BLANK SILK by MEGHAN WALSH S/S 2011 F/W 2011-12

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Designer to watch: MEGHAN WALSH

As new big things come to someones life it means that’s the result of hard work and also that many doors will continue open for the future, and that’s how I see Meghan Walsh designer road, she just launched her two first collections during New York Fashion Week, she had a private presentation, but as we all know in order to be a famous designer you have to let everyone know in the industry that you’re in town and that’s what she’s has been doing this past few months, I had the chance to meet her during the Miami Beach Polo world cup where she had a fashion show as part of all the events that run sponsoring the Polo tournament, I was very attracted and captivated by her strong words and wonderful personality, in all our talks we discussed about how she started as an artist doing paintings and suddenly her art work became a passion for fashion, which she’s been passionate about all her life, it was so interesting to know how her paintings lead her to be a fashion designer.

She graduated from Parsons school of design in New York and right after she started her own line with the name of Blank Silk in which she has build a very interesting concept that plays with the lightness of silk fabrics, neutral & bold colors, the strong feeling of relaxation, minimalism with a touch of elegance and as alluring as it sounds if you get to see and touch Meghan’s pieces you will know why I’m taking her collection very seriously, because we all know sometimes its easy to speak and say ideas but when you see then come to real life that’s the moment in which you get exciting emotions and specially if they turn out to be exactly how you expected them to be , and I think that’s what Meghan feels every time she touches or sees her luscious designs on a runway, an excitement that even all her family feel when they’re by her side supporting her on each of the shows, a feeling that you get when you know you’re having a wonderful beginning.

Between all the rush she’s been this past years going back and forth from U.S to New Delhi, India to Europe working with her crew and giving the last touches to Blank Silk, Meghan told me that she actually feels very happy that she has accomplished her first two collections and already have her own add campaign which will be coming out soon to the public.

Meghan is one of the few new talented designers that likes to be hands on of every single detail for Blank Silk, from hair and make up to the most little thing and that’s what I like about her passion, she is very focus on what she wants and what she is expecting for Blank Silk to be in the upcoming years, her cohesive ideas, amazing aesthetic and fashion forward style for both of her collections S/S and F/W 2011-2012 made me realize that she’s one of the talents that everyone should watch.

ONE to One: Interview with MEGHAN WALSH

Jhon Jairo Santos: Hi Meghan how are you?

Meghan Walsh: I’m good, Jhon how are you?

JJS: I’m good , thanks for asking. How’s a day in the life of Meghan Walsh ?

MW: A day in my life, well it depends of where I’am off course,but when I’m in India its very nice and relaxed, I wake up with my staff and everyone comes in and does the flowers around the house we get up to do yoga, we go out and do what we need to do at the bazaar and things like that, but when I’m working in New York, Miami in other parts of the U.S.A, Morocco maybe some parts of Europe of course everything is craziness, when I’m in those places I have to be giving interviews, taking care of the collections, making sure everyone knows where they’re going, orchestrating and then being me to, so its a little bit hectic but its fun, its worth it.

JJS: What is fashion for you?

Fashion for me its art,I honestly think its a form of art that people can really enjoy and feel good on it , not only feeling good of viewing a painting or a piece work but feeling it and appreciating,and how it makes people feel . I really love fashion , I love to see how its gone up and down , see the different trends, where its moved over the years and where is gonna go in the future , I think that I’m definitely here to make a little bit of my own statement in fashion .

JJS: Can you tell us the name of your collections from Spring/Summer 2011 & Fall/Winter 2011-2012?

MW: Well the name overall is Blank silk by Meghan Walsh, but of course we have different stories for each. Spring / Summer 2011 we focus more on Tunisian stunning women culture in India mixed with 20′s and 30′s style, and just trying to show that sophistication and the relax mean of garb and what that lifestyle brings, for the fall winter we focus on an Expat Jazz band that ran away to India on a train with their trunks, when around playing music and found real love for the Army influence specifically in the Plunge region. I try to combined all those ideas, that’s why I think makes it a very interesting collection with a particular different aesthetic.

JJS: What kind of fabrics and materials did you used for both collections?

MW: I only used silk, I also hand painted silk for the bespoke pieces, for the fall collection we incorporate a lot of heavy silk brocades, cashmere, pashmina but off course always keeping silk as the main in fabric in all the pieces.

JJS: Who are your favorite designers?

MW: I really admire Donna Karan, I love Dianne Von Furstenberg for her longevity, her work with prints and of course I love Lanvin, Halston and Hermes, we are very close with Hermes and I absolutely admire the label and the lifestyle they been promoting trough the years.

JJS: Top five people you consider fashion icons?

Well, I would say my brother his just sixteen and his my top fashion icon, the way he style things and puts them together at his very young age is just owing to me, of course no one knows his name but is very special to me and that’s why I admire him.

My other favorite fashion icons would be Angelina Jolie, Scarlett Johansson, Natalie Portman (I really admire their style), those are some of the women that I would love them to wear Blank Silk style.

JJS: Can you describe your collections with two words?

MW: Relaxed and Sophistication.

JJS: How you manage your ideas staying truth to your aesthetic?

MW: I really try to stick with what my visions are, I faith and wait after each collection, once all the mayhem is over, I really take time to look to art, music, history and everything that I love and see how that mixes together, and whatever concept that comes to me I try to make a crazy story on my head, for me its just sticking to the original vision and those first sketches that I do, you know once I get the vision its about 24 to 48 hours of seating by myself and staying up all night and try to finish all those sketches, gain it and then its done, I’m really sticking to those original things and not letting them go.

JJS: Do you have any names for each of the garments if so can you give me some of them and tell me why you choose those names for the pieces?

MW: Absolutely, for the first collection we named them by using traditional Indian names to kind of incorporate the idea and trying to keep the focus on the fusion of Americana -European style with that Indian inspiration, we used names like Lakshmi and Devin all these beautiful traditional Indian names that represent best the garments.

JJS: So tell us Meghan which are going to be your next plans in the fashion industry any hints?

MW: Continue on with my label Blank Silk, again my vision as I said before is to build an empire and it will go into home, menswear, spa, lingerie, baby. I’m really excited about that, next year I’m planning to launch the menswear line and to offer men these days a variety of new options with relaxing silhouettes and apply all the traditional skills that we have going on.

JJS: Meghan thank you so much for accepting this interview, I’m glad you took the time to have a talk with us.

MW: I’m so glad you we’re able to come, thanks to you and of course Metrovelvet.

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