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South by Southwest 2012 is Here

Last year, South by Southwest (SXSW) featured the first fashion component in conference history, “Style X,”. The event included a tour of Austin’s emerging boutiques, runway shows with SXSW musicians-turned-models, and major sponsors like Keds and American Apparel, as well as panels with industry professionals.

This year, Style X is back and it’s free for everybody! The event runs from March 16 – 17 from noon- 8 p.m., at the Austin Convention Center. Make sure you download the lookbook before heading to Austin, for the event schedule and exclusive information.

And don’t forget to check out my slideshow (above) for a taste of last year’s Style X. Hope to see you there!

SAT to NYC Via Fashion!

Photos by Bryan Rindfuss

Dreams do come true. San Antonio native Mandi Gallegos featured her new Mikailee Alton Collection at the PLITZS New York City Fashion Week, “Designer Showcase Presentation,” in which only 36 emerging designers were chosen to participate. The event, showcased in Manhattan’s Fashion district, coincided with the official Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week and allowed up-and-coming designers to affordably produce their presentation to industry professionals, investors, boutiques, buyers, and the media, among other interests.

A personable woman with an infectious energy, Gallegos claims that while she’s returned to San Antonio, she still hasn’t awoken from her dream. With a large dimply smile, she enthusiastically explained, “Honestly, it still hasn’t hit me! Even during the show, I was like, ‘I’m here, right? Is this real? I’m not dreaming?’ I thought for sure I would’ve broken down and cried but it really was so fast and it turned out to be everything I thought it would be.”

The dream began just a few weeks before the event, in mid-January, when Gallegos was “supposed to be taking a break,” or as much of a break as a single mother of three boys can take. “I don’t know how they [PLITZS] found me, but they emailed me directly,” Gallegos recalled. Just a few years ago, Gallegos never thought she’d live to see another day, much less live to see her dreams come true. In 2007, she was diagnosed with a rare brain illness and began chemo treatments. While lying in her hospital bed, she promised her parents that if she were to survive, she’d make them proud. Gallegos’s illness is in remission now, and she actually attributes her success as a designer to her regular doctor visits during recovery.

“When I walked out of the doctor’s office one day, I noticed that there was a mannequin in a window display and I didn’t know what it was. I walked in [the building] and the lady greeted me with, ‘Welcome to the International Academy of Design and Technology.’” Gallegos was given a tour of the school and by the time she reached the second floor, she was in love. She began school the following week. She continued working fulltime as a purchasing agent for Toshiba Business Solutions during the day, a company she’s been with for ten years now. “I’ve pretty much been on the go since my last chemo treatment. I never looked back. I kept going,” she said proudly.

However, Gallegos’s story gets, well, more interesting, as she could not participate in San Antonio Fashion Week (FWSA) a local, low-key event in comparison to New York Fashion Week (what I like to call Fashion Week with training wheels). She was anxious to feature her work, but just couldn’t make it happen. “I wanted to do it. They asked me if I would do it; I just wasn’t financially ready. I didn’t have enough money at that time.” In addition, Gallegos explained that she was “in the back” at FWSA—hard to believe considering that while showing her Mikailee Alton Collection in New York, she was not only approached by an investor, but was also contacted by a Project Runway casting director, who congratulated her and asked her to submit her work to participate in the upcoming season. Gallegos hasn’t decided whether or not to vie for a spot on Project Runway, and admitted with laughter, “I don’t know. I’m still a little nervous about it. I’m still contemplating about whether or not I want to do it!”

I asked Gallegos if she was already thinking about the next New York Fashion Week. But while she hopes to attend, she has her eyes set on producing a show in a place where all her dreams began: San Antonio, Texas. “I really think that having it here would be a blessing to me. If New York wants me, of course I’ll go. But I would really love to show here, a really big collection.”

The Mikailee Alton Collection features a unique array of dresses and skirts made in silk chiffon, baby silk and bridal satin in colorful hues including burgundy, magenta, pink champagne and teal. Most of the looks’ clean lines are accented with hand-made burnt pedals on the chest, back and neck area, while jackets are made with narrow sleeves and flared trunks.

China and the Art of the Toilet

(Warning, these images may cause you to cringe or barf. Hey, sometimes Gal about the Globe has to give you the bad news too).

By Diana Renee Rodriguez at Nana's Breakfast

One of my fondest Chinese memories is squatting in a public restroom with no stalls for privacy, directly across from another squatter with a lit ciggie in her mouth, a strained wrinkle on her brow and grunts which bounced around the four walls we shared. Females going to the restroom together was taken to a completely different level. Or, merely the idea of going to the restroom was taken to a level in which a Westerner, such as myself, found it momentarily challenging to grasp. That mental book of socially acceptable restroom etiquette is meaningless the second you touch ground in China.


The Toilet Paper Mystery
The Chinese invented the toilet paper 1,422 years ago. After doing my business in a Chinese public restroom, I'm left squatting over a stainless steel hole with not a single square of toilet paper in sight. At this point, I don't care if my bottom isn't pampered by Charmin's Ultra Soft tissue; A leaf would suffice! One may think that those innovative ancient Chinese genes would carry down to today's Chinese minds. But all I see is a sad failure in the toilet department after their ground breaking toilet paper invention many, many years ago.

Although scarce, there are places where you can find a roll of toilet paper nearby. They tend to be in Western restaurants such as KFC and McDonalds, or fancy restaurants and hotels. Unfortunately the Chinese restroom patrons, not used to the comfort of a roll of tissue beside them, have crazy toilet paper parties while using the facilities. And there aren't enough fúwùyuán (服务员, attendant) ladies that are willing to clean a tissue mess each hour. In conclusion, I learned to take with me my own personal supply of tissue paper. I returned home with a greater understanding and appreciation of the value of the toilet paper.