Los Angeles Fashion Week Fall I 2003: Rami Kashou

Rami Kashou opened his April 5 show at Smashbox Studios in Culver City with a ballerina dancing on a rock-garden runway. It was a fitting introduction to Kashou’s design style: delicate, yet very strong.

While Kashou’s pieces sometimes seemed quite complex to wear, there was also a serene simplicity to his ensembles. The designer used rayon jersey in solid colors, including black, ginger, raspberry, tan and cream. Models wore draped and gathered blouses, wrap jackets and sweaters over pleated, ruched, and cropped pants and leggings. Dolman- and slit-sleeved blouses and mini dresses ran throughout the collection, as well as those familiar godet dresses and skirts.

Kashou offered a surprising shot of cobalt blue on two dresses—one draped, the other with cutouts—and won applause with a belted, mocha-colored, draped caftan.

However, Kashou’s last piece—a black boned, fitted dress—was perhaps his most clever; it revealed a discreetly designed peace sign on its back. —Joselle Yokogawa