Press « Deco Modiste

Press

June 10, 2011 – NW Source Minding the Store – Coverage of the Deco Modiste and Lekkerlife Trunk Show

These feminine styles are very flattering. I’m kind of obsessed with the Bonjour dress from Lekkerlife — the perfect “going out” dress for the summer. The red Ava jumper from Deco Modiste is also very cute — and perfectly styled with those roller skates. Both collections fit right in with Velouria’s carefully curated indie chic.

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June 23, 2010 – Seattle Weekly – Open Trunk

Kimberlee Iblings designs and sews her women’s-wear line, Deco Modiste, in a boxy Georgetown art studio squeezed in between the Smarty Pants sandwich joint and the popular neighborhood dive 9lb Hammer. She also lives there with her boyfriend, painter Edward Matlock (whose work is showing right now at All City Coffee). Typically, much of the studio space is taken up by the couple’s art supplies, Matlock’s two motorcycles, and a ridiculously obese cat named Patch. But on Saturday, the studio will be transformed into a showroom where Iblings will hold a trunk show with her friend and fellow designer Gwen Stubbs, whose line is called Lekkerlife….

Iblings and Stubbs both attended the New York Fashion Academy in Ballard, and both sell their clothes at Velouria in Ballard and Capitol Hill. Last year around this time, Iblings was feeling some financial pressure. “I couldn’t pay my car insurance bill,” she says. So she and Stubbs decided to open the studio doors during Artopia and see what happened. Both ended up selling enough pieces to make a profit and pay their bills. This year you can stop by Iblings’ place again and check out the Deco Modiste and Lekkerlife summer collections, as well as remnants from last year’s winter lines.

Iblings draws heavily on vintage influences, particularly the 1930s. “I started off doing costume design for theater…The plays were from the ’20s and ’30s. I did a lot of research into that era and just became enamored with it,” she says. “I like the types of fabrics they were using. They were really soft and drapey, but very well-tailored. They showed off the female form really well.” Iblings’ part-time job as a glassblower’s assistant requires lots of travel, and she sources all her fabrics on the road—her current collection includes prints from Arizona and Minnesota.

Deco Modiste for summer includes such throwback pieces as smart, knee-length pleated skirts ($89), a pewter-blue drop-waisted dress ($148), and a wide-legged powder-blue jumpsuit ($159). But Iblings is particularly focusing on the wrap dress right now—it’s more popular, she says, because it fits women of all sizes, unlike stretch fabric. The standout piece in her summer collection is a pale yellow wrap dress with tiny pearls, gemstones, and quilted flowers patterned down the front ($189). Iblings does all the beading and embroidery by hand.

Stubbs is also a vintage devotee; she says her current collection was influenced by Amelia Earhart. “Her style was practical, but at the same time it had a simple elegance to it,” she says. The line includes structured knee-length skirts ($110), plaid sundresses adorned with ruffles ($140), and an orange-and-tan sundress with adjustable straps and an elastic waistband ($105).

Stubbs also draws from European style—her mother is from Holland, and “Lekkerlife” means “the good life” in Dutch. “I like the simplicity of European fashion. Women over there will own just a few pieces and kind of wear them out. They look like they’re not trying,” she says, “even though we all are.”

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October 7, 2009 – NW source/Seattle Times – Green is Glamorous on the Runway at Eco Lavish Fashion Show Oct 9

“EcoLavish is billed as Seattle’s only eco-friendly fashion show featuring up-and-coming and established designers from the Pacific Northwest.

This year’s show will feature the creations of Deco Modiste, whose head designer, Kimberlee Iblings, grew up in a seamstress family and has a costume design background.”

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September 23, 2009 - Manners Maven – Ballerinas Blayne and Bacon (All for Fall Recap)

“Not the best picture, but here we are in Kimberlee Ibling’s costumes for the Seattle Art Museum’s Masquerade Costume competition. Her designs are being judged by Project Runway’s Blayne Walsh and International Academy of Design and Technology’s Fashion Director, Monir Zandghoreishi.”

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June 15, 2009 - Bellevue Reporter - Parasol Party Raises Funds (Review and Photos)

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June 15, 2009 – Bonne Vie’ s Parasol Party Review (with photos)

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June 11, 2009 – Urban Fashion Network’s Parasol Party Wrapup

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June 3, 2009 – Seattlest – Courtney Russell Brings the Runway Under her Umbrella

“The Parasol Party is a brand new fashion show featuring local rising star Kimberlee Iblings, roaming photographers, exclusive shopping, desserts, cocktails, and a complimentary pampering room overlooking the Clise Mansion gardens with free spa services from Julep Nail Parlor and Bellevue Massage. Kimberlee Iblings, proprietor of Deco Modiste in Georgetown, hand-produces her line of vintage-inspired, natural fiber clothing and was featured most recently in Seattlepicks.com and at the EcoLavish Fashion Show, also produced by Russell.”

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June 1, 2009 – Urban Fashion Network for the Seattle PI - “The Parasol Party”

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May 1, 2009 – Seattle Picks – “The Art Deco Mecca”

From Barney’s to Louis Vuitton, we love the swank of downtown Seattle. But sometimes we like to get outta the busy craze of modern urban living and take a leisurely walk through the neighborhood. Especially when the ’hood maintains its charming 1950’s vintage appeal, from old-fashioned architectural facades to quaint blue-collar mom-and-pop businesses.

And Deco Modiste in Georgetown fits right in with the neighborhood. Inspired by vintage 1930’s and 1940’s costume theater, Deco Modiste takes a traditional, old-school approach to women’s clothing and service. Like back in the old days—before the mass accessibility of ready to wear, when custom tailoring was the norm—this boutique hand creates every single garment and custom fits each piece especially for you. But fear not, fellow recessionistas, Deco Modiste is easy on the eyes and the bank account.

Using natural fibers like 100% cotton, linen and silk, all made in the good ol’ USA, Deco Modiste walks the walk when it comes to fashion artistry.

And since they’ve set up shop in a historic mid-century machine factory, it’s like taking a stroll down a memory lane of vintage cuteness.

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March 2009 – Minding the Store: NW Source article for Deco Modiste Showroom sale

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October 2008 - NW Source for Thread Show