Lady LUX

Jen Awad has been making headlines ever since her first bout at Los Angeles Fashion Week in 2009, when a screaming fan landed her on the home page of the Los Angeles Times fashion blog, All The Rage. Although LadyLux wasn’t able to catch up with Awad at LAFW this past March, she was kind enough to give us a call and tell us all about her chic new Fall 2010 line and how surgical masks can be über inspiring.

LadyLux: How was Los Angeles Fashion Week and Concept?
Jen Awad: It was a glimmer of hope. I think that LA fashion week…People were kind of hesitant about it, but it really did come through at the last minute. It was great. There was a great response. A lot of the designers, who are new and up and coming, got their platform this time around… As opposed to designers to might’ve been a little bit more commercialized and established.

LL: Definitely. And you’re very young for such a debut.
JA: Yeah, I am.

LL: How old are you?
JA: Twenty-two.

LL: That must have been a big deal.
JA: Oh, yeah. I kind of just got thrown into it last year. I just wanted to have a show anywhere…at a club or something. Actually my first show (March 2009) was for BoxEight at LA Fashion Week last year. I was just completely overwhelmed. I had 4 days to prepare for the show and I had no idea it would be that amazing. I was so honored. I was 21 at the time. I was flattered that I got an early start.

LL: I know you did Fall 2010 for LAFW this year. How many collections have you had?
JA: That would be my third collection.

LL: Back to your 2nd show, BoxEight in 2009…I was reading online that a girl was actually hauled out for screaming?
JA: It’s funny because I had nothing to do with it. There were a lot of people that thought that I had planned that out. I don’t know, it was probably one of the models friends that screamed…then they had to pull her outside of the show.

LL: Was it a happy scream?
JA: I think so. I think it was an “excitement scream” as opposed to a “murder scream” (she laughs). Everyone thought it went with the aesthetic of the show. People were calling it “emergency room/rock” or something like that. It was completely unplanned. In fact, when I heard it backstage I was like “Oh my god, they’re going to stop my show. Someone died!”

LL: As you mentioned, the LA Times called your aesthetic at ‘09 LAFW “rocker/emergency room”…how would you describe your aesthetic?
JA: My aesthetic is a little bit of retro glam with a futuristic twist. I love the hourglass shape so it’s very contoured to the body. I always love to mess with cuts and I’m very traditional in that sense. But in terms of color and textiles, I’m very bold.

LL: I noticed in your 2009 BoxEight show, a model had the clothing wrapped across her mouth?
JA: Like a surgical mask. To be perfectly honest, I was on a plane coming back from Peru and there was this lady that was wearing a surgical mask. This was before swine flu and all that. I just loved the idea of that. Then I just turned it more into a homage to Arabic tradition. Funny enough, two months later swine flu broke out and everyone thought it was cool to wear them.

LL: I was wondering if it was a social commentary on women or something…
JA: Unfortunately it wasn’t (she laughs). I wish I was that quick…or I could prophesize through my fashion. Yeah, unfortunately I’m not that cool.

LL: You’re known as being an LA-based designer but you also have a complex cultural background. How does this influence your fashions?
JA: I’m half Egyptian, half Peruvian so I have a big character clash. Peruvians are very bold and out there. They say exactly what they want. Egyptians are very glitzy, very extravagant and they like to show off. I love the extravagance of fashion. I think we’ve been missing that for a long time. I like to incorporate that… there’s always gold or some type of metallic in my clothes. The colors are always very, very bright. The Peruvian side is in the cuts of my clothes. Everything is very form-fitted and structured.

LL: What are you working on right now?
JA: I’m working on my Spring/Summer 2011 line. I’m trying to find a home for my clothes…trying to get into a showroom. Basically, just establishing a foundation for this next collection. I feel like this is the time to really start planting my roots… in terms of branching out and getting my stuff into stores.

LL: What kind of stores do you see yourself in?
JA: I see myself in H Lorenzo… stores like Maxfield’s…we’re talking idealistic here!

LL: Could you ever imagine designing lingerie? For some reason I can totally see it in your designs.
JA: That’s so crazy because I absolutely love the whole concept of lingerie. I don’t wear it as much as I’d like to. I personally would love to do a line later on. Because I do believe in the hourglass…I do a lot of panels, boning and structure in my clothes. A lot of that comes from the concept of bustiers and corsets… really developing a shape for women.

LL: I was looking at your Fall 2010 collection, your most recent, and was comparing it to the Spring/Summer 2010 and found that they are incredibly different.
JA: That’s me. I’m a very emotional designer…which I hear you shouldn’t be. Every season everything changes. That SS 2010 line was coming from the nostalgia for old school fashion. I felt everything from other designers was so grey and so bland. Because of the time and the recession, I wanted to do a bright, bold, and vivid collection. As opposed to my Fall 2010, which was taking a different interpretation of what fall/winter is to me…a little old school traditional Dita Von Teese meets post-apocalyptic (she laughs). So, it changes…it changes. It’s all idealistic I guess. It’s what I hope to see.

LL: I really liked your Fall 2010 collection. But it’s a lot more conservative than you usually go.
JA: I want to show my range. I’m very young. I think a lot of people get summed up in a category and lose sense of their dynamic. They put themselves in a box. I don’t ever want to do that. I want people to know I’m capable of conservative… and sexy, flirtatious and everything.

LL: I noticed on your SS 2010 line that you had some screenprinting—ladies running with rosettes for heads?
JA: Actually, that’s a print that I made. It was called “the drunken roses” and it was my homage to the women of Los Angeles. We get all dolled up to go out, we look great, we’re beautiful, we’re having fun and then by the end of the night we’re a total wreck. They’re dancing on the borders of cocktail dresses. Originally, I haven’t ever told anyone this, they were an album cover that I made for my band…for our first EP. It was a raunchier version but I loved it so much that cleaned it up.

LL: Do you see yourself incorporating it into other collections?
JA: I would like to. If not “the drunken roses”, then something with that idea… these bodies dancing around. I’m definitely going to keep that around. I’m proud of it. I feel like there needs to be some consistency so people can recognize your work, like “Oh I know that.”

LL: If you had to pick a celebrity to epitomize your Fall 2010 collection, who would it be and why?
JA: Dita Von Teese. She was my complete inspiration. Just the way that she dresses…that 1940s glamour meets modern-day woman. She reflects it completely. I like how she hasn’t compromised her style for the times. That’s how I idealize my client to be…people who just don’t compromise their bodies for the sake of fashion. We’re in a strange time, where anything goes, which is great because people express themselves but it kind of goes in the wrong direction with people trying to get attention.

LL: You’re 22, graduated two years ago from FIDM, have had 3 shows…Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
JA: It’s funny because somebody asked me that in March. I just want to be around. I’m all about longevity. I don’t care to be hugely successful as long as I’m hugely consistent. I just want to keep making my line and do what I do. These days it’s hard to be consistent and do what you love. People start off in the right direction and then they lose it.

Extremely style savvy and not even 25, Jen Awad is well on her way to stocking the closet of Dita Von Teese and modern-day pinup girls. Stay tuned to her fashion doings by visiting her web site at JenAwad.com.

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