Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters are two fashion designers who are situated in downtown New York City. This pair is a charismatic duo that has endearing personalities and charismatic characteristics that make them stand out among other designers. Their designs are cheeky yet sensible, which makes them even more charming.
Together they made the brand Creatures of the Wind, which is extremely popular due to its unique style. The clothes they create are vast, and there is everything from a wallpaper-patterned dress to a floral parka.
Even though they were not instantly popular, Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters climbed up the social and fashion ladder and have become Famous New York City Based Fashion Designers.
History
Both Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters are alumni of the School of Art Institute of Chicago and met there, when Peter was still doing his undergraduate in 2007. Shane Gabier worked as faculty and was a professor in the fashion department. He had also attended the School of Art Institute of Chicago but had studied interior architecture. However, later he switched his modules to fashion.
Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters became very close friends and decided to launch their own label. They named it Creatures of the Wind, which was modeled after a Jonny Mathias song known as Wild is the WInd. Before launching the brand alongside Peters, Gabier had worked for various designers such as Dirk Schoenberger and Jurgi Persoons. Under their supervision, he worked mainly as a pattern cutter. For this job, however, he had to move to Antwerp. Thus, he had some hands-on experience in the industry. He had also launched his own label in 2002, using which the foundations of Creatures of the Wind had been laid.
For their fashion label, Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters have received many awards. They were the runner-ups for the 2011 CDFA/ Vogue Fashion Fund award, and they won the Rising Stars award from the Chicago brand of Fashion Group International.
Gabier and Peter were also nominees for the Swarovski Award for Womenswear in 2012 and 2013. They also managed to make it to the final stage of the International Woolmark Prize. In 2014, they were also among the only 30 international brands shortlisted for the LVMH.
The success in their earlier years is thanks to the Chicago retailer Ikram, and their clothes have also been in boutiques in London, such as the Diver Street Market. Creatures of the Wind could also be found in Ra in Antwerp and in 10 Corso Cosmo.
Their first showing was at New York Fashion Week in 2009, where the label garnered a lot of attention. People were amazed by the quirky aesthetic that the duo had created. Additionally, their use of deadstock fashion also attracted a lot of attention.
Creatures of the Wind
Creatures of the wind is a New York-based fashion brand. It was co-founded by Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters in 2008. Both of the founders are graduates of The School of The Art Institute of Chicago, who studied in the department of Fashion Design.
To form the basis of the Creatures of the Wind, one of the founders, Shane Gabier moved to Antwerp, Belgium. There, he worked to create menswear with Dirk Schonberger and later transferred over to Jugi Persoons, where he worked on womenswear. In the meantime, Christopher Peters spend two years working on specialty handwork and worked as a studio assistant to Nick Cave, who is an artist and designer.
Creatures of the Wind was launched in Chicago and in June 2008, the collection garnered a lot of attention, as it was featured on the cover of WWD. It also had a feature in W magazine. Barney’s New York also picked a selection from the Fall 2010 collection. This was the first collection that was shown in New York City.
In Spring 2011, they launched their first full collection. This collection was presented in September of 2010 before its launch. In 2011, they also were named runner-ups for the CDFA or Vogue Fashion Fund Award. Additionally, in 2011, they won an award called the Fashion Group International’s Rising Stars. Creatures of the Wind also partnered with The Dock Group in 2013. The Dock Group is a fashion investment brand based in Los Angeles and had opened a design studio in New York City.
The entire Creatures of the Wind Collection has a concept and a narrative that drives each collection to be what it becomes in the end. The inspiration is drawn from various places. Previously, Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters have said that they were inspired by mythological themes, different subcultures, and even youth culture. These sources of inspiration are reflected in their clothing which is different yet has a modern simplicity and wearability to them.
The fabric pairing they choose is also unique and extremely unconventional. These fabric choices are one of the major reasons why this label has gained fame in recent years. You can also find artisanal paintings on the clothes, which set it apart from other brands.
In the past and the present, Creatures of the Wind has collaborated with many artists and designers. They have ranged from various different disciples and have brought in their own insights to create unique pieces with Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters. Some people that Creatures of the Wind have worked with include, Matteah Baim, Tabitha Simmons, Pamela Love, Erickson Beamon, and Aline Cautis.
A normal day for Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters
Shane and Chris are really dedicated to their craft and work as if they were interns in their own label. Thus, they do everything themselves. They describe their workday to start off by going to midtown and doing their errands. They stay there till they can meet their PR representative Libby. They spend half an hour to an hour with her where they work and iron out details. They then return to mid-day where they work until everything closes down.
Both Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters believe that since they are starting out, they should know how to do everything as it becomes important later on when they have to delegate tasks.
Furthermore, they claim that they learn something new every day as they are headquartered in New York, and that they hope that they continue to do so as in the garment district, there is always a new resource to learn about. They also work with these new resources and get ideas from them. To them, it is a very learn-and-go process.
Conclusion
Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters are huge fashion designers located in the Garment District of New York. Together, their brand, Creatures of the Wind, although fairly new, has garnered a lot of attention, support, and awe from the industry and from the celebrities as well.
The duo has managed to bag a lot of awards for their fashion label since its conception in 2008. Although they have achieved a lot, at heart, both Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters are School of Art Institute of Chicago graduates who managed to create a storm with their fashion pieces.
Using unconventional fabric pairing and other design elements, they have truly set themselves apart from all the other designers dominating the fashion space and have become popular clothing designers.