Urban Air Market, an indie shopping event founded in San Francisco 12 years ago, returns to Portland with local partners Explore the Pearl and ADX. The market will feature more than 70 emerging and sustainable brands selling clothing, accessories, home goods, and apothecary items. Notable sellers include Clay Factor ceramics, Hew handmade furniture and wood goods, and Aesthete Mercantile small-batch women’s apparel. The market will also have live music, a macramé workshop with Little Feral, and interactive activities from the Oregon College of Art and Craft. Sat Sept 2, 11 am-6 pm, NW 13th and Hoyt, FREE, all ages
Universal Standard, a Pacific Northwest- and New York-based brand specializing in fashion-forward, high-quality clothing for women sizes 10-28, is touring the country with their complete collection and stopping in Portland for a pop-up event. It will feature founders Polina Veksler and Alexandra Waldman, as well as a nationwide model search for the faces of its next campaign. Sat Sept 16, 1-7 pm, The Cleaners at Ace Hotel, 403 SW 10th, FREE
Taste of Style, a runway show featuring one-of-a-kind looks from Portland hair stylists, makeup artists, and fashion designers, will return for its third year to raise money for the Oregon Food Bank. The theme this time is “Unmask the Face of Hunger,” and each artist will prepare their runway look using hair and makeup as their main mode of expression. The event will again team up with the Art Institute of Portland’s apparel design program, with students participating alongside veteran make-up hair artists to create their looks. Sat Sept 16, 6 pm, Jupiter Hotel, 800 E Burnside, $25-50
Finally, after an exhausting whirlwind of a summer producing multiple fashion shows, I’m excited to write about one that I’m not involved with and can attend like a goddamn normal person. Knock Out: A Plus Size Pop-Up and Fashion Show will return for its second year, featuring designers and vendors from five states that make and sell clothing specifically for plus-size women and men. Copper Union designer Claire Doody, who has made her mark on the Portland fashion scene, produces. “It’s really important to me to bring people together in our great community with brands they can normally only shop online,” she says. “It’s also about creating a safe space for discussion about body politics and the role modern fashion plays.” Designers include Allihalla, Bombsheller, Chubby Cartwheels, Hubris, Proud Mary, and Re/Dress, while vendors include Make Good Choices, Copperhive Vintage, TomboyX, Fat Fancy, Archive Six, and Jes Baker. Rounding out the event will be guest speaker Anna OBrien, a plus-size Instagrammer and fashion blogger. Sun Sept 24, 11 am-3 pm, Wonder Ballroom, 128 NE Russell, $15 adv, $20 door
As always, be sure to check out portlandmercury.com for complete weekly style event updates! Have a fashion event? Drop us a line at fashion@portlandmercury.com.
