dark glamour

...the book...

...ruben toledo "dark angel" illustration...

Gothic is an epithet with a strange history, evoking images of death, destruction, and decay. It is not just a word that describes something (such as a Gothic cathedral); it is almost inevitably a term of abuse, implying that something is gloomy, barbarous, and macabre. Ironically, its negative connotations have made it, in some respects, ideal as a symbol of rebellion. Hence its significance for youth subcultures. Today the words "goth" and "gothic" are popularly associated with black-clad teenagers and mascara'd rock musicians. But the gothic has many layers of meaning.


The imagery of death and decay, the power of horror, and the erotic macabre are perversely attractive to many designers. John Galliano, for example, has described the "Gothic girl" as "edgy and cool, vampy and mysterious." Alexander McQueen, Rick Owens, Yohji Yamamoto, and Riccardo Tisci of Givenchy have also created what could be described as gothic fashion. Ann Demeulemeester may reject the gothic label, associating it with the ubiquitous skull accessory, but Owens proudly recalls that he once was a goth, just as Vivienne Westwood was a punk.

I got wind of the exhibit: "Gothic, Dark Glamour" at FIT and I took a moment, a deep breath. Wewh! It gets really rarely amazing like that.

Sure, If you look at me now or have during the past decade, you may be like: "What the heck is she talking about!?" But I swear I was goth in my 20's. There are not many pictures to proof it but if you go back to my home town St. Gallen and talk to some of the regulars of the local scene, they will confirm it.

idil vice with model, both wearing idil vice fashion in 1994

They remember the days when I was working at the boutique Soho, where I was ultimately inspired to become goth. I think it was a girl with the name Andrea (Pipilotti Rist's sister) on whom I first saw the style: B. L. A. C. K. There were plenty of clothes to choose from right there at the shop and I started tapping into the world of Goth in St. Gallen.

model wearing an idil vice scull print top on the runway in 1997

There was a whole scene, a club, bands, people. It is all a bit sketchy now in my memory, but I remember jumping on it.

I don't believe I was ever caught up in the macabre side and philosophy of goth. I mostly, quiet bluntly and simply, just explored the fashionable side of the movement and probably the music. I used goth as a way to rebel. I was never esoteric nor particularly dark in my mind and character, in the contrary, I always kept a positive spirit and once I was over the period, I indulged freely in color with a vengeance.

But there is this strange fascination with goth that has always remained. Even today I sometimes still look a tad goth, depending on the mood of the day.

...picture taken by carl posey of idil vice, yesterday at the gallery...

I am not alone and goth is as alive as ever, everywhere I look:

etsy treasury labeled "goth"


mcqueen fall '09

By the time I entered the cold, humid hall at FIT museum I was completely taken in:

...a mugler dress and the original dress from the movie dracula...


...rodarte '08...

...mourning dresses...

Just 2 shots of the extraordinary jewelery displayed:


Needless to say the whole gamut of goth style on attendees at the opening night was there:


...and yes, I just survived another incredibly unique night out in NYC...

sign of the time

Very busy right now overseeing production of my collection which is being shipped starting next month. Just wanted to share this image which I thought was interesting and kind of a sign of our time (do you also always remember that Prince song?)

At a recent John Galliano show in Paris photographer Habbah snapped this shot of a model snapping her own picture of something that impresses her, while we look at her like: "What could be even more of a worthy subject than her own self in premier Galliano gear..."?


In a multi media world, this is happening all the time and media is created from all angles. It's just so damn exiting!

ahead of the game at last?

It's always difficult to move on to the next post if I happen to like the current one. You can see I have been hesitant to shove down The New Yorker cover for nearly a week now. But the time has come, where I must do the inevitable, if I want to keep the readers (you) interested in this feed that is.

But before I move on to a completely different subject, I would like to say how much I appreciated Patty Marx's article and the fact that she mentioned me in it.
Love the cover too! At first I thought it's the artwork of Love and Rockets comic book artists Los Bros Hernandez, Gilbert, Jamie and Mario Hernandez. I was wrong. The illustration picturing a few (!) Michelle Obamas smoothly modeling some garments down the runway is credited to Jean-Claude Floc'h.

Interesting that Floc'h puts emphasis on Michelle's unique color choices - of which I have been talking about in my previous posts - of the outfits along with some key style elements that the first lady is getting known for: classic sheath cuts, decorative waist belts, layering, etc. The only thing missing was something sleeveless.

While Michelle is wearing American made designs, she is - like all of us - sporting lots of China made wear (J.Crew) these days. It's therefore fitting that Patty's article, which dissects the history of production in the U.S.A, is a cover story of the style issue.

I am Swiss. We Swiss are very proud of the label "Made in Switzerland" or "Swiss Made"- if not obviously - and for good reason. Just look at the watch market, anything worth your time and money is Swiss Made, the same goes for chocolate sweets and sewing machines (Bernina), not to mention the fabulous St. Galler Kinderfest Bratwurst, which I am missing every day. The "Swiss Made" label is of quality.

So when I moved to New York in 1992, I did not care about anything but me, sure....

Then I started realizing that I am now producing an item made entirely in the U.S.A. At first I did not embrace that fact and lamented that I would love the Swiss made label instead. However, since I was now living and working here, I started to get friendly with the Made in USA label and I made sure it was known to the customer, via hang tags.

...imports once felt exotic: now homegrown goods seem special...
illustration silja goetz, the new yorker

Little did I know that in the year 2009 I am one of the very, very few left that is actually producing in New York, in a city where originally in 1910 something like over 70% of woman's wear was produced. I learned that today it is a mere 10%. Over 300'000 people worked in the garment industry in the 1950's, today the number is 20'000 and stagnating as we read. If you read The New Yorker article you already know that.

Little did I know. For me it was not really an option to out-source. As a small business, I wanted to keep production as close to home as possible, so that I could literally smell the oil burned by the industrial sewing machines. Sure in the early 2000's I considered, in order to lower the prices, producing elsewhere. There was Turkey, where my cousin (yes, I am half Turkish) was head of a production company. I made a couple of attempts to find a production managing company in NY. But after checking out my options, there was no way that I was in the position to move manufacturing. At that point it would have required a huge amount of money to add jobs (in a foreign country), which I did not have and did not care to look for. So I kept on producing my line in the fashion district just about a mile from my studio. It just made sense to me.

While more and more big companies are shutting down altogether, I have a strange feeling that I am, at last, ahead of the game. Able to sustain an economic downturn, because of the size and local of my business and the uniqueness (not mass produced) of my product, made entirely in the U.S.A.

...always close to the production facilities... day and night...
photo by carl posey

the new yorker

On newstands worldwide now:


Read the article Patricia Marx, On and Off the Avenue, “Made in U.S.A.,” The New Yorker, March 16, 2009, p. 64 featuring Idil Vice's collection "Fashion Rocks".


ABSTRACT: ON AND OFF THE AVENUE about buying American. What does the label “Made in the U.S.A.” mean, anyway? According to the FTC, it designates that “all or virtually all” of the product and its components were made in the fifty states, D.C., or any American territory or possession. Where else to begin the search for indigenous stuff but at Lord & Taylor, the first major emporium to spring up on Fifth Avenue? The retailarchy Bloomingdale’s has yet to go multinational. Mentions St. John Knits. What could be more American than Early American furniture? Shakers who can’t afford Shaker can acquire dovetailed pieces for their meetinghouses at Thos. Moser Cabinetmakers (699 Madison Ave, at 62nd St). Simon Pearce’s eponymous emporium (500 Park Avenue, at 59th St) has for decades specialized in glassware, ceramics, and sundry other breakables, most of them handmade in the company’s workshops in Vermont and Maryland. In 1950, nearly a third of employed Americans worked in factories. Today, it’s about ten per cent. Mentions Sephora, Guitar Center, Kaufman’s Army & Navy, American Apparel, An American Craftsman, Etsy.com, American Girl Place, Anna Sui, Oscar de la Renta, Fresh Meat, Lingo, Idil Vice, Jacques Torres, Kee’s, The Container Store, and Dave’s New York.

"If you can't be a rock star, you can at least wear one on your chest. A Swiss-born New Yorker named Idil Vice designs cotton jersey clothing silk screened with large images of pop icons. They are cool, but do you dare to have David Bowie staring out from the front of your strapless dress? Or Elvis on your high-waisted skirt, with tulle and petticoat attached? Or Billie Holiday posed on your goth bell-bottoms? (idilvicefashionrocks.com: $98.95, $400 and $269.)"

we treasure david bowie and rock 'n' roll

There is no doubt that Rock 'N' Roll is having a complete revival as of late... especially classic rock and it's icons (hello Fashion Rocks!) Everything rocks too, such as having a bank account with a specific bank now supposedly rocks... everyone wants a piece of the cool sounding action and so we all keep rockin'...


Etsy, one of the coolest marketplaces to date, is of course not completely save from the rock craze either and so it comes as no surprise that my pictorial Fashion Rocks garments have been featured countless times. Lucky me!! They make it easy and tempting to use them in Treasuries. I liked this new one created this morning by MrsPandora: Rock N Roll (stop the traffic). You can go to it directly here.

I've discovered another really cool spot to purchase journals made from original record covers!! They are dope!

Check 'em out! As I love sets in fashion, this is going to be my new accessory to run around with while wearing the Fashion Rocks collection, yeayyyh!

Go ahead put it on together! Buy the T. Rex Slider dress.

Someone already made another treasury pairing my B-52's skirt and one of those journals! Pair them up!

Go to this treasury right here...

Conclusion: Recycling rocks! Sets rock! Fashion Rocks rocks! Mock The Rock rocks!

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switzerland illustrated

A short version of the planned article in Schweizer Illustrierte was published last week due to the actuality of the running NY Fashion Week. Go to the e-magazine article!

back to the 80's again?

The week is over and what remains is a lot of impressions. Our sales meetings went well and I am looking forward to a pretty good season ahead. During the shows, good design won the votes and I basically liked everything that was optimistic!

There were a lot of vintage looks on the runways, 80's especially (just have a look at Marc Jacobs collection, or Michael Kors's), the big shoulders, punk hairstyles, club wear, day-glow colors, asymmetrical cuts, etc. The regular Joe's on the street were mostly dressed in decent shades of grey..??! What a contrast! A disconnect maybe?

I thought these 2 bystanders went into the prognosed direction and had a pretty authentic style:



And here a very last impression from the tents...


...see you in 6 months!