berlin fashion week feat. sebastian ellrich

Twice a year Berlin becomes an international location for fashion and lifestyle topics. During the Berlin Fashion Week, fashion enthusiasts, buyers, trade experts and the media interact at shows and awards ceremonies, collect information at fashion trade shows and attend exhibitions and off-site events.

After a slight (big) disaster with some local transport police, after ‘forgetting’ to pay for the U-Bahn we had to literally sprint through Berlin on foot, after being banned from the subway and eventually had to launch myself in front of a taxi to take us to Fashion Week I was not missing this opportunity. TIP: Berlin transport is not free but you can bend the rules slightly, a week long ticket costs about 65 euro, but the fine for getting caught is 40 euro, seems silly if you ask me… but be careful, after a thirty minute discussion with the police officers they let us off by three of us paying 10 euro each a mega saving of 90 euro, but not everyone will be so lucky…

I walk into a disused second floor warehouse, in the middle of Alexanderplatz, an up and coming fashion and cultural district in central Mitte Berlin. It is a cold January and walking up the various floors with the surge of fashionable people, I hit Mercedes Benz fashion week… Sebastian Ellrich style. When I arrived to the second floor the concrete structure was transformed into a out of the ordinary catwalk installation. Being greeted in a smoke filled room with mystical models in raincoats twirling umbrellas everyone was intrigued. Walking around the circular complex and peering into the different rooms manikins were transformed into models full of energy and enthusiasm. One room showcased a couple fine dining in eveningwear, whilst another shows models jiving to a piano player, one showcased a rollerblader collaging on a wall and another with a group posing and slouching on a brick wall.

The finale room featured fiveteen models walking backwards and forwards through the width of the room with the guests walking in-between for a more close up look. With all the models coming together for a catwalk show at the end, the tailored, resistant and timeless nature of Ellrich’s designs are apparent. With the Cole Porter classic ‘Just one of those things’ being played it was the perfect end to the show. Ellrich is hoping to bring his designs to the UK and I think they will fit in perfectly in the London high fashion ready-to-wear crowd. Mercedes Benz label him the one to watch, Ellrich is something not to be missed…