Meiling's 'Last Train to San Fernando'

I'm Trinidadian. Born and raised. Meiling is an iconic Trinidadian fashion designer and one of those people whose sense of style is ethereal. I grew up in utter awe of her work from a very young age. In fact, she was the very first fashion designer I knew. I have two very distinct early memories of fashion, the first being watching 'Style with Elsa Klensch' at my grandmother's house and the other being Meiling. I was always a weird, quirky kid. My quirkiness extended into the realm of fashion where I was quite uncommonly interested in the minute and intricate details of clothing. It seemed absurd. I'd get so excited about new pieces and I never really felt as though people around me understood. But Meiling did and I fell in love with her. I hate to sound mushy and sentimental but I absolutely adore her work. I remember being a teenager and walking past her showroom wishing I could meet her. I never thought I could ever own one of her designs but dreams do come true and I was able to purchase one of her dresses last year. The long black and grey stained maxi dress is one of my most prized possessions and even though it was from a line she created for a local, inexpensive retailer I still loved it. I had bought piece of a dream. My grandmother passed away a few months ago and one of my fondest memories is sitting in her living room watching 'Style with Elsa' Meiling is enmeshed somewhere between my perfect childhood and a perfect reality. She's my fashion godmother and I think she is brilliant. My grandmother was the love of my life and in a weird way fashion keeps her memory alive for me. Meiling is lost somewhere in that diaspora. Last Friday Meiling launched her latest collection 'Last Train to San Fernando' and it lived up to every bit of my expectations times a million. And even though I was not fortunate enough to be there, I connected with the collection in an altruistic way. I waited breathlessly to look at the first images of the collection and when they finally appeared I was left awestruck. It was vintage, it was feminine, it was classic Trinidadian, it was island, it was my grandmother, it was beauty and it was brilliant. Sheer genius and I'm still in love after all these years. The collection took me to a very happy place, a good place indeed.

View the complete collection here:
http://trinidadlookbook.wordpress.com/2011/07/16/meilings-last-train-to-san-fernando/