FWTT: The Cloth

28 July 2010 No Comments

Fashion Week Trinidad & Tobago 2010: Rea McNamara picks from the Front Row

After Claudia closes the shows, The Cloth’s Robert Young and I ride the elevator up to my suite with buyer Ingrid Laballe. I had pulled pieces for a shoot, so Robert’s iconic appliquéd designs were left on a rolling rack in my room. Laballe flicks hangers, eyeing orders for her Pointe-à-Pitre-based Kod, one of the top Caribbean fashion boutiks. “I like this very much,” she tells Young of his patchwork ‘WORKER’ nehru denim jackets, harkening to his political roots as a former trade unionist’s son.The colourful lady pom-pom shorts however, “will need to be bigger. You know how my customers are a little older.” The request is softened by Laballe’s smile; a deal is made, hinting a good future for Trini 2 de Bone chic.