Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Karina Zabete & Odin for Target, for Southern Belles & Beaus Gone Manhattan

By Laura Medina

No sticker shock here.  The price list with the ensemble from Kirna Zabete for Target Fall 2012.

A pair of Virginia Southern Belles turned Manhattanites, sorority sisters Sarah Easley and Beth Buccini, found out they were and are part of a long line of tradition of Southerners who fell in love with the bright lights, the art and culture of the Big Apple.  Still, they realize there is a style aesthetic that failed to bridge the gap between Urban Hipster and Southern Primpness.

Easley and Buccini also know they're in one of the world's fashion capitals and that there is a plentitude of design talent that fit their NY-meets-Southern aesthetic.

They formed Kirna Zabete the Boutique so they can gather and collect all these designers underneath one roof so shoppers can go to a comprehensive one-stop shop. 

In the 14 years since Easley and Buccini formed Kirna Zabete, aspiring Gallery Girls aka "gallerinas"...well-educated, well-bred girls getting their foothold on the career ladder as gallery assistants (New York's version of the "D-Girl" aka Development Girl)...finally discovered the appropriate appearance requiring the right balance of edgy avant-garde hip and office chic. 

Manhattan's equivalent of a Development Female Assistant...the fashion magazine girl assistant...has also come to rely on Easley's and Buccini's good taste.

Knowing that these Gallery/Magazine Girls are just starting out, highly attuned brains with basement budgets;...and that other girls in other parts of the country, are gawking in from the outside, wanting to be those female assistants in those industries, Kirna Zabete decided to share the love with the rest of the country to those aspiring young ladies and bring their Southern Belle-turns-Manhattanite Gallerina (the art gallery's version of fashionista, think "Sex and the City" Charlotte York) boutique to the rest of the nation.

Conscious of who their customer is and what she needs and what she can afford, Easley and Buccini picked pieces that can be mixed and matched, priced at under $100 each.  A gallerina can easily support these pieces.  They didn't stint on quality.  A leather jacket is the pricest at $199.

Kirna Zabete witness countless times how those hard-charging young women rolled up their blazer sleeves, so they offered super hip Lip bracelets and rings to show off, ranging from $24.99 to $9.99 a pop, pretty easy to be New Wave hip.

The tailoring and the construction retain the prim Southern Belle but done in funky Downtown Hip animal and lip prints and in utilitarian grey or classic black & white fabrics. The shirt dresses are long enough to be demure but the sheer fabric makes it breathable during a urban heat wave.

Ready to work on the September 9th launch, regardlesss if you're a rising gallerina or as fashion magazine assistant.


Learn more about Kirna Zabete's history on http://abullseyeview.com/video-kirna-zabete-at-target/



This long-standing traditon of a Southerner excited to be make it big in the Big Apple is not an exclusively a female-only thing.

Many a young man dreams of striking it big...plus the Deep South and New York are both on the East Coast...so there is an easy attitude connection, especially if he is an artist and/or a writer or aiming for a higher social profile,  a young Southern man also needs to fill in the gap between Southern rural with urban functionality.

He, too, is of the same attuned brain with bargain basement budget.

The fine gentlemen duo of Eddy and Paul, behind Odin, are here to help when they roll out their picks of Target, on the same day with Kirna Zabete, September 9th.

Their style mantra...fit equals comfortable, not comfortable meets sloppy.

Eddy and Paul, too, did not stint out on quality.  Their wardrobe investment, the moleskin blazer, tops the collection at $99.

Watch http://abullseyeview.com/video-odin-at-target/, Paul and Eddy explain how they curate their New York shop for a nationwide audience.

The Fashion's Night Out on September 9th is a warm-up to all these great clothes debuting on Target on September 9th.

Rev up your heels ands sneakers!




No comments: