1. The dreaded fog machine was over abused at Island People's launch which made taking proper photographs a NIGHTMARE. Every time a new section came on stage you were guaranteed to be blasted in the face with fog stage side. One of the photographers left after only a few sections, he was totally upset. Also the lighting gave some issues as well and the models, save for a few, walked TOO fast, did not stop to pose and came to the edge of the stage where all the photographers had to break their necks to get a decent shot. All in all I am glad I went backstage for proper close up shots. I must say excellent job to models Shaun Fernandez, Soowan Bramble, Miki Augustine and Jamie Emmanuel you girls ROCK , pose for days!
2. Sandra Hordatt I absolutely LOVE your costume for Island People Mas, literally it brings Joy to my heart to see that this looks like the Sandra I know. I really like that the metal necklace attaches to the bra and is integrated into the design. The gold painted feathers are awesome, so too are all the colours combined. This costume will look gorgeous on the road ."Joy" is a WIN WIN WIN in my book especially as the "less is more" when it comes to Frontlines appeals to me this season. The backline is cute albeit the bra pattern is a standard design.
3. Animal print seems to be the hottest design element in costumes for Carnival 2013 and Sonia Mack's "Respect" is just divine! I love the touch of jade feathers in the headpiece, also seeing that she is loving the asymmetrical design in both headpieces and body wear. As is standard with Sonia you get several options of body wear and headpieces for this section, even with the men, which I think makes it very interesting to look at collectively. I also loved that her models were of various skin tones so you can get an idea of what the print looks like on diverse women.
4. Forgiveness is giving me a little Goddess and Defenders vibe ONLY with the wings, the body wear is fierce, LOVE it and it is totally decorated with lots of crystals....except for the backside of the monokini which is just plain spandex. The monokini design could do with some BIGGER wings for Frontline in my opinion, I overheard that those wings did not make it to the stage, maybe they will show up on the website.
5. Devotion by Fashion Designer Christian Boucaud has come a LONG way from when it was first shown at YUMA's costume critique for new designers. I am very happy that she took the advice given and added some more beading and feathers without losing the integrity of the design. It is different as the bra and belt is all printed fabric, each string on the belt is a fabric piece, brilliant!
6. I really like Passion and Gratitude even though they are lacking "out of the box"elements of some of the other sections they are solid costumes giving masqueraders the bling and feathers that has become a standard for the masquerader wanting more than just your basic belt and bra.
\
7. Humility and Conscience make it to my "lukewarm" list. There are elements that I definitely like about each one , for instance the feathered skirt on Conscience Individual is WOW and I like the purple of Humility as well as the various options on offer. On the flip side I am reminded a lot of the section Dream from Island People's Heaven on Earth when it comes to Humility as well as I think the patterned monokini distracts from the fact that it is the most under decorated body wear but I guess the volume of feathers on the headpiece and backpack compensates.
Green is not my favourite costume colour so I am biased against Conscience, I also think the backline is VERY simple but it can appeal to masqueraders looking for just a cute costume.
8. Honour is another one I am on the fence about, I absolutely love the frontline and the Individual which screams Sonia Mack I just think the backlines are lacking some MORE decoration like some sort of belt.
9. My least favourite section is Understanding, to be fair I am actually liking the body wear in all it's multicoloured skittles glory however I think personally I would have chosen to do the headpiece and collar in just ONE colour from the myriad that make up the costume instead of using all. It is just a bit too much elements going on at the same time for me; fringe, frills feathers, patterned necklace, patterned monokini rainbow coloured gems and added to that an explosion of feathers in BRIGHT bold colours; senses overloaded.
10. I am surprised Island People only showed 10 sections, with the standard of costume I could have happily seen 4- 5 more. Personally I am very happy with their presentation as masqueraders in my opinion need choices.Like I said before Island People is going to be one of the few top bands offering online registration open to all ; no secret society committee member needs to sign you up! As an overseas and/or new masquerader at least you also get pretty costumes for your choosing as well. My top picks Joy, Devotion, Forgiveness and Respect. I can easily play in any of these in Island People and be satisfied costume wise. Well done Island People.
Backstage Pics:
Band Launch Pics:
Photo Source: http://islandpeoplemas.com/
