The World's Iriest Fashion Week in the Trendiest Island City - Kingston!

Just when I was beginning to worry that boutique sales would crush custom creativity, events like Fashion Block comes up, takes over Knutsford Boulevard and restores the confidence and relevance of locally designed and made fashions.

Fashion block is an annual fashion show which takes place in New Kingston, showcasing the collections of local designers on the longest catwalk in the region. The fashion show on this catwalk of all of 120ft running down the backbone of the boulevard's dual carriageway marks the climax of a Saint International-created Style week Jamaica. The event's biggest achievement is making the designs accessible to simple, common people of the streets in the streets - no discriminations, no cover charge or entry fees. It also affords design enthusiasts, dressmakers and tailors with that high fashion sense, edge and plenty of unique creativity the possibility of sharing the platform with other big names as Dexter Pottinger, Les Campbell and Yola Grey. Out of this has come names as Pablo Palair and White Skky who have used the opportunity to spread the respect and acclaim they enjoy on the ground in the dancehall into the mainstream.

This year's collection I loved the most were that of White Skky, Pablo Palair, Dexter Pottinger and of course, the very fierce HOD (Head Of Department). The unapologetic swagger of White Skky was a dancehall hit revealing sharp interpretations, all a celebration of white. The designer who is known for styling the likes of the King of the Dancehall - Doctor Beenieman also welcomed the artiste on the catwalk as one of his models. Designs from HOD included accessories of javelins and clubs. He also put a fierce twist on the headscarf reminicent of retro days of the 50's and 60's, khimar - the muslim headgear, veils and at times even the guillotine. Little wonder then that the 21-year-old designer's entire collection was bought by a fashion house in Paris and is due out next spring.

Of course no Fashion Block could have been complete without music and a concert of some sort. New artiste Chino decked out in a striking Les Campbell belted out some of my favourites: Protected and Never Change. And wherever there is Chino, there is rising star Laden who served up Ina Life with just the right level of hype. The dancers on the ground did their moves and there was even a chorus carrying the tune of Britney Spear's Circus, hmmm. Fashionistas were also on hand. But the real fashionistas stood straight in their stilletos and platforms for the whole 3 hours.