Ainsley in WWD

Ainsley has been featured in Women's Wear Daily!



The article reads:

Qi, a cashmere knit line based in New York, is spinning off a contemporary sportswear label called Ainsley. Retailing from $210 to $900, Ainsley incorporates washed silk, wool, moleskin, stretch leather and tweed in the patch sweaters, belted vests, cargo pants and some 40 pieces composing its fall inaugural collection. Grooving off a Seventies vibe, the palette features heathered and marled colors.

“It’s vintage with a modern twist,” said Jessica Bortko, Ainsley’s sales manager, adding that she hopes to achieve $1 million in first-year sales through better boutiques and high-end department stores.

To read it in its entirety visit wwd.com.

Ainsley

Qi presents to you our new contemporary sportswear label called Ainsley!

About Ainsley

What?
A collection of limited-edition pieces that have modern design and durability.

Who?
Ainsley is a woman of culture. She was born in Manchester, England and moved to the United States when she was 12 with her family. She fondly remembers going to Chelsea London on the weekends with her mother to shop for leather and tweed pieces where she was introduced to countless artists, sculptors, and musicians. Ainsley channeled her passion of work into her personal style.

Ainsley's style is both practical and self-expressive. She looks for pieces that have an amalgamation of the old and the new, such as leather miniskirts, patch sweaters, and vivid prints, as well as clothing that fuses her love of modern edginess with a classic British elitism.


Why?
Ainsley is a product of what she is experiencing in today's society: recession, war, global warming, the Social Age. She sees current fashion as unoriginal and doesn't follow the trends. She is tired of seeing the same designs and overpaying for inferior products. She creates pieces that reflect her own experiences and personal desires. Ainsley thrives on choice, durability, and versatility. She believes in a new fashion realism that clothes must work over and over, from day to night, and season to season.


Where?
New York

When?
Launching Fashion Week

Add Ainsley on Facebook and follow us on Twitter (twitter.com/ainsleyny) to keep up to date with the latest on Ainsley!

NYFW 2011

PC: Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week

New York Fashion Week begins tomorrow! That means hordes of editors, stylists, buyers, celebrities, and bloggers will hit the streets of New York dressed in designer duds. With fashion's power players showing off their enviable wardrobes, like Anna Dello Russo who prepares her 90 looks for fashion week six months in advanced, the rest of us are left scouring our closets for a stylish outfit.


PC: Sophia Neophitou/10 Magazine


Dressing for Fashion Week is always daunting. Low temperatures, icy winds, and unpredictable storms paired with long days, mile-long treks, and hectic schedules makes dressing chic a challenge.

The key is to stick with basic pieces that are comfortable and that can easily transition from day to night. Must-have pieces that we wouldn't be seen without are blazers, leggings, a Little Black Dress, a cozy sweater, and a statement-making jacket. Pair these essentials with some sky-high stilettos or over-the-knee boots and loads of accessories and you have the perfect look for fashion week.

For a LBD with an unconventional edge, try our Penelope Dress ($187.50)


Qi's sweaters are go-to layering pieces:


Zatanna Shawl Collar Cardigan ($120)


Wolfsbane Shawl Collar Cardigan ($295)


Nightwing Shoulder Pad Tunic ($88)


And to top it off, shield yourself from the winter winds in our Selina Long Puff Jacket ($295)


Are you ready for the fashion filled week?

Qi Spring 2011

Qi New York is pleased to present its Spring 2011 collection. Influenced by the allure of nature, design director, Karina Mazzilli, referenced four basic elements that construct our environment—Sky, Earth, Water and Air.

This collection highlights the fundamental necessities of life and pays homage to resources that are often overlooked and taken for granted. From prints that echo the earth’s contoured landscape to billowy dresses that feel light as air, the spring collection forms a connection between the manufactured and natural worlds.

Drawing inspiration from the depths of the seas, to the summits of mountains, to the grasslands of Africa, the collectiion features nautical stripes and maritime dresses, structured blazers with a utilitarian feel, and tribal prints that will instantly transport you to the humid jungles of Namibia.

Shop now at QiCashmereshop.com!

Spring Into Spring!

Shop now at QiCashmereShop.com!

Trend Alert: 2011 Sundance Film Festival

Celebrities gathered in Park City, Utah for the 2011 Sundance Film Festival, and in between the premieres of the new independent films, the stars gave a fashion show all their own.

Oprah, Demi Moore, and plenty more showcased their cold-weather style and proved that, with just a few basic pieces, it's possible to brave the cold and still look chic.

In a sea of leggings, knee-high boots, and puffer jackets, the stand out trend was undoubtedly draped knit sweaters.


PC: Sonia Recchia/Getty Images

Emma Roberts wore a shoulder pad sweater that had a draped, open placket to the premiere of Homework.

Meanwhile, Demi Moore put an alluring twist on the trend in her black Donna Karan open cardigan.


PC: Jemal Countess/Getty Images

It is no wonder that the draped cardigans were such a hit at the film festival. This universally flattering silhouette is easy, comfortable, and modern.

We absolutely love this trend here at Qi. If you want to steal the style of the stars, take a look at our cozy knits:


Summit Cardigan, $170



Solace Hooded Cardigan, $300



Ivy Cardigan, $262.50


For more styles, visit QiCashmereShop.com.

Black Swan Designers Turn Ugly In A Fight For Recognition

PC: Fox Searchlight Pictures

The Academy Awards nominated film, Black Swan has received a lot of media attention about its costume designs. To the delight of the fashion world, the sisters of Rodarte were hired to create the ballet costumes. Designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy worked to balance style and functionality when designing the tutus, all while remaining true to the film's intentions:

“We had an affinity for the subject matter,” noted Kate Mulleavy to the Huffington Post. “We had never done a film. … This would be a dream job in terms of just getting to make tutus. But, then we had, I think, something that allowed us to add to [and] access the psychology of the film in a different way, which was understanding the darker nature and more of the twisted kind of underbelly of that world.”

Now, controversy has erupted over the fact that the Rodarte sisters were not listed as the film's costume designers--the credit was assigned to a different costume designer, Amy Westcott. This means that should Black Swan get an Oscar Nomination for Best Costume Design, the Rodarte sisters would get cheated out of any credit.

In an interview with NY Magazine, Amy Westcott asserts that the Rodarte sisters only designed 7 looks--not all them.

Westcott explains, "The core ballet was designed by Zack Brown (for American Ballet Theater), and my department and I added some feather detailing to assimilate them with the White Swan."

To see more looks that the designers are warring over check out the intense trailer for Black Swan:


See Qi's take on the Black Swan ballerina by checking out our Domino Feather Tank Dress.



This body con dress adorned in luminous feathers retails for $162.50 and is available at www.QiCashmereShop.com.