Tucson Fashion Week is back and it's more amped up than ever. We profile the powerhouse duo that lured fashion wild child Betsey Johnson and more. By Gillian Drummond

Betsey Johnson. Photo by Julian Mackler/BFA

Betsey Johnson. Mercedes-Benz. Project Runway.  The names are big, the mission lofty. But for Paula Taylor, both go hand-in-hand.

When the fashion designer turned events organizer decided to take the helm of Tucson Fashion Week, she knew she'd have to have a big name to draw sponsors, attention, and the public.

"You have to bring the big, shiny object, and I think we had to make it credible on a national scale," says Paula. The bling, in this case, was maverick fashion designer Betsey Johnson, huge in the fashion world since the 1960's and a rebel in her field.

Betsey's long-time friend, Tucson-based artist Douglas Leichter, knows Daniel Asia, composer, University of Arizona music professor and Huffington Post blogger. Daniel in turn knows Martha Van Gelder, director of the the U of A's Terry J. Lundgren Center for Retailing. So when Paula received a call from Martha asking if she could think of an event that could incorporate Betsey, that's when the ball started rolling.

Tucson Fashion Week founder, CandyStrike's Elizabeth Denneau, was happy to hand over the reins; the event had begun in 2010, happened again in 2011, and then skipped a year last year. Paula asked Melanie Sutton, a fashion stylist and marketing professional, to help and the two formed The House of PM, which owns and operates TFW.

Bringing Betsey Johnson on board brought sponsors, and that in turn brought local and national designers, all of them clamoring for a piece of what is set to be Tucson Fashion Week's most exciting year yet.

The event, presented by Mercedes-Benz of Tucson, takes place at three Tucson venues across three days. There's a runway event at the Tucson Museum of Art where the runway will snake through the outside courtyard. Also that evening there's the Moveable Feast, featuring culinary creations by local chefs (Vivace's Daniel Scordato and Acacia's Albert Hall are among them) to match some of Betsey's creations and benefiting Gelder's Center for Retailing. There's a presentation by fashion designers and mixologists, with bartenders creating drinks inspired by the clothes. Bert Keeter, a Project Runway contestant in Season 9, will end the show at La Encantada shopping center. Also making an appearance as a presenter is Susan Claassen as Edith Head. (For full details, plus our picks, see Et Cetera.)

A highlight from Betsey Johnson's Spring/Summer 2014 runway show at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week in New York. Photo by Julian Mackler/BFA

During the three days there will be appearances by local designers, some who've flown the Tucson coop for bigger cities, wild jewelry and plus-sized clothes. "I've never seen that at a Fashion Week," says Paula of the plus sizes, which will come courtesy of CandyStrike.

Paula Taylor (left) and Melanie Sutton with their third TFW partner, Mercedes-Benz. Photo by Balfour Walker

At $250 per designer for a runway slot, prices are "minute" compared to other fashion weeks, say Paula and Melanie Sutton. A runway slot at the likes of Las Vegas or Palm Springs Fashion Week would run into the thousands of dollars. "But we wanted it to be affordable and wanted people to take the leap and have faith," says Paula.

Many designers did want to be involved, some didn't. "Some of them didn't have faith. I don't think they believed in what we were doing," says Melanie. "And suddenly now they got interested," she smiles.

One of the big names coming to Tucson for Fashion Week is Donni Charm, whose scarves have been worn by the likes of Jessica Biel, Beyonce and Rihanna. Donni Charm has close links to Tucson. Owner Alyssa Wasko studied at the University of Arizona, and her brother Hartley is a finance major here.

Alyssa lost her father Donny in a tragic accident and used scarf designing to help her heal. Her mother, jewelry designer Joey Wasko, helps her with the business. "You sink or swim," says Joey of their family following her husband's accident. "I'm happy to say she swam. It has evolved into a positive. Alyssa gets emails from all over the world from young people saying 'You're such an inspiration for me, thank you so much for being this great role model.'"

Donni Charm, with links to Tucson, is one of the top international names taking part in Tucson Fashion Week. These scarves are from the Fall Collection Donni Charm will be showing. Photo by V S Photography/Victoria Stevens

On a recent Saturday afternoon, Melanie and Paula were gathered to meet with their Tucson Fashion Week interns. Among the talk of fake hems and whip stitching backstage, Paula assured the young women that all would run as smooth as clockwork behind the scenes. And since she is author of the book How to Produce a Fashion Show from A to Z, she should know.

For Paula, who was putting on another fashion show two weeks before Tucson Fashion Week, the pressure was on to not just make Tucson stand out among the country's fashion shows, but to distinguish TFW from other events she has done. She and Melanie were hammering home the message that the interns are not just worker bees, but the public face of TFW.

Paula quizzed the young ladies - made up of students from the likes of Pima Community College and the Center for Retailing - about the schedule of events. They were rusty. "So read through the website and make sure you are familiar. You are the ambassadors," she told them firmly.

On the surface, Paula and Melanie seem opposites. Melanie is quiet and softly spoken. She prefers to take a backseat in conversations, and favors American classic outfits and neutral colors. ("She's a prep," jokes Paula.)

Debby Larsen, a Tucson stylist and editor of Tucson Lifestyle Home & Garden, where Melanie used to work and still freelancers, says of her: "Melanie has an elegance about her that's amazing to me. She just has exquisite taste." Melanie is known for styling fashion magazine spreads that can call attention to them. But in person she's "the polar opposite", says Debby. "She's not about ego at all, she's about making the goals happen. Quiet elegance, that's Melanie."

Paula is the outspoken one of the pair, often interrupting Mel in mid-flow (although Mel doesn't seem to mind). She makes a statement verbally and stylistically. She loves the mod look, wears a lot of black, favors platform shoes, but is also attached to her black biker boots.

Paula sets ego aside too, say those who know her. She has a reputation for being generous with her time, and quick to respond to requests.  Martha Van Gelder first met Paula when she came to talk to some of her students, and was immediately impressed. "Every time you see her she's put together, she looks fabulous. And she's a creative genius."

Jane Pitts, owner of Ozma Atelier, one of TFW's participants, concurs. "I would describe Paula as a meticulous, dynamic powerhouse. To be an events planner with runway shows is the ultimate in herding cats," says Jane. Paula's Tucson Ladies Council show, held two weeks before, was "flawless", she says.

Melanie and Paula share a fierce work ethic; with TFW in particular, they are determined to make it shine.  "She and Paula Taylor define the words “dynamic duo", says Sue Giles, editor of Tucson Lifestyle magazine, a media sponsor, along with 3 Story Magazine, of the event.

Betsey Johnson brings the bling to Tucson Fashion Week. Photo provided by Betsey Johnson

It may come as a surprise to those who know Melanie and Paula - now with decades of fashion retail, buying, styling, even modeling, between them - that they are scientists at heart. Melanie majored in biology, and also studied chemistry, physics and mathematics (and, later, retail consumer science). Paula studied for a Masters in environmental science. "They're the mad scientists of fashion," says Martha Van Gelder.

Paula began designing her own A-line shift dresses when she was working at the Tucson Botanical Gardens as an education coordinator. "I couldn't figure out how to be [business] appropriate and still be me," she says. She launched a clothing line called Ultravivid in 1996, then opened her own boutique, Pour Moi, in Tucson in 2000. After selling Pour Moi, she had a stint as divisional sales manager for Bill Blass New York.

Melanie, who has "always been obsessed with fashion", modeled when she was young. Her husband's family is owner of Sutton's Boutique, where she was a personal stylist, before working for several years as a fashion stylist at Tucson Lifestyle magazine.

The pair have plans to take Tucson Fashion Week even further: make it an annual event and continue to draw big names. But wherever it takes them, they promise to stay true to the city they call home, one where the word 'casual' is used way more than 'couture'. Fashion Week Tucson-style will always be accessible, and fun, they say.

With this event, says Paula, "we want downtown to meet uptown. This is not about [fashion] snobbery."

* For full details of Tucson Fashion Week, click here, and see our Et Cetera section. For a chance to win tickets, click here.

* Post Script: Hear 3 Story's report from Tucson Fashion Week, including interviews with Betsey Johnson and Bert Keeter, here.

Paula and Melanie (at top of table) work with interns to get Tucson Fashion Week underway. Photo by Gillian Drummond

Boutique owner, artist, community player, a 'textile junkie' and a whiz at couture stitching: Jane Pitts is all of these, and possibly more. Gillian Drummond sits down with a very modest lady.

Jane Pitts and friend. Photo by Gillian Drummond

Jane Pitts is rocking an outfit by Spanish fashion designer Isabel de Pedro. De Pedro is known for the strong presence of graphic design in her figure-hugging pieces, and extensive use of black. This one has silk screened fabric attached to another layer of fabric. Her hat is by Mary Mulcahy of Les Indiennes. On her feet: black thick-heeled Fluevogs.

Jane's clothes, many of them first dibs from her own resale boutique, OZMA Atelier, make a statement. They're edgy, colorful, different. But if her wardrobe is talkative, Jane is not - at least when it comes to discussing herself. She's squirming behind the counter of her store - visibly uncomfortable, quiet, reticent.

And then comes the shift. When the conversation veers away from her and towards her store space, the clothes, shoes and accessories, and her beloved art, there's no stopping her.

Photo courtesy of Ozma Atelier

Photo by Gillian Drummond.

OZMA Atelier (named after Princess Ozma in L. Frank Baum's series of Oz books) opened at 6th Street and 6th Avenue in Tucson a year ago, after Jane outgrew her space at Copper Country Antiques. Hermes, Chanel, Valentino, Jil Sander, Lagerfeld, Stella McCartney, Zac Posen, Prada, Elie Tahari, Dolce & Gabbana: all of these major designers are found here, and more.

The super-discounted prices - sometimes just 10% of the item's original selling price - make it a compulsory destination for anybody wanting designer threads for not much money. On October 19th, Jane will be bringing her high fashion bargains to a trunk show as part of  Tucson Fashion Week's Marketplace.

Her sources for OZMA Atelier are not local, and are by invitation only. A lot of it is regional runway, she says. And while she could "put it all on eBay and make more dollars", she's not about to. "I would surely lose my mind in the process and it is whole lot more fun to make my Tucson peeps happy."

She is as in love with Tucson as she is with fashion and textiles. After the tragedy of September 11th, she felt the need to live somewhere smaller, so moved here for the second time (the first time she lived here was 1984), from San Francisco.

Jane Pitts and Tom Baumgarten: "Tucson boosters". Photo by Gillian Drummond

She and her partner, graphic designer Tom Baumgartner, are big community players - "Tucson boosters", in Jane's words. Part of Ozma Atelier is the tiny one-room Wee Gallery, run by Tom, where local artists can hang their work commission-free.

Jane, an accomplished artist herself, has been sewing since the age of four (she still boasts a great French hem and couture stitch), and a fashion dealer since 1989. Friends include Doris Raymond, Hollywood vintage fashion expert and owner of The Way We Wore in Los Angeles.

Inside Ozma Atelier. Photo by Gillian Drummond

Later, after our interview, Jane opens up on Facebook. Referring to herself frequently as 'OZMA' (as she does on the OZMA Atelier Facebook page), she admits to being "a total textile junkie". She was drawn in by textile at the age of 14, living in Phoenix, when she discovered thrifting. She also discovered an ally. Another girl used to turn up at school in similar clothes and patterns, and the two became best friends.

"In the 70's the fabric stores just got worse and worse and while I made half my own clothes up to the age of 30, vintage and later high-end designer clothes won the space in my wardrobe as that textile was not available anywhere else," she says.

The detail on this loveseat, used in Jane's store to display purses, is 400 bullets. Photo by Gillian Drummond

As well as being a place for great fashion finds, OZMA Atelier displays Jane's thrift and swap meet finds, and her art and handiwork.

Jane has created her own signage, she has customized shelves and cabinets, and created some display items from scratch. Sets of shelves displaying shoes are painted dark pink, and some braiding dipped in the same color of paint has been hot-glued around the edges. Foam paint rollers have been added to dowels (and both of them painted pink) to form hangers for purses that, says Jane, are much gentler on the straps than regular ones.

Dowels and paint rollers make great purse holders in Ozma Atelier. Photo by Gillian Drummond

There is a loveseat displaying purses, made by Jane. It features 400 bullet holes around the edge. A mannequin's head makes an appearance, as does a resin skeleton (a flea market find) sitting on an animal-print sofa (found at a swap meet).

The Wee Gallery sits at the very back of the space. "It' a give-back," says Tom of the commission-free deal. Not surprisingly, he has artists lining up to exhibit there (currently showing is Tucson's Mykl Wells.)

As for Jane, and alter ego OZMA, they may both be expanding. Jane is considering opening store space in the Old Town Artisans centre in downtown Tucson.

* Find Ozma Atelier at 439 N. 6th Avenue and at Tucson Fashion Week Marketplace, Saturday October 19th at La Encantada.

The shelves are painted and bordered with braid. Photo by Gillian Drummond.

The very wee Wee Gallery, tucked at the back of Ozma Atelier. Photo by Gillian Drummond

Fashion isn't just for wearing. It can serve as pretty clever home decor too. By Samantha Cummings

Monica's “accessory tree". Photo by Samantha Cummings.

Fashion can be our greatest storyteller. Pieces are passed down from generation to generation as tangible memoirs of loved ones, lifetime milestones and significant events. But too often it ends up in a storage box in the garage. Something magical happens when you dust it off and integrate it into your home, using fashion as decor.

Monica Negri. Photo by Samantha Cummings

Designer labels find a place on the wall

Clothes have mesmerized Monica Negri since childhood, when she would flip through the pages of Vogue in awe. Having worked at stores such as Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Nordstrom, owned a vintage thrift store, worked as a private chef, and then found her way back to the fashion world as a style consultant, Monica is positive this is where she is meant to be.

But she has learned that with a love of fashion comes a crammed closet and pieces easily forgotten in over-stuffed drawers.

“When I go to ladies’ homes, there are very few people who are enjoying their things,” says Monica, the owner of wardrobe consulting firm Ten Outfits. “I like everything out. If you can’t see it, you forget. I’m always like, ‘Get your stuff out on display!’ Make something pretty with it. Make it cool to look at and it will remind you, ‘I need to wear it.’”

Jewelry as art in Monica Negri's home. Photo by Samantha Cummings

In the corner of her master bedroom stands what Monica calls her “accessory tree". A metal planter holds two bare Eucalyptus tree branches, each covered in large, bold, and bright colored necklaces. A blue fedora sits on top, serving as a year round tree topper.

“All of a sudden I was looking over into the wash and I just saw it laying there,” recalls Monica. “It snapped off in a storm or something. I was looking at it and thought, ‘You know, that might be cool hanging all my stuff.’ Three pieces of jewelry has obviously turned into a problem.” The once bare accessory tree is now blooming with dozen of necklaces.

Photo by Samantha Cummings.

Glass platters and metal trays house a collection of plastic bangles, bracelets and rings. Towel hooks from Anthropologie are repurposed to hang daintier necklaces.

Monica is all about making an impact, but not just through her statement necklaces. Throughout her home, located in Tucson's Catalina Foothills, she has found a way to create this visual impact by “doing the same thing in massive amounts.”

Manolo Blahnik prints line a hallway wall in Monica Negri's home. Photo by Samantha Cummings

Upon exiting the master bedroom, a narrow hallway leading to the main area of the home is decorated with a row of Manolo Blahnik prints, a brand of shoes highly revered by shoe enthusiasts like Monica. Each print was copied from her Manolo Blahnik book, then framed.

Monica's framed designer labels. Photo by Samantha Cummings.

On the opposite wall hangs a shadow box filled with designer labels Monica would collect from unsold clothing pieces when she owned Timeless – a high-end vintage store located in Palo Alto about 15 years ago. Many of the collections no longer exist, adding to the sentimentality you can hear in Monica’s voice as she reminisces about the once beautiful designs sold in San Francisco’s Union Square.

Among the collection hangs a Ransonhoff’s label, known for its appearance in Alfred Hitchcock’s film Vertigo, starring Kim Novak. A Don Loper label reminds Monica of a favorite I Love Lucy episode, where Lucille Ball will do anything for a Don Loper dress, leading her into all sorts of trouble as usual.  Modern designer labels such as Missoni, Christian Dior and Oscar de La Renta are mixed in with the vintage greats.

Joan's clothes closet. Photo by Samantha Cummings.

The past on display

Every morning, as Joan Calcagno dresses for her day, she is reminded of the line of stylish women who came before her. As you enter the master bedroom and look to your right, you can sneak a glimpse of Joan’s clothes closet - not so much a walk-in closet as an alcove. A semi-wall serves as the only divider between her closet and bed. And with no doors to the closet space, Joan toyed with how to treat the space.

“Part of it is practical,” says Joan, a writer with 3 Story Magazine. “I was thinking, 'Do I want to look at my clothes?' No. Did I want to put up vintage drapes? No, too heavy. Then I thought, 'I have all these clothes, I can just hang them up'.”

As an avid vintage shopper and collector since college, ‘these clothes’ include her mother’s prom dress, aunt’s wedding dress, a turquoise Jantzen bathing suit, and a bright red sundress. Not only do they serve as intermittent closet doors, they double as a way for Joan to display her vintage collection, made mostly of family heirlooms. It’s almost as if Joan’s closet is her own family museum.

“You know how some people put up old family photos?” says Joan. “It’s kind of like that. There’s a nostalgia aspect to it.”

Joan hangs vintage dresses as decor. Photo by Samantha Cummings

Each garment is on a hanger, which hangs from a suspended ledge above the closest, giving Joan freedom to interchange pieces as she pleases. Right now, her summer items are still on display, but she plans on switching some out to create more of a fall look.

One piece that has a permanent spot on display is her mother’s 1947 prom dress, still in mint condition. Made of off-white colored chiffon material, a black lace overlay covering the top portion and a taffeta under dress, it looks like a dress you would see on the pages of Vogue.

“My mom has always been stylish,” says Joan. “She just kept a lot of the iconic, really cool things.”

Carmella Calcagno, now in her 80's, still resides in Tucson and must be proud to see her daughter giving life to her old wardrobe. Coming from such a line of fashion-forward women, Joan couldn’t resist.

In addition to her mother’s prom dress, the displaying of her late aunt’s wedding dress is a way Joan memorializes her other fashion influence growing up. Across the closet hangs a pair of her father’s bowties, her mother’s white gloves, and a purse that was given to her aunt by a conscientious friend, who received the gift from “a married man.” Joan laughs as she remembers her aunt relaying the story to her many years ago.

Joan's old photos. Photo by Samantha Cummings.

Framed photos of Joan’s mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and a high school photo of herself, are scattered among and in between her jewelry collection displayed on a long white dresser. The photographs almost serve as evidence to the vintage collection’s former life, proving Carmella’s effortless style, where she is shown wearing an over-sized black hat and long-sleeved dress.

Although Joan doesn’t wear her vintage finds like she used to, she can’t let go of that on-rush, nostalgic feeling she gets every time she sets foot in a thrift store. “If you live long enough, your own stuff becomes vintage,” she jokes.

Nostalgia in a box

When Tucson furniture maker and designer Scott Baker lost his mother two years ago, he discovered, in going through her belongings, that she had kept some of his 'firsts' from childhood.

"They were key things: my first Oxford shirt, my first pair of shoes, my first pair of swim shorts," says Scott.

Scott Baker's first pair of swim shorts is fun poolside art, and a conversation starter. Photo by Gillian Drummond.

The swim shorts - red and white double-knit houndstooth - were made by his mother, and so held even more nostalgia for him. So when he and his wife, interior designer Mary Ann Hesseldenz, were looking for some poolside art for the back yard of their Foothills house, they decided to use the shorts.

Scott Baker and Mary Ann Hesseldenz poolside at their home. Photo by Gillian Drummond.

They date from 1971, when Scott was three years old, and are "so dinky they can fit in the palm of my hand," says Mary Ann. They now sit in a box frame on a table on their back patio.

"Everyone loves them," says Scott. "They're definitely a conversation piece."

Papering the walls with fashion

Sarra Costello, co-owner of The Compass, an American cuisine restaurant located in Carlsbad, California, refused to take sole credit for the unique and fun design of the women’s restroom.

“I got together with a bottle of wine and we came up with the idea,” she says.

Sarra, who has a deep love for vintage ads and magazines, wanted a way to see them all at once, rather than having to flip through her magazine collection to get her fix.

The women's bathroom at The Compass. Photo by Gillian Drummond.

With The Compass’ women’s restroom walls as her template, Sarra created the one-of-a-kind wallpaper using pages from more than a hundred vintage magazines from the early 1800s to 1950s.

The fancy wallpaper is only for the girls. Photo by Gillian Drummond

The project required five days of backbreaking work, particle board, glue, a foam brush, scissors and, once again, wine.

The reactions of women who use the ladies’ room have been overwhelming, says Sarra. Many who enter often ask where to find the unique wall art.

But sorry boys, you aren’t so lucky. “Men pee all over everything, so I wanted it to be cleaned easily,” laughs Sarra. This means sleek slate grey tile from floor to ceiling in the gents' bathroom - in other words, easy to wipe.