Shoot with ENR and Tess Munster for "Guerriere" | Wardrobe by Papusza Couture

In November I had the pleasure of designing wardrobe for a shoot with my good friend/talented photographer Elizabeth Raab and the stunning Tess Munster, as our beautiful muse. Needless to say I was elated with excitement about this shoot; not only is Elizabeth one of my favorite photographers, but I have also long admired the beauty, confidence and attitude of depth that the stunning and smart Tess Munster represents in the industry. I drew inspiration from the beautiful and strong yet soft Nordic goddess Freyja for the wardrobe I designed, creating a flowing long gauze and organza gown-with a train flowing 6 feet long-and embellishments including real pheasant wings, hand stitched delicately into place over Tess's shoulders. I also created an antler mohawk crown, featuring a third pheasant wing, as part of the ensemble-this looked stunning framing Tess's beautiful face, done up by the talented MUA Nikki Lopez. I am in love with the way that the image came out-the whole day was such a delight. I truly enjoyed working with all these talented ladies!

A few more taken behind the scenes:

Ransom & Mitchell's "Temperance" at Last Rites Gallery, Wardrobe by Papusza Couture

In October I had the pleasure of working with the talented duo Ransom & Mitchell on a shoot for a show entitled "Tarot Under Oath" at Last Rites Gallery in Manhattan. The opening for the show was at the end of January, and I was fortunate to be in NYC preparing for my show "Pleiades" at the time, allowing me to attend the opening and view the piece. It was absolutely stunning, and stuck out with Ransom & Mitchell's unique and otherworldly aesthetic. The couture pieces I created for "Temperance" where among some of the first pieces I created as part of my "Pleiades" collection. I loved the way that this image came out so much that it was used in the flier promoting the NYFW debut of the collection. Please have a peak at "Temperance" below. I felt truly honored to be part of the team that worked on this project.

PHOTO CREDITS:

Photographer/Director: Jason Mitchell
Set Designer/Retoucher: Stacey Ransom
Model: Kate Connely
Hair: Jaymz Marez
MUA: Lisa Zomer

                                    

                                    

Papusza Couture "Pleiades" Collection at See Me for NYFW

As many of you may already know I recently debuted a new collection of art couture, entitled "Pleiades", at the See Me Exhibition Space for NYFW. I worked long and laborious days for months straight, creating this new collection of work and prepping for the show. The pieces of couture included in this collection are primarily made of metal, plastic and acrylic-with the use of fabric textiles as accents. I used a combination of mediums in producing these pieces of couture-ranging from old world to futuristic techniques-and I was fortunate to collaborate with laser designer Keelan Kelly on custom producing fibers for several of the pieces. My talented milliner friend and collaborator, Katie Burley, created some beautiful millinery to accompany the collection including a couture metal burka, an ice veil and a silvery jeweled turban.

The catch phrase of the collection is "If All the Gold in Egypt Turned to Snow", thus encompassing a sleigh of stunning models and magical performers, all adorned in icy colors and frosty textures formed into strong and dominating silhouettes. The muses and performers conveyed an aire of Egyptian magick meets Nordic surrealism and allure, and the couture was sharp and powerful armor, composed of elements such as sacred geometry and ice. I feel honored to have worked with so many talented people on this show, and hope to have the opportunity to work with all again on future projects.

The couture was shown alongside sculptures and installation of artist Rosanna Scimeca. Stay tuned for the fashion film of the collection, shot and produced by Gemma Fleming, which had it's screening debut at the opening, just before I presented the collection. Other credits for the show are listed below. I was truly and deeply moved by the magic that came out of this show, and am delighted to have had an opportunity to share this work with the world.

Performers:

Playing Milk-Sanaz Gangei
Playing Saw-Kendalle Fiasco
Singing Bjork-Rachel Grivas
Fan Dancing-Christine Geiger

Models:

Ashley Garner, Kate Verb, Gennie Glahn, Eugina Williams.

Hair:

Ariane Garcia and Jeanise Aviles.

Makeup:

Tiffani Argentina and Melissa Grisby.

Special thanks to William Etudni and See Me Gallery for hosting our event. Additional thanks to Dorothy Trojanowski, Kendalle Fiasco, Gemma Fleming, Benjamin Cerf, Rachel Singer and Ryan O'Conner for helping us with this show.

If you did not get to view the collection and would like to it will be on exhibition at the See Me Exhibition Space until the end of the week.

Photos below taken by Ariane Garcia:




Photos below taken by Raymond Haddad

Papusza Celebrates the Year of the Horse with Isharya

I recently had the pleasure of meeting the talented creative director and stylist Michelle Rivet of Isharya, who pulled a couple of pieces from my collections to use in a shoot and fashion film she was doing in honor of the Chinese New Year/Year of the Horse. Michelle styled some of my couture pieces with a few pieces from Free People and jewelry from the stunning "California chic meets Bollywood" designs of Isharya. To make the shoot even better they where worn by my beloved muse, Alexis Carene Hutt, who frolicked with and rode a beautiful, blue eyed horse named Checkers down the stunning coastline of a Central Cali beach. See the fashion film and a few of my favorite images, capturing the magic of the shoot below. The black silk chiffon and lace dress seen below will be for sale in my etsy later on today!

PHOTO CREDITS:

Photographer: Genesis Martinez
Model: Alexis Carene Hutt
Stylist/Art Director: Michelle Rivet
Stylist Assistant: Reina Marroquin
MUA: Vlada Fomenko Haggerty

All Papusza Limb Tights on Sale for Valentine's Day!

Happy Valentine Day Sale on my tights!!! All custom hand dyed and/or hand painted with love in colors of your choosing. Thru the weekend you get two for the price of one! Dye patterns available as seen below... 

They are available hand painted for $48... (Pic below by Mikae on model Annie Su)

*Two colors for $38... (pic below by Regina Marie)

*One color for $28. (Pics below by Gemma Fleming)

Please email me to order papuszacouture@gmail.com

Also if you would like to mix and match styles you will get one of equal or lesser value for free. This sale last until Sunday at midnight!

Happy Holidays from Papusza in Whoville

Happy holidays everyone! I hope you are all enjoying this cozy time of year and staying warm. I recently got to style a Cindy Lou Who editorial with a crew of talented ladies. Enjoy the festivities and see you all in 2014, with lot's of new and exciting projects in store.

PHOTO CREDITS:

Photographer: MVK Photography
Model in images 1, 3 and 5: Jordan Popovich
Model in images 2, 4 and 6: Annie Montgomery
Hair/MU: Foundations Hair & Makeup
Wardrobe Stylist: Kaytee Papusza
Tops and vest: Papusza Couture
All bras: DW Danielle Wood Designs
Jewelry in image 5: Mad Elegance
Jewelry in image 4 and 6: The Littlest Feather

The Love Letter Dress/"No Such As What I Want" by Ransom & Mitchell

Over the Spring I had the pleasure of creating a piece for a shoot with the incredibly talented team of masterminds Ransom & Mitchell. This was the first time I had a chance to work with the genius duo-and really a whole team of ass kickers at that-and I truly enjoyed every moment of the creative experience. The piece was titled "No Such As What I Want" and was created to be a part of the Troublesome Houses Show, an ode to brilliant singer/songwriter Will Oldham.

I created The Love Letter Dress for the piece... a super romantic gown inspired by the music of the artist, and the dreamy, rustic, haunted atmosphere of the gorgeous set that Stacey Ransom built. I adored making this gown, it was deeply inspired, and I spent many, many hours fine-tuning every detail of it. See pics of the dress and the final image for "No Such As What I Want" below.

PHOTO CREDITS:

Photographer/Creative Director: Jason Mitchell (see website via Ransom & Mitchell link above)
Set Designer/Photo Illustrator: Stacey Ransom (see website via Ransom & Mitchell link above)
Model: Alexzandria Jade
Hair/MU: Jihyun Kim
Wardrobe: www.papuszacouture.com
Gaffer: Joseph Mendoza