I was shopping in Paul Simon Women a couple of years ago when there happened to be a trunk show of evening gowns by American designers Tom and Linda Platt. I fell in love with the designer line because they use absolutely gorgeous fabric. The design duo are inspired by architecture, so they create clean and simple, but dramatic silhouettes, that I find breathtaking.
While I was admiring the clothes I also got a chance to meet Andrew Scott, the line's representative who takes those gorgeous dresses to trunk shows at top boutiques around the country, and I was intrigued by his own personal style. The photo above from Jan. 30 is of Andrew with model Ann Tarwater in a Tom and Linda Platt dress. (Thank you Sherrard Georgius for taking the terrific photo!)
On Jan. 30, while Andrew was in Charlotte for the Tom and Linda Platt special occasion and daytime dresses trunk show at Paul Simon Women, I finally had a moment to sit down with him at the store and find out details about the line and Andrew's own personal style.
Andrew will also be at the specialty store in the Village at SouthPark from 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m. Jan. 31. If you can't meet him on this trip, I encourage you look for Paul Simon Women's next Tom and Linda Platt trunk show because he's a fashion expert, a wonderful (and hilarious!) person, plus it's fun to see what he wears. His NYC style and striking good looks definitely stand out in Charlotte.
When I talked to him on Jan. 30, he was wearing a Dolce & Gabbana suit with Gucci shoes and a sheared beaver scarf.
Andrew told me he grew up in a rural area in Connecticut where he and his siblings ran free and built forts. "Mine was the only fort with drapes," he jokes.
He began modeling at 5 and continued until he was 22 and realized he needed another career to fall back on. He approached a luxury store in Connecticut and asked if he could start designing the store's window displays. He eventually ended up becoming the store's buyer dealing with popular designer lines including Bob Mackie, which eventually hired him to come work for them in New York. From there he moved to Bill Blass and later Tom and Linda Platt.
He admires the way Tom and Linda Platt approach their craft, and he agrees with their philosophy that life is complicated, but dressing shouldn't be. He also loves the way women of different ages are fans of the line. "I have customers who range from age 23 to age 92, and each of them looks appropriate for their age," he says. And he works with all sizes. "A woman who's a size 26 wants to look fabulous, too."
When it comes to doing trunk shows in the South, he brings lots of dresses with color. Almost every fashion expert I've interviewed says that's something unique to our region.
"Women in the South love color," Andrew says. "In Boston, it's all charcoal and brown - that's what they prefer."
He likes to work with a "real" woman at each trunk show who will model the clothes for customers because some dresses you really have to see on a body to appreciate the style.
On Jan. 30, the model was philanthropist Ann Tarwater. As you can tell from the photo above, she's a former professional model whose beauty and poise made everyone stop and look each time she came out of the dressing room in a new outfit. The store's in-house fashion experts would accessorize each dress perfectly with jewelry from the store.
"She's our Barbie doll," said Andrew as he admired her in one stunning dress after another.
Ann created a sensation recently when she co-hosted the North Carolina Dance Theatre's "Dancing with the Stars of Charlotte: A Gala Evening in White" wearing a stunning white Tom and Linda Platt gown. Here's video from the evening, including Ann greeting guests on the white carpet:
For details about Paul Simon Women, go to www.paulsimonco.com. For details about Tom and Linda Platt, go to www.tomandlindaplatt.com.
Follow Olivia on Twitter @oliviafortson
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