Islandistas around the tents at NYFW

Islandistas were not just on the catwalks (in abundance!) during the recently ended New York Fashion Week - plenty of them were also in the front rows at shows as well and at the hot parties and after-parties during the week.

It was like CARICOM in de place, with fashionista islandistas from Antigua, Cayman Islands, Trinidad, Jamaica and Grenada just to name a few!

Check out the pics to see the island chicks (and man) we spotted at NYFW.

[caption id="attachment_2021" align="aligncenter" width="280" caption="Antigua-born stylist June Ambrose goofing around with Miss Jay."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2022" align="aligncenter" width="241" caption="...And with half-Grenadian singer Estelle."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2023" align="aligncenter" width="305" caption="Domincana-boricua actress Zoe Saldana taking in a show intently from the front row."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2024" align="aligncenter" width="178" caption="Cayman Islands girl and Victoria's secret model Selita Ebanks at the Rebecca Taylor show after party. She also took in Rachel Roy's show the same day."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2026" align="aligncenter" width="264" caption="Trini-American designer/video director/party promoter Vashti Kola at Rachel Roy's show."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_2027" align="aligncenter" width="280" caption="Jamaican-American model Tyson Beckford taking in the G * Star show with a friend."][/caption]

Islandistas turn out for Rihanna's Rated R album launch party

The launch party for Rihanna's Rated R album was held last night at the Juliette Superclub in the Big Apple and pure hotness ensued from the islandistas in attendance.

They were led of course by Ri-ri herself in a spiky gold dress and gold Louboutins that aren't even being sold to the public yet - ye, a so de girl hot.

Check it.

[caption id="attachment_1774" align="aligncenter" width="321" caption="photo via theybf.com"][/caption]

She was accompanid by BFF Melissa and changed into a red look later that night which we're not quite as enamoured of... though she is working the sheer black stockings trend that is making some waves right now.

[caption id="attachment_1775" align="aligncenter" width="313" caption="photo via theybf.com"][/caption]

Cayman's own Selita Ebanks was also working this look at the event in sheer tights, a big, luxurious fur and long leather gloves.

[caption id="attachment_1776" align="aligncenter" width="288" caption="photo via theybf.com"][/caption]

Trini-descended 'socialite' islandista aka the chick people love to hate, Ms Genevieve Jones in a dress that looks like something a slutty pixie would wear - with the sheer bodice and kerchief-hemmed skirt. Only Genevieve could get away with it.

[caption id="attachment_1777" align="aligncenter" width="320" caption="photo via theybf.com"][/caption]

Islandistas on the fashion scene

As the holidays approach, islandistas have been making some moves on the modelling scene - both the professional catwalkers and the celebs.

Selita, Selina and Shena have all been visible recently.

Teenaged newcomers, Martinique's Selina Khan and Jamaica's Shena Moulton, both scored holiday campaigns for Gap. Selina is featured in the American Gap posters, getting skippy with other models in a red flannel look, while Shena is part of the crew backing up rapper Pharrell in the Japanese Gap promo. Check out the pics below.

Estelle is also featured in the Japanese Gap holiday print campaign, on her own, in a menswear inspired look that we really like.

Meanwhile, Selita walked the runway last night with the rest of the Victoria's Secret Angels in their big annual holiday showcase - and looked fabulous both on the runway, rocking out with the Black Eyed Peas and on the red carpet after the event, as you can see below.

Islandistas out and about - Jourdan, Selita and ... Foxy?

[caption id="attachment_1504" align="alignleft" width="259" caption="Photo credit: Fashionologie"][/caption]

  She might be big pregnant but that is not stopping our favourite islandista model Jourdan Dunn, from making the scene during the Spring/Summer 2010 fashion season.



 

First, she was made an appearance for Vogue's big event, Fashion's Night Out in London and then she made it over to New York City for Fashion Week there and hung out  on the front rows and backstage with friends like Sessilee Lopez.

And now she's popping up at her hometown's own, London Fashion Week, taking in the Top Shop Unique(above) and Issa shows (below).

 

And it looks like pregnancy agrees with Jourdan as she is looking mighty perky in the cleavage department nowadays, especially in that Issa maxi dress.

Other islandistas have been out and about recently.

Caymanian Selita Ebanks made an appearance at the New Yorkers for Children charity ball last night in a gorrrr-geous yellow J. Mendel gown.

And on the less than fab side, Trini-descended former jailbird and (former?) rapper Foxy Brown surfaced at the VH1 Hip Hop Honours last night. Looking ... like this.

What precisely is going on here? Nobody could have told her this was cute. Damn it, Foxy.

Hot Islandista style

Islandista Rihanna and Selita Ebanks hit the scene in recent days looking as hot as a Caribbean summer!

First Rihanna was at the London premier of Inglourious Basterds in a black Alexander McQueen jumpsuit. Now we are not real big on a lot of jumpsuits/playsuits out there - too many folks wear them badly and end up looking like either a mechanic or a baby with a disturbingly sexy onesie.

But of course Ri-ri rocked it out... with mounds of pearls, a dramatic pompadour, lace gloves ruby red lipstick and attituuuuude gyal!

[caption id="attachment_1297" align="aligncenter" width="281" caption="photo source: theybf.com"][/caption]

Go easy on Rihanna & Selita's zippered confusion

Evan Rogers, the man who discovered Rihanna is pleading with the public to go easy on his protege, in the wake of wide-spread anger at her for allegedly returning to Chris Brown after he beat her on February 8th.

Rihanna lived with Rogers and his Bajan wife Jackie for over a year in Connecticut while they prepared her demo and shopped it around to record labels. In the past, Rihanna was very close to them, calling them 'Uncle Evan' and 'Auntie Jackie'.

Speaking to the Barbados Nation, Rogers reminded folks that Rihanna is just barely a woman, saying:

" At the end of the day, people forget that at 21, your perspective is very different. These kinds of things can happen to anyone, whether you're a celebrity or not."

In other islandista tid bits, Caymanian (or is it Cayman Islander? I will have to ask one of my CI people) Selita Ebanks attended the dinner premiere of Valentio's 'The Last Emperor' in a zippered, lacy, sequinned, cut-out mini-dress that was as confusing looking as that description just was.

No, Selita.

We very much do not like. It look like federation and that bubby looking like Cinque from Amistad ... "give us us FREE!"

 

Still ent like it from this angle neither. We usually love Selita but this outfit fail.

Islandistas' fashion hit and miss

Islandistas Selita Ebanks and Genevieve Jones were a fashion hit and miss respectively last night at the Women’s Coalition for Empowerment and Opportunities Fundraiser to Benefit Shine On Sierra Leone.

Selita was fabulous in a blue and black number with a fanciful origami-fold skirt... love that trend!

[caption id="attachment_394" align="aligncenter" width="420" caption="Photo by Shawn Ehlers/WireImage for GQ"][/caption]

 

Genevieve on the other hand... um... she was draped in fake flowers. We really don't know how else to describe this ... outfit.

[caption id="attachment_396" align="aligncenter" width="401" caption="Photo by Shawn Ehlers/WireImage for GQ"][/caption]

We don't get it either.

In other fashion notes, Rihanna rocked a sexy cowgirl look at her rehearsal for the upcoming American Music Awards  that would look absurd or cheesy on most people and managed to make it look fierce. I guess it's like a college sistren of mine used to say 'it's not what you wear, it's how you rock it'.

Selita Ebanks rocks the wings

 

Islandista Selita Ebanks rocked the angel's wings at the Victoria's Secret fashion show last night in Miami. Cayman Islands-born Selita is of course one of the Victoria's Secret Angels (ie, one of the THE hottest modelling contracts to have) and worked the runway for the annual VS show which is one of the most hotly anticipated shows in fashion, especially leading up to the holiday season. Check out another hot shot of Selita below.

Islandista 'It' Girls

Maybe it's just a coincidence or how the stars are aligned right now but I have noticed that an increasing number of the 'It' girls making waves over and away these days are also islandistas - or at least islandistas by descent.

Now what do I mean by an 'it girl' ? After all, it's still debated whether the term is a compliment - indicating a young woman at the peak of her fame and celebrity who is praised and copied for her style and personality or whether it's a bit derogatory - an aimless, narcissistic party girl/socialiate who can't let any dog fight miss her and is always angling to get in front of the cameras. Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian are described as 'it girls' (shudder) but then again so are genuine talents with actual careers such as Keira Knightley.

For my one - it's a young woman who is a bit of both - she definitely has to have an innate sense of style and be imitated - fashion is probably the biggest element of true 'it girl-dom'.

She is someone who not only goes to but is invited to all the hottest events. And especially in this day and age she is definitely someone who occupies that voracious and rapidly-growing world of media celebrity - the blogs can't get enough of her,  the fashion magazines are in her thrall and her personal life and style are breathlessly tracked. Perhaps it is too hard to define. Let us leave it to the French who put it so beautifully. Simply put an it girl is a young woman that has that certain 'je-ne-sais-quoi'.  

And it so happens, some of the hottest it girls on the scene right now are straight from the islands or at least of islandista extraction.  

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

The most obvious islandista it girl on the scene right now is Rihanna.

(photo credit: YBF.com)

The Bajan songstress is beloved by both black blogs and mainstream fashion mags for her edgy, 80s influenced sense of style, particularly since the release of 'Good Girl Gone Bad' which catapulted her above the many other RnB popstresses such as Ciara and Christina Milian into a different dimension. Her asymetrical cropped do spawned a million imitators in the last year or so and now that they have all caught up, she has gone and changed it up again, with a throwback short, bowl cut a la Halle Berry in the 90s - but with a funky twist.

I'm not so sure about those open-toed Balenciaga gladiator boots in the pic to the right but she is pushing that envelope as ever.

Another islandista it girl is model, Victoria's Secret 'angel' and former Nick Cannon fiancee (dodge a bullet dey girl!) Selita Ebanks from the Cayman Islands. In an interview with Sports Illustrated she made it clear she is a real-real island girl, talking up her love of fried snapper, calypso and dominoes and reminiscing about her childhood home with the zinc roof.

She is another islandista it girl that is firmly in the mainstream consciousness, as evidenced by the fact that she was listed in the 2008 edition Maxim magazine's (in?)famous list of Top 100 sexiest women. Not to mention she is at every event and live-blogged the New York Fashion Week for New York magazine.

Another, more controversial one is islandista-by-extraction (yes, I'm coming to like that term) the mysterious Genevieve Jones.

The allegedly half-Trinidadian Ms. Jones was tipping dangerously into that 'it girl for no reason with no job' area but she's got a line of jewellery now (whew!) which was featured in a recent edition of Vogue. Genevieve ... well she parties. And she dresses really well and knows all the right people. And even though she's not wealthy - apparently hailing from middle-clas roots in Louisiana, she's a socialite.

There was a rather scathing piece about her in the Wall Street Journal of all places (yuh reach girl!) in late 2006, that really set the blogosphere buzzing and tongues wagging, with folks questioning where she got the money to live in the style that she does. There was more than a hint of thinly-veiled racism and condescension in the piece with statements like:

Unlike many of her friends, Ms. Jones isn't an heiress and she lacks the Ivy League credentials and social pedigree of Manhattan's largely white society set. An African-American, she grew up in Baton Rouge, La., and didn't go to college.

The accusations that flew were not much nicer. Frankly, I love that this is madding them people.  No-one puts that level of scrutiny on the white party girls and socialites so why is it so very passing strange when a chocolate-coloured socialite sets the place alight?