Fashion: Potsdam Now. Brand Of Berlin Fashion Week. Day 1

Fashion-wise all eyes are on Berlin from the 20th - 22nd January, as the capital hosts Germany's biggest fashion event: The Berlin Fashion Week. The brand is sometimes mistaken with the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, which is part of Berlin Fashion Week alongside numerous other fashion events. 

This year, a new one has joined the brand and was hosted in Potsdam, Berlin's little neighbor. For the very first time, the glamorous show called Potsdam Now! Fashion invites fashionistas, the media, bloggers and fashion lovers to the Schinkelhalle to adore and see newcomer designers - local and from Israel.

|The Location|

The three day event kicked off last night and I was kindly given a press pass to attend Potsdam Now at the Schinkelhalle. It is a very lovely venue, modern, with a fresh outline and a wooden ceiling, but sadly there was no public wifi, which made it hard during the evening to keep up with my media colleagues and to cover the event live. Maybe it's time to say 'Good Bye' to the times of free public wifi, which I always enjoyed in the UK, but I guess for German standards I'm far too spoilt to demand wifi. I mean this is Germany, pay for your Internet yourself you begging cheapskate!

Anyway, when I arrived at 5:30pm, the venue was already super busy with people and I had no problem picking up my press pass. No goody bags this time! Some of the staff were tense which showed in annoyed faces and made the atmosphere a bit...well...very German. Never mind, I found my seat in the front row and took some test shoots with my camera to test the lightening. I'm very sorry about the pictures, some of them are blurry but I've seen similar pictures from other photographers, so it wasn't just me struggling.

The fashion focus during the first night of Potsdam Now was on Israel. Did you know that there's an Israeli law that demands to credit all pictures edited with Photoshop? Or that models need to fulfill a certain BMI otherwise they aren't allowed to work in Israel? Ambassador Hadas Handelsmann, who opened the evening, charmingly explained 'we want to make sure, models eat more than just one or two salad leaves'. So let's begin, shall we?

|First Show: Shani Zimmerman|

The first show, by Shani Zimmerman showcased very casual and chic designs, nothing too fancy but very mature with a touch of boho. Flat shoes dominated the catwalk, lots of pastel, sand and white tones were key colours in her SS15 collection. Sequins and black where used for a more glamorous look, but most designs were made of floating material to present the effortless of summer. I found Zimmerman's looks very nice, because they combine fashion as art but are wearable at the same time.

|Second Show: Zion Anava|

The designer presented statement designs in dark shades teamed up with sequins and glitter, which was also reflected in the model's dramatic make up. Again, very chic and elegant designs, the material of absolute high quality with super classy cuts. Modern, stylish, bang on trend for a modern and independent woman. My favourite design was the mustard coloured coat in the picture above and the black glitter jumpsuit (model after the coat).

|Third Show: Frau Blau|

Wearable fashion presented by Frau Blau with a twist of quirkiness and of course lots and lots of blue (in all shades you can think of!). The label plays save and sticks to shift dresses. With clear cuts and the kaleidoscope print, all of the outfits were lovely to look at and would make perfect office and everyday wear. I particularly liked the black dress in the third picture and fell in love with the white dress in picture two and the fabulous printed scarf. This look screams after summer and when the model came on the catwalk I could literally feel the warmth of the summer sun and desperately wanted to head off to the next beach. Also, look at those antlers, aren't they très jolie?

|Fourth Show: Efrat Kalig|

Wow, you've made it through the entire post, congrats! Now you'll get a tiny feeling how long the event was. In between each show there was an 1h break, which I found far too long. I guess it went by very fast for the make-up artists and models, but really slowly after the third show which finished around 21:30pm. Most people left and I was nearly about to leave, too! Luckily I didn't, because Efrat Kalig was the absolute highlight of the entire evening. She presented absolutely, amazingly, beautifully, stunning Haute Couture fashion at its best.

Look at all the designs! Her show was on for full 40 minutes, bang, bang, bang, every dress a show stopper. Made of high quality material, her dresses where magnificent. Mostly lacy, floating, diva-like teamed up with sophisticated statement jewellery, oh my god, I can't find the words to describe it. Absolutely amazing and genius brilliant! I was so blown away by the outfits and I can see talented Efrat's designs easily worn by super models next year at the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.

Really enjoyed my first fashion show in Germany, though I'm always a bit reserved when I have to attend high end glamour events by myself. Thanks to the lovely lady sitting next to me, the evening was an absolute joy and full on success. Potsdam Now is on for two more nights, tonight and tomorrow which I have covered here Potsdam Now Day 3.

Thank you so much for reading today's post, hope you've enjoyed the fashion show and will be joining me on my next adventure. Let me know if you've ever been to a fashion show before, which designs you liked best and if you enjoy high end-glamour events. 

Till next time,

xx CAZ xx

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