Bowties are cool. Really.
Fashion is cycling back to the 1950s, according to Gaia Nesvacil, of Sutton's Bay.
"I put out a small line of self-tying, adjustable bowties for men last fall and they took off," she said. "They have become a very popular gift for women to buy for their gentlemen."
Nesvacil creates fashions in her home studio, sells them in a nearby Traverse City boutique and at local art shows (and other venues), and takes custom orders from her web store,
Neashasha Design. For the coming season, she is busily creating the aprons, wrap skirts and high-waisted dresses women wore decades ago, along with the silk bloomers that have become her most-requested item.
"I think the sheer reason for this is blended form and function. People have gone back to commuting by bicycle--so much more than they did five years ago--and women are able to wear dresses on a bike wearing my bloomers. They are one of my favorite things to make."
Nesvacil feels that today's women are fighting their way back to the kitchen to embrace a new era of food culture, courtesy of television chefs like Martha Stewart and Rachael Ray.
"These trends are about femininity too," she says. "My pieces have a vintage, 1950s flair, but always with a very modern appeal," Nesvacil says. "I create clothing that embraces the female figure and flatters a woman's curves.
There is no "unbeautiful" to this fashion designer, who begins by visually sizing up the woman she is creating for.
"I start with what I know. Her eye color, her hair color, her favorite color," Nesvacil says. "These are all the simple things that I use to begin building a design that will be unique to her."
Nesvacil has become known in and around Traverse City for the hand-dyed wedding dresses, custom veils and high-end gowns that she creates with variations of fabric that include silks, chiffons, gauzes and other fabric that she and her clients consider beautiful.
She is an artist who shies away from creating frivolous apparel, preferring instead to make the staple garments like long and half- aprons and even pinafores that women wear for their beauty as well as to protect their clothing. Women's vests, both neutral and splashed with color, will stock her clients’ closets this year, including denims, lightweight wools and heavier cloths that can transition from season to season by adding and removing layers.
"My dress styles are inspired by the Julie Andrews' character on "The Sound of Music. I love Maria's fashion sense,” she says.
Nesvacil brings not only her unique talent for making fresh, feminine designs to the sewing table, but also a passion to repurpose fabrics that she salvages from antique shops, estate sales and thrift stores.
"I make almost every piece of my clothing--about ninety percent--rom found, gifted and reclaimed fabrics," she says. "I never know what's coming in, so no two pieces can ever be alike. My aesthetic standards are high, so this forces me to be more creative."
Donations pour in from friends, family and word-of-mouth strangers, who give Nesvacil clothing and blankets that she takes apart to assemble her repurposed garments.
"Sometimes I even get unfinished sewing projects,” she says. "That's kind of sad, but I've come to think of it as a way that these unfinished projects can find their way to completion."
She is not the only Michigan designer who is seeing throwback fashion coming into play today. Vicki Good, who has been stitching for 55 of her 63 years, is entering the fashion world after working as a respiratory therapist for 28 years.
Good is wrapping up her master's degree in apparel product development and merchandising technology as a very nontraditional--but very dedicated--Central Michigan University student. She makes the 135-mile commute to her Mount Pleasant classrooms one or two days a week from her home in Glennie, Michigan.
"CMU has a fabulous program," Good says. "We work with three-dimensional full-body scanners that take very precise images to determine body measurements. We're learning how to use digital printers and other technology. There are lots of research opportunities for graduate students at CMU--don't think I could find this quality of education and opportunity anywhere else."
In the past, Good has designed custom-fitted clothing for riders to wear in horse show competitions, and women's casual sport clothing. Today, she focuses on wedding gowns and apparel that includes casual jackets, breezy summer dresses, and even handbags made of brushed suede and corduroy. Good sells clothing through
her Facebook page right now, and will be doing so via the Internet soon.
"I've been seeing lots of lace on the runways this year--on dresses, blouses and gowns, and I just love to work with lace. I also lean toward high-quality cottons and slinky knits,” she says.
This year, according to Good, the retro designs that she wore in the 1960s are back with a vengeance.
"People are wearing fringes, plaid shirts, leather and denim jackets, and clothing made from more wool than has been acceptable for the past few years. Fashion styles cycle--waistlines creep down, come up and go back down again."
She has the advantage of being surrounded by young women who are on the cutting edge of these fashion trends as she makes her own creations."
"I always tell them, 'You're wearing everything that I used to wear,'" Good says. It's just new to you."
Kelle Barr has freelanced for over 20 years, writing business and corporate news for many national publications and trade magazines as well as regional publications. Contact her at kellebarr@gmail.com.