Raquel Allegra – Recycling Queen
20. February 2009 Designers & Labels
With due respect, It-Girls bore me away. Usually.
Most of the time, it´s just an expression for the rich-born with bad taste.
Detox today, Botox tomorrow, party as business and desperate trials to stay young, thin and beautiful often make me miss the substance and let “It-Girl” sound more like defamation than a compliment.
That Raquel Allegra hit the US-headlines as “It girl in the fall of ‘08″ thankfully hasn´t anything to do with a rich daddy or a secretly launched amateur-porn video, surprisingly, she became an It-Girl because of talent. Rare occasion, isn´t it?
With jail clothing, the young US-designer won the hearts of the critics.
Out of old t-shirts from the La Country Jail, the former Barneys New York and Issey Miyake designer developed a stunning collection of compelling dresses, gowns, t-shirts and tunics, that cover the span between progressive design and nostalgic feeling, intelligent presence and erotic discretion, urban sex-appeal and modern class with asymmetric cuts and deconstructed cotton.
For me, one of the most remarkable summer collections i´ve seen so far for 2009.
More information about Raquel Allegra can be found on Shopflick, there are some nice interviews of the sympathetic designer and of course, available pieces to shop.
Photos via Shopflick & Raquel Allegra
When Coco Chanel opened her first shop in 1913 in Paris, no one would have been thought that this woman would become one of the most influential designers of the 20th century, a role model for the industrially expanding world and a precursor for female independence.... 
Don´t worry, What´s Wrong With The Zoo isn´t going porn - instead, I have a look towards south. To Munich, Germany. In the midst of the Glockenbachviertel, the AMEN Store doesn´t only hawk unique mirroring but also cares about the good style. (read on) 
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