San Diego Style San Diego Style celebrates the 20th Anniversary of the Costume Council. The San Diego Historical Society presents this installation and focuses on high fashion worn by San Diegans to events while they lived here. Each mannequin in the show was accompanied by a picture and bio of the San Diegan who wore the ensemble along with information about the fashion designer. There are more than 100 years of fashion from the late 19th century to the present in this stunning exhibit. One of my favorites was a 1953 blue suit that was a knock-off of a Christian Dior suit. Marston’s department store would send their buyers to Europe and spend $3,000 on a Dior Couture Suit, bring it back to San Diego, have their pattern makers knock-it off and sell them for $25. Some of the standouts were a handsigned dress by Italian designer Pucci, a taffeta cocktail dress worn by Lisa Casey to the 2009 Obama Inaugural Ball and a Chinese inspired hand painted Zandra Rhodes dress. More popular designs were Jeanne Jones’s hand painted giraffe gown designed by Jordan, Janet Sutter’s 1970s space-age couture by French designer Pierre Cardin, and Lael Kovtun’s silver Badgley Mishka gown with chinchilla trim. This impressive exhibit is well worth a visit. Tim Long, curator of costumes at the Chicago History Museum, organized this exhibit. San Diego Style will be at the San Diego Historical Society in Balboa Park through April 1. Fisch Out of Water San Diegan artist and jewelry maker Arline Fisch currently has her exhibit “Fisch Out of Water” at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park until May 16. This installation was originally commissioned by the Racine Art Museum and was titled “Arline Fisch: Creatures from the Deep.” Fisch is a pioneer in the field and has made groundbreaking techniques in weaving, knitting, crocheting and braiding of metals. She specializes in crocheting small-gauge copper wire. In this exhibit, there are more than 150 sea creatures such as jellyfish, sea anemones and coral that have been crocheted with color-coated copper wire. There is a sea of florescent colors that float from the Cornell Rotunda Gallery. This truly breathtaking experience gives you the feeling you are underwater. In conjunction, the Collectors’ Gallery features Fisch’s jewelry and books. For those who would like to learn this art, she will hold a “Knit & Crochet with Wire” workshop on March 6 at the museum. For information, call (619) 239-0003, ext. 405. The Mingei also has another extraordinary collection called “Fifty-six Chinese Hatboxes and One Hat.” This exhibit displays hatboxes made from wood, lacquer, bamboo, paper, leather and cloth. Some were adorned with Chinese symbols and are from the late Qing Dynasty. This exhibit will be at the museum through March 21. Upcoming Events • ASR Access, Class@ASR and Crossroads final day will be today, will be Feb. 4 at the San Diego Convention Center. The 2010 Fall/Holiday fashion show “A Royal Affair’ will be a 3 p.m. today. For more information, visit asrbiz.com. • Feb. 12 will be “Hearts United” at the W Hotel San Diego at 6-9 p.m. This evening is presented by United Way and “Style Guy” Leonard Simpson, and will include a runway show, silent auction, hosted bar and hors d’oeuvres by the W San Diego. Tickets are $75 and may be purchased at uwsd.org. • The Costume Council of the San Diego Historical Society presents San Diego Style curated by Timothy Long. This exhibit will be there until April 1. Call (619) 232-6203. • Feb 24 is the day of the annual Nordstrom Designer Preview Runway Show to benefit The New Children’s Museum, 200 West Island Ave. For ticket information, call (619) 233-8792,ext. 129. —Diana Cavagnaro is a nationally recognized hat designer and milliner. She has operated a fashion business for 27 years, the last 17 years in downtown San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter. She has taught in the Fashion Department at San Diego Mesa College for 17 years. Diana is an active member of the Gaslamp Quarter Association, the American Sewing Guild, the San Diego Costume Council and the Fashion Group International. www.aheadproductions.com