Though these designers may not be showcased in the Mercedes tent during this upcoming Fashion Week, they personify the reason we live in Brooklyn with their raw and seemingly inexhaustible talent. From their innovative jewelry design to wonderfully playful knitwear, these five designers do the borough proud, and we’re pretty thrilled to watch them on their inevitable rise through the fashion ranks, this season and beyond...

The alter-egoed Dutch designer is a former Parsons teacher and a self-proclaimed Biggie lover who crafts luxury wear but also street staples. She cites “the Far East” as an influence and also describes her work as “trashy.” She collaborates with family-owned producers such as International Pleating but also manipulates sweatpants and oversized T-shirts. We love that she’s considering moving to Miami for the luxury wear circuit but that her current lookbook, shot by the distinctive Brianna Cappozi, couldn’t be a better fit for Bushwick. If these conflicting interests still aren’t enough to satisfy your post-postmodern mindset, how about the fact that her clients range from Blood Orange to Florence Welch? Watch her varied influences converge in the upcoming Fall Fashion Issue of Brooklyn Magazine (on stands Sep 1) on cover girl Alek Wek.

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A look at Sarah Aphrodite

A look at the work of one of our Brooklyn designers you need to know.

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Annie Larson is more than just sweaters. The former Target designer is a knitter, a pattern-maker, an informal manicurist and a master in interpreting the hard geometric aesthetics of the 80s into cozy, wearable art. She’s been on the rise since moving to New York to develop her line of ALL Knitwear, but recent developments include moving into a shared Greenpoint studio space with buzzy designer Ellen Van Dusen, where a War is Over! sign near her Brother Electroknit 965i (the knitting machine she uses to produce her peices in house). It’s obvious why her collection is essential for fall (knit beanies!) but we have a strong feeling her poppy colors will take us gracefully out of summer and right back again.

This creative gypsy came on the scene when she debuted her collection of fur necklaces in S/S 2012 Williamsburg Fashion Weekend. The show was heavy on gender queerness, featuring long-haired boys and short-haired girls in plastic smocks, both groups equally androgynous and sporting the long human-haired neck pieces. Though she won’t return to Williamsburg’s fashion weekend circuit this fall, Dunham has been keeping busy with a collaborative art project, Other Travel, and her most recent collection, Moonbind, another devious experiment, this one with concrete pendants on rope. Playing with the balance between weight and delicacy, the collection revives her signature pastel color schemes; she’s also bringing back the bolo (YES!) and of course adding a bit of somewhat phallic forms to the world of accessories. Keep a look out for it at JF & Son.

Set to premiere their Spring 2013 collections at Williamsburg Fashion Week, RHLS’s Mackswell Sherman and Sarah Jones are an untamed force, antithetical to the Brooklyn DIY aesthetic (unitards, chunky stitching and folds) with a bold, Sunday-comics vibe that surprises and delights us. The Fall/Winter 2012 collection includes rainbow-brite gear with a twist: the leggings have eyes! The sweaters smoke! On the runway, RHLS’s pieces lay on a thick satire and may not seem accessible in combination—but item for item they are a joyful breath of fresh air and an instant plus for any fall wardrobe. Visit them at MOVES Brooklyn and get to know their sure-to-please new collection at Williamsburg Fashion Weekend (Sep 14-15), where we are promised a musical presentation.

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RHLS Fall 2012 Lookbook

A look at the work of one of our Brooklyn designers you need to know.

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A recent Parsons graduate, this funky accessory and garment crafter is fresh on the design scene and ready to party. The ways she uses bright hues and mixes lowbrow materials with expensive jewels (her latest collection features Swarovski crystals and something like lanyard) showcase a liberated design approach that only the sustainability-conscious yet brand-aware Parsons could nourish. Though she’s still developing larger runs of her creations, Henri Bendel has resolved that problem for at least one item—it’ll release it next spring. We like her because her designs remind us of Glasslands-meets-our idealistic window shopping in Soho, or something Serena Woodsen would produce if ever forced into summer camp crafternoons. The world will like her because she’s a youthful sprinter, full neon ahead.

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A look at Lizette Avineri

A look at the work of one of our Brooklyn designers you need to know.

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