Portuguese Fashion

As part of our Summer brief, we were asked to document how we kept an interest and widened our knowledge within Fashion Communication and Promotion over the summer. We were then asked to use this information to make two moodboards.

As I spent 5 weeks in Portugal over the summer, I thought it would be a good idea to look into Portuguese fashion and see how how it was represented in their culture.

Immediately I noticed that there were two contrasting sides within their styles. In the smaller towns and villages, Fashion was very culturally orientated, and most clothing was focused around the famous mosaic Portuguese tile, that predominantly follows a cool blue colour palette. This famous print has been designed to fit all different types of garments for all age ranges, that can be worn in the day or in the evening.

However on the contrasting side, in the more upmarket towns, the style of clothing was much more expensive and over the top. Women were dressing to uphold a high class ethos being covered from head to toe in designer labels. I was intrigued to see where the designer garments were being purchased as I had not visited anywhere where these garments were available.

After doing some research, I found out about 'The Fashion Clinic', which is located in the picturesque setting of Lisboa, The Fashion Clinic has two has two shops on the fashion concious street of Avenida da Liberdade. A shop for women is in the Tivoli Forum. A companion men's shop is at No.2 192.

Founded in 2005, these concept stores have become the place in Portugal to pick up elegant, ready to wear clothes, shoes, bags and accessories, as well as perfume and candles, cosmetics, books and music, eyewear and jewellery. Some of the brands that are being represented within The Fashion Clinic include: Balmain, Diane Fon Furstenberg, Tom Ford, Etro, Gucci, DKNY, YSL, Jimmy Choo and Missoni (to name a few)!!

To enter The Fashion Clinic you must make an appointment with a stylist to ensure that you get the best service possible for the items that you require. Inside, you are said to be treated as an A-list celebrity no matter what your budget.

I paid a visit to The Fashion Clinic to see what the Visual Merchandising was like in the shop windows, and I can honestly say that it was completely breathtaking..the way the windows were put together were effortless and perfectly showcased the high end brands to there full potential..even the glass windows were glistening with not a smear in sight!

I found the whole experience of looking into another cultures fashion really exciting and interesting. It helped me to open my eyes and see beyond the high end designers, and actually look into a culture and how it is used to be represented in fashion to consumers on the street. I feel as though researching and creating these moodboards help me to gather a wider knowledge of how fashion is represented in different countries, as well as getting more involved with the primary research that was needed to find out about what I did!