French designer Alice Ritter is a favorite among fashionable but not over-the-top New York gals. Her signature plaid blouses, country summer frocks, and motorcycle jackets have always reminded us of Isabel Marant--who likewise is known for capturing that coveted notion of easy French cool. This season Ritter brought back her chic harem trousers from Spring--which have already sold out at Barneys--in addition to some amazing light outwear pieces rendered in charcoal and black. Check out Ritter's Fall 2009 collection below along with a few snapshots from our showroom visit.
Alice Ritter
In The Showroom: Alice Ritter Spring 09
Alice Ritter's wild, champagne-filled presentation was what started our New York Fashion Week this past Fall 08, but this season Ritter decided to skip the excess and focus her energies on making a closely edited, salable collection. We can say that she was successful in her process, especially by way of the trousers. Today we saw four pairs of the same billowed trousers in four different fabrications. It was efficient on her part and will be indulgent for consumers because these pants will likely be snatched up in all four fabrics by Ritter fans. Our personal favorites were the hunter green washed silk pair, that would look amazing with heels and a simple cotton blouse come Summer. Billowy pants with an elastic waistband, ankle cuffs, and side pockets are our new Spring 09 plight. After all, it only takes one pattern to spend a lot of money.
In The Showroom: Alice Ritter Spring 2009
Alice Ritter Spring 2009 collection at Marie Saeki showroom.
Marie Saeki Showroom Interview
We we were first introduced to the ladies at Marie Saeki PR during Alice Ritter's wild and crazy presentation, on the first day of New York Fashion Week. Among the chaos, Yurika Nakazono and Marie Saeki, ushered us backstage, made sure we got interviews with everyone from hair to makeup to models. When Ritter was barraged with journalists, taking notes and pictures, Yurika and Marie held our elbows, gave us a glass of champagne, and put us in front of the designer for our two minute moment of privacy. Needless to say, they have been one of our favorite showrooms ever since. One random afternoon, we popped in to pull some sunglasses for a shoot we had neither story boarded nor booked models for. Marie, the showrooms founder and former Accessories lady for Elle, sat down with us for a chat about the showroom and its recent projects. The showroom has an international roster of clients, they represent everything from sportswear to cameras, from ready-to-wear to eyeglasses. In spite of this, their team is small, and their relationships with the people they work with, close. We think people like Marie and Yurika, who do a great deal for their designers (among them, Alice Ritter, Petit Bateau, Theo, Falke, Selima Optique, Michel Perry, and Anne et Valentin) and the press, are a pivotal part of the fashion industry and, therefore, worthy of their own interview (if short). Afterall, Everybody Is A Star today on Coutorture.
What attitude or personality best describes Marie Saeki PR and the lines that you represent? Our team is an international mix of open-minded and positive people, with a strong fashionable attitude and a sense of humor. The lines we represent reflect the personality of our office.
What are some of the differences between working with the larger publications versus smaller ones or websites? The differences are similar yet respective to the scale of the media company. For example, the monthly and seasonally printed publications have to forecast what is going to happen months in advance, and we have to wait to see if our products have been selected for editorials. Websites are very exciting because the Internet is able to instantly broadcast something new and there is an instant result to show our clients.
What is your average day at the showroom like? Answering a very, very large amount of emails and writing an even bigger amount to our clients, editors, stylists, and journalists. We are in constant communication because new ideas are always being brainstormed and pitched. Samples and products are sent out daily for photo shoots and other product placements. Depending on the season, fashion shows and events are planned and executed. There really is no average day because each day presents new tasks and requests. Our biggest daily issue is deciding where we should order lunch.
What is the most stressful part of your job? Worrying about not having results to show our clients.
And, your favorite part of your job? Pitching, it's like a game. It is always fun to find the right angle when introducing a new concept or fashion happening.
Alice Ritter and Trovata in La Belle Dame sans Merci
In today's exclusive Coutorture editorial we've pulled garments from the Spring 08 collections of Alice Ritter and Trovata. The two brands, though seemingly dissimilar, are on common ground in terms of their contemporary style and appeal to twenty-something's with a penchant for smart casual dress. From Ritter, we've covered her Spring 08 collection as well as her Fall 08 presentation during New York Fashion Week (it was one wild party). In our video, we spoke with Ritter, who attributes the Fall 08 season to have been influenced by legendary rougue Serge Gainsbourg. From Trovata, we popped into the showroom to shoot Fall 08, an exclusive Coutorture editorial that made us want to move upstate and start a family (only kidding!). It, as always, had an East Coast prepster aesthetic that pulled at our Cape Cod-loving heartstrings. The two brands appear again in today's editorial, La Belle Dame sans Merci, so, consider yourself an expert. La Belle Dame sans Merci
An original photo editorial for Coutorture.com. Photographer Alex Norden, Fashion Editor Megan Zanke and Julie Fredrickson, Styling Julie Bobek, Makeup Julie Fredrickson and Maleeha Kahn. Clothing From SS08 Harlan Bel, Trovata and Alice Ritter. Models Margaret Pridgen, Kyla Jamieson, and Marie Lunde Fossdal.
Alice Ritter Presentation Recap
Yeah, the Alice Ritter show was kind of nuts. Only the French would take something so stressful, throw back the booze, and turn it into a totally chilled out opportunity to talk about politics and how everyone's weekend went down. There were a few models walking around in, you know, the collection, but there were also a lot of Ritter's friends who were well-dressed and mingling in such a way that you couldn't really tell just what was what. To further complicate things some of Ritter's pals, like Au Revoir Simone, were modeling in the show. In other words, the people looked like models, and the models, people. Below, our video of the madness, and a gallery of the looks as a point of clarification.
Random Update of The Moment: Backstage At Alice Ritter
We're backstage at Alice Ritter's show right now. Madness ensues. Elle magazine is having a 'models like to hang' pre-show photo shoot down here with a bunch of rock and roll chicks, namely Au Revoir Simone and the like. In other words, a long-hair gamines are lazing about in trousers and silk blouses while the rest of us swirl around them like maniacs, charging batteries and whatnot. Random sound bite we just picked up from the couch, model says, "So, do you cut your own hair", to which the short haired rock chick replies, "uh, yeah".
Photo from Alice Ritter S/S 08




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