PROJECT ETHOS’ FASHION WEEK KICK OFF…”CARPE DIEM” INDEED
This past Saturday night, Project Ethos helped Los Angeles kick off “Fashion Week,” tinsel-town style (or as our photographer exclaimed, “seemed like a Gossip Girl kindof evening”) with about 2,100 of their closest friends (when we left at about midnight, people were still trying to get into the event). It was a “Carpe Diem” themed evening filled with firsts as Frederick’s of Hollywood gave a glimpse of it’s first attempt at a Swimwear line (yes, we were surprised as well that they had never ventured into this area before) as well as designer and event headliner (and Project Runway Winner) Seth Aaron Henderson brought to the excited crowd (comprised mostly of fashionistas, stylists, buyers, and press–as our photographer also noted, “There was some hugging in the media section. Seems like fashion is a rather tight circle.”) his first ever Ready to Wear collection.
______________________________________________________________________________
An exclusive group of attendees were treated to a special hosted vodka bar in the Avalon’s Honey Lounge prior to the start of the festivities which aside from the fashions included musical 
entertainment which included TRAffIK favorites Robotanists (pictured above) and Australian DJ Duo Yolanda be Cool as well as artwork on display upstairs at Bardot. Artwork that included a selection of limited prints showcasing the colorful masterpieces from world -renowned street artist D*Face as well as local artists Brenna & Baron Davis, Alexander DCD Smith, Christopher Hernandez, Free Hand Profit (Gary Lockwood), Justine Serebrin, and Lucia Loiso.
It’s safe to say that there was something for everyone, although Fashion remained the main focus. Glowing bottles of vitaminwater zero™ lined the runway, bringing a futuristic element to the stage, as they served as the events official sponsor. On this evening the “Flavor Fashionista Challenge” (where designers designed garments that were inspired by vitaminwater zero) reached culmination where designer Reneta Jhunjhnuwala (Reneta J) was announced as the winner.
______________________________________________________________________________
vitaminwater zero™ “Flavor Fashionista Challenge”
______________________________________________________________________________
FREDERICK’S OF HOLLYWOOD – SWIMSUIT LINE
______________________________________________________________________________
CARDIWRAP BY KYMARO
______________________________________________________________________________
MELLISA VELIA
______________________________________________________________________________
RENETA J
______________________________________________________________________________
KRISTI MOON (AGE OF AQUARIUS)
______________________________________________________________________________
ERMELINDA MANOS
______________________________________________________________________________
DOMINIQUE ANSARI
______________________________________________________________________________
SETH AARON HENDERSON
Soundtracks to our Summer: Robotanists
all photos by Jessy Plume for TRAffIK
The darlings of our Summer Soundtrack, Silverlake based Robotanists enjoyed a whirlwind season full of sunshine, radio airplay (KCRW), and lots of new friends. Two of the band members Sarah Ellquist and Daniel de Blanke have taken a few moments to bring you firsthand some of the highlights of their summer, as well as how they feel they’ve grown as a band. They even let you us in on what songs they wish they had written.
Robotanists are:
Daniel de Blanke – guitars, keys, songwriting
Sarah Ellquist – vocals, keys, songwriting
Preston Scott Phillips – percussion, drums, iphone
Keith Boyarsky – bass
TRAffIK: Where can we learn more about your band?
DANIEL: Google “robotanists” or go to http://robotanists.com
TRAffIK: How did you come together?
DANIEL: We were all in other bands, and then left those bands and formed this one. The social lubricant was alcohol and a fondness for screaming at the television. That, and Dostoevsky.
TRAffIK: How would you describe your sound?
DANIEL: Up-tempo sad music for amoral intellectuals
SARAH: Make-up sex
TRAffIK: How does the songwriting process work for you? Where does the inspiration come from?
SARAH: Dan and I are a song writing team, but every song is born in a different way, from a different place. I write all of the lyrics, but sometimes, I write the melody and Dan builds harmony from there, or vice versa. If either of us ever thinks that we’ve written a complete song, the other is there to edit and refine. We take everything to the rhythm section for the final seal of approval… and the rest is history. Lyrics come from a very personal place, but I try to craft them in a way that the listener can interpret as they choose. Music is a personal thing, I want listeners to make our music theirs.
DANIEL: I have three thousand song ideas that are half crafted at any given time. I generally force Sarah to listen to them until she starts singing melodic material.
TRAffIK: Lately you’ve been performing acoustically a lot more than we’d seen previously. Do you have a preference for either performing unplugged or plugged in?
SARAH: I think we all prefer the energy of playing as a full band, but performing with just an acoustic guitar is a great way to really showcase our songwriting. It’s liberating to strip things down and just let the melody and harmony dance with each other.
TRAffIK: What started this trend for you?
SARAH: I suppose you could say that most of our music starts out “acoustic” during the demo phase, but we started performing them that way after some friends of ours (the band Vanaprasta) asked us to come to the Bond St. Lounge at the Thompson Hotel in Beverly Hills over the summer and play a few songs. The next thing we knew we were getting weekly invites to perform all over LA. (more…)