Stacey Estrella

Monday, July 30, 2007 by

Now here's someone who barely made an appearance on this blog, seeing as how she got eliminated from the show just as we were launching the blog last year. Stacey has a new collection for her 'Estrella' line, which will be available this fall.


More pictures here.

We only really like the bottom two and even then, the one on the left looks way too "Jackie in Dallas" to us.

We also found an interview with her where she discusses her couture collection here:

"Okay. Break it down for our readers who are not well versed with the fashion business lingo.

SE: The haute couture, or "one of a kind" pieces, generate limited income because they are time-consuming, expensive to make and limited to very few orders.

Standard ready-to-wear is "manufactured to inventory", which involves high cash outlay, high expense, large production, and high risk because you don't know which items will sell in advance and you lose money on the items that don't. In these early stages of my company, my production strategy is "made-to-order".

I make a collection of samples that customers can choose from. They select swatches and silhouettes, we take their measurements and make their garments.

There is no inventory risk because I only manufacture when the customer has placed an order. And my design integrity remains intact because I've invested in defining the silhouettes, colors, textiles, construction details, and trims, in advance.

In simple terms, one must balance their haute couture business with the other areas of their collection that are accessible to a wider audience in terms of design and price in order to build their business."


Goce ($2,750) by Estrella Couture


Brisa ($1,950) by Estrella Couture

We like the couture line much more than her ready-to-wear, but are people willing to pay that much for a designer that no one's heard of? Good luck with that, Stacey.

(Estrella Line photos: Fashion Forward)
(Estrella Couture photos: Mona Brooks)

53 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, at least she looks better there than she ever did on the show.

GothamTomato said...

You beat me to it! I was thinking Jackie in Dallas as son as I saw that pink suit as well. And I was thinking Chloe's skating outfit when I saw the dress at the top.

The picture of her looks great though.

--Gotham Tomato

Unknown said...

so.. basically it's "couture" by an unknown designer (even though you have to be registered or whatever in france to be couture) that sells for designer ready-to-wear prices, with worse design and quality? awesome!

Anonymous said...

She looks amazing in that first picture. The clothes are OK. They look well made, but that's about it.

Anonymous said...

I really like her "couture" line, especially the second dress.

Anonymous said...

" TokyoDoll said...

I really like her "couture" line, especially the second dress. "

I don't know why but it reminded of Wendy Pepper. Is that bad?

Brooklyn Bomber said...

Wow. . . I don't like either of the two you boys like, but some of the pieces on the Bravo site are cute, and the couture suit is nice. She may not have the most original concept in the world, but that's true for a lot of successful designers. I don't see why she couldn't find a market.

Anonymous said...

I was sad to see her go so soon. She was very nice and her dress wasn't the worst on the runway. Too bad she had trouble with the machine. Just bad luck!

Anonymous said...

Yeah, good luck with that.
CP

Anonymous said...

The thing with these PR designers is that their designs - with a few exceptions of course - all look like they were slapped up without much creativity or a point of view. I usually like them, but am never WOWED by them.

Cedar said...

It's cute, but her couture is a little trendy. I don't know if I would spend that much money on something that specific.

Anonymous said...

One more vote for her couture line. It's gorgeous. I wish I could afford that.

Anonymous said...

As Cathy Horyn would say, "remarkably irrelevant."

Anonymous said...

I really like this collection. It's simple and elegant. Picture #3 is my favorite.

Anonymous said...

Interesting interview. Thank you for the link, Boys! She's no dummy that's for sure. Didn't she go to Harvard?

DolceLorenzo said...

She looks great! She should try again, who knows? It looks like she has a lot more experience now.

Anonymous said...

The couture suit looks exactly like a St. John. (Which is not a bad thing.)

But what is with the model on the top left? She looks like a pregnant marionette!

Anonymous said...

GO STACEY!

Anonymous said...

Great interview; she definitely knows what she's talking about, and I really like her ready-to-wear line. Good luck, Stacey!

Gorgeous Things said...

I don't dislike them, but none of them grab me. I do hope she can make it as a custom couturier. Kenneth King has done a decent job as one, and there are lots out there. It is tough going. I belong to an organization that has many custom couturiers for members, and they are always bemoaning the lack of clientele. If you believe the PBS Show, The Secret Life of Haute Couture" there are only 300 clients of the Couture Houses. I don't think there are a whole lot more people who go for custom. Sigh....

Brooklyn Bomber said...

Regarding how many people buy couture, is her couture line really couture? Or would it be more accurate to say it's high-end made-to-order clothes (or something else)? I mean, it's not like there are only two choices, ready to wear & couture, right?

Anonymous said...

I can really sense the sarcasm in the last line of this entry. Just because she got elimnated in the first challenge doesn't mean you should down grade her. Granted her ready to wear looks not so great, but her couture looks awesome, I think you should give her more credit. She's doing more than most people from the show.

Z

Anonymous said...

Stacey looks so beautiful in that picture. I always thought she was very classy too. I love her couture line, particularly the first outfit. I can see myself wearing that. I also don't find her prices outrageously expensive. The ready-to-wear collection? Not so much. Sorry, dear

Brandenburg3rd said...

I like the blouse in #3, the peasant top with ruffles. (Yes, I are a hippe, I are proud of it.) {sic}

Even if I had the money--ouch. That kind of money gets put into something with property taxes associated with it, IMO.

She should have been on the show longer. The concensus around here was, "Why did they send her home and keep Vincent?"

Anonymous said...

" Andrea said...

Regarding how many people buy couture, is her couture line really couture? Or would it be more accurate to say it's high-end made-to-order clothes (or something else)? I mean, it's not like there are only two choices, ready to wear & couture, right? "


This might answer your question.

"- COUTOUR is the French word for "sewing." Couture clothes are those that are fitted and sewn specifically for a client, often requiring several fittings for an exacting fit. The clothes may be specifically designed for the client, such as a one-of-a-kind wedding dress or a one-of-a-kind red carpet ensemble, or they may be part of a designer's couture collection, which are the pieces the designer shows that are available for custom fit.

Typically, couture pieces are made of fine fabrics or feature extensive hand work (like beading or embroidery) that drive up the price to thousands or even tens of thousands PER PIECE. Because of the cost, couture clothing, which once had 35,000 regular customers during its heyday after World War II, has an ever-shrinking regular buying base of about 1,200 people worldwide today.

Couture is also known as made-to-measure or bespoke (British).

- HAUTE COUTURE means "high sewing," and is the term reserved exclusively by those European fashion houses that offer made-to-measure apparel in or around Paris and belong to the Fédération Française de la Couture (which began as the Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture in 1868 by Charles Frederick Worth). Following strict guidelines regarding number of pieces shown per collection and number of collections shown per year, current members include venerable fashion houses like Balenciaga, Chanel, Hermès, and Valentino.

You can learn more about the Fédération Française de la Couture at: http://www.modeaparis.com

- READY-TO-WEAR, or prêt-à-porter (prêt a poor TAY) is designer apparel that's made ready-to-wear in standard sizes and sold through boutiques, better department stores, mail order, and online. While consumers can have pieces tailored to fit after purchase, customization is not included in the cost of ready-to-wear apparel. Many brand-name designers, like Vera Wang and Carolina Herrera, only show ready-to-wear collections, but still create a handful of couture pieces upon request for influential clients."

Anonymous said...

I read her interview and I can't really tell whether she's classifying her collection as haute-couture or just explaining the difference between "haute-couture" and "ready-to-wear."
On her site is just called "Estrella Couture." The problem is that the term haute-couture is used often very loosely by many American designers. It is annoying and presumptuous.

Anonymous said...

I absolutely love her COUTURE collection! Thank you, Bettie : )
Very tasteful and classy. What a fun, well written, informative site! I’m always learning something new from it!

Suzanne said...

Looks like costumes for 60's movies.
Meh.

Wasn't she like a lawyer or something?

Anonymous said...

I am trying not to be mean about these looks but to be honest:

1) Hate her ready to wear clothing. It is horrible. She needs to go work for a designer and learn what sells.

2) Its not couture. It is a handmade dress by an unknown designer. I guess if I sew a dress I can call it couture? Not likely. Plus those looks are not much different than what you will see in prom shops.

Jenn said...

How did she even get on the show?

I think the producers got snookered by the Stanford degree and Harvard MBA.

Anonymous said...

The models all look like their drugged, and are about to collapse. I was expecting for them to start drooling!

Anonymous said...

Wow, you guys really got your mean on for this one. Stacey looks great and her designs are darling! It's the kind of thing everyday people would wear. I love how it's kind of "the office meets girlie". Very cute.

I think she's on the right track!

Katyola said...

I think it's odd that the pencil skirts are too tight on the models. None of it's very flattering.

Anonymous said...

Maybe it's the heat, but I don't love this.

The ready to wear looks a little costume-y to me, and a little all over the place.
50's maternity, 20's flapper, 70's hippie-peasant-blouse, 40's femme....you get the idea. All on a Twiggy look-alike.

They don't look like they belong to one designer in one collection, and, individually, meh.

Brandenburg3rd said...

The more I look, the more I really, really dislike the model. Twiggy pulled it off; not this gal.

Still like blouse #3, though. ;-)

Anonymous said...

So true about the model. I've got no clue what the clothes look like on someone who hasn't got her toes together, her butt sticking back, and her shoulders a foot in front of her feet. Never mind the weird arm thing. Distracting!!!

Anonymous said...

Stacey, your collection is beautiful-very unique.You are so talented! Well done-you can be very proud.

Anonymous said...

I like her collection. It's simple and functional, meant for someone who doesn't want to have to fuss over their clothes and who appreciates comfort and practicality.

Anonymous said...

" Anonymous said...

So true about the model. I've got no clue what the clothes look like on someone who hasn't got her toes together, her butt sticking back, and her shoulders a foot in front of her feet. Never mind the weird arm thing. Distracting!!! "


Models do pose like that. Just open any fashion magazine and you will find models posing in every position, outfit, locale, and lens filter you can imagine.

Anonymous said...

I can't see how any of these looks are "practical" or something a "everyday" woman would wear. They look too fussy and uncomfortable for work and way too formal for other times. Also, using that awkward young model just underscores the fact that the clothes look designed for a more "mature" woman, especially with the fabrication and the overly modest necklines.

Anonymous said...

" Anonymous said...
...Also, using that awkward young model just underscores the fact that the clothes look designed for a more "mature" woman, especially with the fabrication and the overly modest necklines."

Mature women need clothes too, you know?

Anonymous said...

Wow, I have most of those patterns too! Maybe I could do couture!

I couldn't resist! There really are too many Simplicity patterns that mirror those clothes! (of course most of them are from the 50's and early 60's)

Gidget Bananas said...

I like most of the clothes pictured, and I'd sooooo wear that "Jackie in Dallas" suit. Hey, we old broads need clothes too!

Anonymous said...

It's definitely not groundbreaking, and certainly not 100% original but it's somewhat elegant and sophisticated. Most designers aren’t design thinkers. This isn’t to say that these professionals aren’t doing good design - they're just limited.

Anonymous said...

I think she should send her resume to Tim at Liz Claiborne, and rechannel her energy into fashion business because she clearly has a firm handle on that. The creative impulse seems minimal, but the business impulse to define markets and sell to them seems very strong. The way she talks about fashion reminds me of a million Harvard Business School case studies that I read during my MBA days. It didn't matter what the product was: There was just the same systematic approach to the process of manufacturing and selling to everything. Seriously, Stacey, you could make a fortune if you just went with your real instincts.

Anonymous said...

As an old broad myself, I still wouldn't wear these. Since when does mature have to mean living in another era? It's one thing to go retro, but another to make things that look like costumes from the sixties, right down to the Twiggy-wannabe model.

Anonymous said...

Stacy looks great, her clothes not so much.

Too many PR contestants want to make it on their own when they have neither the skills nor the capital to do that. The fashion industry is brutal - Narciso Rodriguez ultimately couldn't sustain his own label! Why do the people on PR think they will be the exception?

Anonymous said...

" agnes gooch said...

I think she should send her resume to Tim at Liz Claiborne, and rechannel her energy into fashion business because she clearly has a firm handle on that. The creative impulse seems minimal, but the business impulse to define markets and sell to them seems very strong. The way she talks about fashion reminds me of a million Harvard Business School case studies that I read during my MBA days. It didn't matter what the product was: There was just the same systematic approach to the process of manufacturing and selling to everything. Seriously, Stacey, you could make a fortune if you just went with your real instincts."

I agree, Agnes! She's very smart, knows the business; she only needs a little bit of experience with some more experienced designers.

Anonymous said...

LOVE LOVE LOVE the couture collection!!!

Anonymous said...

That last dress is so basic, why would anyone pay over $30 for something like that?

Vic said...

Er, no. She looks hot though.

Anonymous said...

I don't like it.

Anonymous said...

I mean, it's not like there are only two choices, ready to wear & couture, right?

Precisely, there are three choices; Stacey mispoke when she said there are only two alternatives. There's also pull manufacturing. This means you only manufacture to order (like couture) but make it in quantity (like RTW). My site is exclusively focused on how to produce a line to order. Doing it this way is much more profitable (unlike couture) and much less risky (unlike Stacey's "manufacturing to inventory").