and a year later attended The School Of Style in Los Angeles to get more into the Business of Fashion Styling. Some of her works include Stylings for local Magazines, T.V and Print Commercials, Personal Stylings and Fashion Direction.

Trend Report - Spring 2012

Every season in fashion serves up a variety of new trends to try and experiment with, and this spring they are very wearable. From prints that make a strong statement to new brights color combinations, discover new ideas for your outfits for this upcoming season.

Sophie Theallet, Marc by Marc Jacobs, Tommy Hilfiger

Color Blocking
Bold bright colors can make a simple outfit look more glamorous. It's best to combine a maximum of 3 colors to really workt this trend.

Cole Haan "Alisa" Oxford

Colorful Oxford Shoes
Casual looking and classy at the same time (the ultimate 'smart/casual'), these shoes can enhance your spring look by wearing them in unusual colors, and they can also create a color block, which you could use as one of your 3 a day!

Retro Glam set to continue as Next Season's Trend

You came, you saw, you experienced the Miss Moss "Retro Glam Night" filled with the still-on-trend 50's style that sweeps through global style: high wasted skirts, headscarves and a red pout remind us of women who spend time on what they wear, how they look, and how they present themselves to the world portraying that façade of elegant perfection. 

Retro glamour has also inspired renowned fashion houses such as Dior this season as reflected in its current Spring/Summer Couture collection as a modern reinvention of 1950's regalia.