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From the Editor
Greetings,
It’s autumn in the
Southwest! Chiles are roasting in large hot cylinders on
sidewalks as their enticing aroma wafts through the air;
farmers markets are at their peak and roadside stands
are popping up with beautiful chile ristras. The Aspens
are beginning to tinkle with their tiny golden bells.
Color is vibrant everywhere and no less so in our fall
fashions.
In the coming months you
will see an increased focus on fashion at Southwest
Flair. We have most always included a fashion feature
each month but now we plan to bring you even more
coverage; styles and apparel, events and updates on
what’s happening with fashion in the southwest.
I thought it would be
best to start off with some of the historical influence
on fashions in the southwest so we have several articles
this month to get you started. Zandi Richardson of
Taos has done an interview with Martha Reed, one of
Taos’s leading fashionistas. We also have info on
the New Mexico Museum's re-opening of Native Couture,
and a look at some women who may have been renegades in
southwest fashion.
On the one hand, fashion
out here is an entirely different thing than it is
anywhere in the world because of so many varied cultural
influences, the vibrant and earthy colors and tones of
the environment, a slower, more relaxed pace and varied
lifestyles, and in some ways our fashion needs and
tastes don’t change that much over the years. But in
other ways they do not maybe change so much but rather
evolve. With so many talented and influential artists in
the southwest, as well as varied and abundant native
textiles, we can see slight the slight but visible
evolution in our apparel, tastes and style. We draw from
the past as much as we do from the present and we are
ever constantly moving forward yet reaching back as we
re-create favorites, once practical staples that now
offer more of a whimsy: corsets, granny boots, beadwork,
dusters, hats.
With the popularity of
shopping in places like Phoenix and Santa Fe, not only
by locals but many who travel from all over the world,
we want to provide as much coverage and information as
possible for those looking out for the unique, the
artistic, the unusual creations. It seems to me that
given the amount of visitors who do come to the
southwest to shop, that there must be many women and
maybe men, who are as obsessed by southwest or Santa Fe
style as am I. When I graduated high school from a small
town near Dallas thirty years ago, the first thing I did
was to drive to Taos specifically to purchase a pair of
knee-high, lace-up, authentic leather moccasins. My
tastes haven’t changed much since, and neither have the
moccasins. You can still drive to Taos and buy a pair
although now you may take home a pair in the fuchsia
color of the cacti flowers or the purple of the sage
flowers.
So we don’t necessarily
change fashions each year as with the larger fashion
markets. We love what the southwest has to offer, we
love that it stays pretty much the same, and our style
is our style, no matter what comes and goes on the Paris
and Milan runways. However in our coverage, we will
check on the latest designs from worldly designers just
in case we run across anything eclectic enough to suit
our artistic taste buds, and these pieces do crop up
occasionally.
After reviewing this
seasons fall pieces from the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week
New York 2009, there were a few designers whose
creativity met quite well with our southwestern flair
for style; one of those was Mara Hoffman and her tribal
designs. Though influenced from her worldly travels, the
brightly colored earthy, flowing gowns fit quite nicely
with our own cultural schemes. And the southwest has
it’s own Fashion Week in Scottsdale coming in November,
so it will be exiting to take a peek at what’s coming
from their show. And we will continue to look to Santa
Fe for the utmost in artistic fashion and design.
So thank you for joining
us this month, I hope you enjoy the September issue. In
addition to more fashion features, we also include as we
do every month, articles on unique getaways, special
cuisine, health and beauty, yoga and the arts.
| Editor Cheryl Bruedigam
has worked in the field of publishing for the
past ten years and prior to that held executive
positions in hospitality sales and marketing in
Texas and New Mexico from the early 80s to 2001.
Also a former professional fashion model,
Bruedigam holds a fashion degree from the Flair
Fashion College previously in Albuquerque, New
Mexico. She has participated in runway modeling
for Bride’s Magazine, Barbizon, and Dallas
Market Hall. She was a finalist in the 1987 Ms.
D/FW Pageant. She has appeared on The Denton
Tonight Show and Los Alamos Today. She is also a
certified Yoga Instructor at the 250 level and
is currently certifying for the 500 level.
She lives in Eastern New Mexico with her husband
and son. |
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