Reem Acra — Dreams Do Come True!

The underlying inspiration here could clearly be all about dreams. It’s as if these pieces belong in a magical fantasy-world of some sort. Each look is imaginative, dreamy, and stunningly eye-catching. But when I speak of dreams coming true, the reference is more personal. I’ve been a huge fan of Reem Acra for quite some time now. Receiving my first ever invite and being at this show was an out of this world, unimaginable experience. It’s quite easy to label this as “A dream come true!” Being exposed to such phenomenal beauty was most certainly an honor to be a part of, but was also a truly enjoyable experience. And so with that, here are some of my favorite pieces from Reem Acra’s F/W 2015 collection at MBFW, Lincoln Center Salon.

But onto the actual inspiration for this beautiful collection. Designer Acra was inspired by Stevie Nicks’ “24-Karat Gold Collection” exhibit last fall of digitally reprinted self-portrait Polaroids from the Seventies. The photos evoked the particular time in that decade when retooling the Victorian aesthetic was rampant. According to Acra, “This put me in a mood, I got inspired, I started to dig in my archives and found pieces of embroidery, feathers that I had collected since I was five years old. I was transported to my own world.”

This world was a decadent fantasy of beads, lace, tulle and, of course, embroideries. The bulk of the lineup was composed of short dresses, mainly with long sleeves or fur topper. There were signs of Nicks in the collection — handkerchief hems and Victorian pouf-sleeve tops and jackets — but the mood veered toward vintage, and even Ottoman at points, given the opulent metallic laces and embroideries. The use of color is also quite entrancing, lavender, golds, metallic, sparkles, bright purple, ice pink, and more!

But the truly captivating aspect of these pieces, a tried and true signature for Reem Acra, is in the intricate details — the embellishments, the lace, the beading. Each look is so intriguing, eye-catching with every twist and turn, from each and every angle.

Speaking of angles, some great shots of these pieces are from the backside. The gorgeous trains are breathtaking, even more lovely details to take in. Reem Acra is a staple for most major red carpets and I’m sure as this year’s award shows continue on, and even into next year’s busy season, we will likely see some of these pieces again!

Hair/Makeup/Beauty — From the hair to the makeup, the beauty look at Reem Acra was inspired by rock legend Stevie Nicks. “The inspiration of Stevie Nicks gives it a lot of fantasy,” said Didier Malige, working with René Furterer. “The idea is that there is a feeling of couture, but it’s very individual.” Using a variety of texturizers, Malige described the final look, which had the hair close to the head with a couple of kinks as, “controlled and uncontrolled.”

Mark Carrasquillo put the focus on the eyes for Reem Acra by dusting a gold shadow on the eyelid, inner corner and under the eyes. “It’s a really luminous eye,” noted Carrasquillo. Finally, he topped the lip with balm, leaving it bare. “Everything that’s done is really blended out,” Carrasquillo said.

Miss Pop for OPI mixed two shades called Cosmo-not Tonight Honey, a metallic peach, and Up Front & Personal, which is a glittery, light gold. “It’s like your fairy godmother waved her magic wand and dusted your nails with gold magic,” said Miss Pop. “The clothes have all these metallic embellishments both silver and gold, and we wanted to make sure that it felt very Stevie Nicks. With this nail, we wanted you to get lost in the glitter the same way you get lost in her music.”