By Molly O’Neill
Gliding across her incense-scented Germantown kitchen, Nicole Fisher blends a smoothie from organic fruit and apple juice. In her flowing high-waisted skirt, denim top and large hoop-and-feather earrings, she looks unquestionably regal yet completely at ease.
“I’ve never been a fan of trends or trying to follow someone else’s ideas,” says Nicole. She started her NIC*FISH line in 2000 to accommodate musician friends seeking wearable, comfortable statement pieces that could take them from the road to the stage to the afterparty. As her popularity grew, Nicole was able to move from custom one-offs to entire lines of convertible, layerable looks.
Nicole calls her approach to fashion “a more global and wholistic perspective.” It’s easy to see why performance artists, jetsetters and resort lovers adore her versatile, beautiful clothing. But, she says, “The label didn’t really start like this.” Nicole went to school at F.I.T., and worked as an on-site seamstress with two friends from high school who had started a styling agency.
The turning point, says Nicole, is when she created a piece for ?uestlove to wear in the music video for Bilal’s “Soul Sista.” “That was amazing for me,” she says, “because that was my first opportunity in seeing my stuff translate into something real. I began to design more for artists and do a lot of custom work, and I began to see how my friends were really evolving…traveling a lot and really trying to get acquainted with the world.”
Nicole presents to the crowd at HyLo’s Third Thursday opening on April 19.
Nicole began envisioning the NIC*FISH customer: “Who is that girl?” she asked herself. “What does she do? I didn’t really see anyone catering to her. She was eclectic. She knew a little bit about everything. She was in touch with the world.”
The emphasis, Nicole decided, would be on individuality. “This girl,” she thought, “she likes to style herself. She’s very fashion-forward, just by general nature. So I didn’t want to do anything that would be restrictive of that urge.” This yearning for customizability led her in 2006 to create the first convertible jumpsuit. The top can be wrapped and tied a number of different ways to fit each woman’s style, mood and situation.
The 2012/13 NIC*FISH line expands on this idea with twelve brightly colored pieces, each wearable on its own in multiple ways or interwoven with the others to create unconventional outfits. Nicole sees the layering as “an opportunity for the girl to style. You can wear a million layers in the morning, and if you have somewhere to go in the afternoon you can take off a few, and in the evening take off a few more and look really sexy…It’s exciting to switch up and do your own thing.”
The line was primarily inspired by fine art – the gold and jewel tones in Nicole’s oft-perused Klimt calendar; the “easy-breezy” feel of Matisse paintings, and the strong femininity of Frida Kahlo. Listening to music enlivens the design experience; Nicole says, “It just puts you in the zone, a zone of opening your mind. It’s fantasy, if you will. If I’m listening to Afro-Cuban, I’m picturing myself dancing somewhere.”
Nicole wants women in Philadelphia and elsewhere to embrace this open-mindedness. “Philly has a style; I think it’s evolving,” she says. “But I’m trying to take it to the next level. I want everybody to kinda like be in touch with the world…be open to fresh ideas and fresh opportunities to grow and be different.” We feel a little bit closer to this ideal with each prismatic, silky silhouette.
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Nicole invites you to take a 10% discount off any of the pieces in her collection by entering the code “HYLO10” at Etsy checkout. Take advantage of this special offer to drape yourself in her most radiant pieces!
We’d also like to share with you the cocktail we created exclusively for HyLo’s NIC*FISH shopping exhibit (April 19 – May 7). Our tropical concoction made its debut at our Third Thursday opening, but if you missed us, here’s how you can have a taste:
RHUBY RED SLIPPERS: A NIC*FISH PUNCH
– 1 part RHUBY
– 2 parts grapefruit juice
– Splash of Pama
Top off with club and serve over ice.
Enjoy!
Photos courtesy of Dave McDowell and Dominique Nichole.
