By Brittany Furber

Photographer: The Don, Who Shot Me

Looks from Yonetté’s debut collection for Philly Fashion Week.

This season of Philly Fashion Week will see the debut of the brand Yonetté by the designer Kenisha Young. According to Eventbrite, Young's collection is one of the Made Institute’s graduate presentations. It will hold the event on September 24th, at 7 pm at One and Two Commerce Square. Young states the story behind her brand’s name: "The name Yonetté is a family name passed down through three generations. Symbolizing togetherness and the idea of being timeless." The significance of her brand’s name seems to tie into her brand’s mission and design approach.

Young explains that she wants to create clothing that is made and tailored for the individual wearer. The result, based on information relayed by Young, is a collection that is more inclusive and encompassing of women with a variety of body types. Her approach to design creation ties in with the "togetherness" that she previously discussed as being associated with her brand’s name.

The "timeless" quality that the designer associates with her brand’s name result from her design decisions and inspirations. This characteristic arises because of Young’s use of a size-inclusive design process and the incorporation of a blend of modern and historical inspirations. According to Young, her premiere collection takes inspiration from the Victorian Era, which is "one of her favorite fashion" periods. Young explains that this "era is renowned for its extraordinary corsets, super puffy bishop sleeves… large gathers and… bustles under dresses." She then adds that her work provides a luxurious contemporary take on these points of inspiration.

For some context, historically, it was around "1883 to 1889" when the bustle would become prominent, according to Lydia Edwards in How to Read a Dress. Edwards later explains that it came into development resulting from the evolution of the size and silhouette of the crinoline. The bustle would later supersede the crinoline, as detailed by Edwards. Bishop sleeves were popular in the Romantic and Bustle periods of the 19th Century, according to the Survey of Historic Costume by Phyllis G. Tortora and Sara B. Marcketti. As with the crinoline, bishop sleeves and bustles also had various iterations and modifications over time, as detailed in How to Read a Dress and Survey of Historic Costume.

One of the brand's modern Victorian-inspired tops has white detached bishop sleeves with a pale blue silk satin corset top, with gathers underneath the bust.  While one bottom in this collection is lime green silk satin flared pants with gathering and bow details on the sides, as shown and detailed at yonetteco.com. The top features finishings such as a row of buttons along the cuffs, with a ribbon around the wrists. The same green is used in a below-the-knee length satin, silk skirt with a slit and gathers on either side. Another top is peach and corseted and features detached puff sleeves, as detailed at yonetteco.com. She explains her designs incorporate design details such as "… draping…," corsetry, "boning, hand gathering, pleating, and ruching."

Photographer: The Don, Who Shot Me

From left to right and top to bottom: Look 1“Icy Blue Dream Corset Top” and “Double Ruched Matcha Green Midi Skirt”; Look 2:"Just Peachy Corset Top with Abstract Hem" and “Fuchsia Abstract Hem Midi Skirt;” Look 3 “Icy Blue Corset Jumpsuit.”

Color plays a significant role in this collection and makes a dramatic statement. The bold hues featured within this collection include peach, pale blue, lime green, and fuchsia, as shown at Yonetteco.com. Young notes that the inspiration for the color palette was also inspired by the Victorian period. She notes she was unaware of the number of colors available during this time and previously thought it possessed only subdued hues. She elucidates further by stating, "Bright colors were only used in garments worn during that time period to represent status and social class. I wanted to change that narrative to show that ANY and EVERYone can rock these bold colors."

For additional historical context, according to Pierre Desrocher, in the article "A Colorful History of Progress," bolder hues in clothing became possible because of advancements in dyeing. The color known as ‘ "mauve"’ was the first synthetic dye to become financially prosperous and was developed by William Henry Perkin, as detailed by Desrocher. In the article, Desrocher also notes that synthetic dyes gained favor because of their low cost and the plethora of hues that one could make from them.

Young explains that the colors in her collection "represent (ed) a positive time in…" her "… life."  She also notes that she asked others for their feedback about her palette.  She was glad to see that these hues also contributed to their happiness and "mood." She also adds that color plays an important role in relaying various meanings.

The fact that Young researched how her color palette is received ties into her brand's ultimate goal. She wants to utilize her fashion designs to improve the mood and morale of their wearers. Young states, "A woman should own every room she walks into. She will achieve that knowing that what she’s wearing was made JUST for her." She concludes by adding that achieving a precise fit allows wearers to feel enhanced confidence. As she notes early in the interview, her brand is functioning on a made-to-measure model, but she later details that she hopes to offer custom pieces in the future.

Sources:

Edwards, Lydia. How to Read a Dress. London & New York: Bloomsbury. 2017. Pp. 94.

Desrocher, Pierre. "A Colorful History of Progress." Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://www.google.com/search?q=victoriann+period&rlz=1C5CHFA_enUS940US940&oq=victoriann+period&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i13i131i433j0i13l8.6834j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#bsht=CgRmYnNtEgYIBBAAGAo.

Tortora, Phyllis G., and Sara B. Marcketti. Survey of Historic Costume. 7th ed. New York: Fairchild Books, 2021.

Made Institute. "Fall 2022 Graduate Fashion Show," Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/fall-2022-graduate-fashion-show-tickets-400928878067

Yonetté. “Beg For It Fuchsia Cut Out Dress” Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/beg-for-it-fuchsia-cut-out-dress

Yonetté. “Double Ruched Matcha Green Midi Skirt”." Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/double-ruched-matcha-green-midi-skirt

Yonetté. "Fuchsia Abstract Hem Midi Skirt." Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/fuchsia-abstract-hem-midi-skirt

Yonetté. “Icy Blue Dream Corset Top” Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/icy-blue-dream-corset-top

Yonetté. Icy Blue Corset Jumpsuit.” Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/icy-blue-corset-jumpsuit

Yonetté. "Just Peachy Corset Top with Abstract Hem," Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/just-peachy-corset-top-with-abstract-hem

Yonetté. "Knot Today Lime Green Flare Pants" Retrieved 9 Sept. 2022 from https://yonetteco.com/products/knot-today-matcha-green-flare-pants