But this Passover, in addition to the usual shopping malls and high street shops to browse, we’d highly recommend a couple of great designer markets to check out: T-Market and Shoofuni.

T-Market, which will be happening at HaRechev 13 in Tel Aviv and running from the 12-14 April. The market will be open from 11:00-19:00 for the first two days, and on the third day from 11:00-21:00. Here you can grab some great t-shirts for both men and women, with plenty of hip and happening designers selling their wares, as well as cool, imported stuff. Might not be the cheapest t-shirts you’ll ever find in Tel Aviv, but they might just be the coolest. You can also find  accessories, shoes and pretty much anything to do with the latest fashion trends. There is an entrance fee of 10 shekels.

Shoofuni will also be running from 12-14 April, and will be taking place in Jaffa Port. As you might have guessed, Shoofuni is all about shoes, plus a few bags. There’ll be some pretty amazing Israeli shoe designers to choose from, so if you fancy doing your Imelda Marcos impression, Shoofuni is for you! Shoofuni will be open from 10:00-17:00 on the 12th, 10:00-19:00 on the 13th and 10:00-20:00 on the 14th.

Here’s what the T-Market is all about, in case you were wondering…

Click here to view the embedded video.

What better place to shop than Dizengoff Street, Tel Aviv’s first fashion avenue.

Every time we take a stroll down this street, without fail, we always end up in our favorite shops!

Mel Boutique, 138 Dizengoff St

We love Mel Boutique because it carries a lot of stylish items we crave at affordable prices.  The clothes are imported frequently from France and are always on trend.  It’s an especially great stop if you want to find something unusual and dressy for a last minute event without breaking the bank.  For Winter 2012 – there are lots of sparkly items and cozy sweaters, perfect for Silvester and keeping warm! Currently there is 30% off of on jackets, knitted tops, dresses and more.

We also love how the store owner frequently updates her Facebook page modeling her stores latest arrivals!

Go here if:  You are craving new trends and fancy dress for less!  Youthful spirit mandatory!

Hours: Mon-Wed 10:00-20:00, Thurs 10:00-21:30, Fri 09:00-17:00, Sun 10:00-20:00

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Couple of, 207 Dizengoff St

We can never pass up a pit stop at Couple Of  to see what innovative and creative concepts they are busy pumping out.  Their shoes are hand made in Israel and guaranteed to be both comfortable and pretty.

Go here if:  You want quality shoes that you can actually walk in and want an innovative conceptual shoe that’s bound to turn heads.

See their Winter collection for 2012 http://dreedtea.com/couple-ofs-winter-collection-1112.html

Tel: +972.3.5291098

Story, 246 Dizengoff St

Story never disappoints with their curated collection of shoes that includes: Melissa, Bloch, and Fly London.  They have both guys and girls clothing from hard to find imported brands like: Nudie, Fornarina, Junk Deluxe, and True Religion.  Plus they carry famous Israeli designs from: Medusa, Michal Miller.

Go here if:  You like funky shoes  and quality International fashion labels!  Perfect place for couples to shop because both guys and girls clothes and shoes are there. If you are a picky shopper and just can’t find what you are looking for in most Israeli stores, Story is sure to have what you want, especially for guys!

Here’s a glance at what’s hot now in the store:

Tel: +972.3.5448911

Umbrella, 252 Dizengoff St

Umbrella is the first collective designer shop that opened in Israel. It combines 10 talented and accomplished Israeli designers under ‘one Umbrella’. Founded in 2011, by the designer Ellen Ruben, Umbrella offers a wide range of clothing and accessories customized to provide customers with the most contemporary and updated fashion. Each designer operates a mini shop, so the shopper can really experience each brand separately within the larger Umbrella store.

If you are looking for Israeli design, this is the perfect stop.  They curate from top Israeli brands including: Ellen Rubin leather bag and shoes, Myka, Yolla, Nata, Meital Katz, Anna Meyer, Michal Emma, Ronica Design, Hadas Shahamand import the amazing shoes from Frank Toro.

Go here if:  You are craving quality hand made shoes with practical heel height and investment pieces bags, stunning contemporary jewelry. Its a great place to take your mom to, since both you and her will be able to find something to love here. If you are younger the versatile sweaters or trendy tops will appeal to you, the older generation is sure to find slacks, dresses, or jackets to suit their taste.

Here’s a glance at what’s hot now in the store:

Open: Sun-Thurs 10.00-20.00 (in the winter 09.30-19.30), Fri 09.30-15.00
Tel: +972.3.5463867
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We are high on adrenaline after covering the first day of Tel Aviv Fashion Week! Especially exciting is our new partnership with Good Eye Video Productions, who followed us throughout the night as we captured fascinating fashion personas.

What to wear to this monumental moment in Israeli fashion has been on our minds for weeks, and this is what we settled on: Daina (AKA “Dreed”) wore an embroidered Ishtar maxi dress, Michell (AKA “Tea”) rocked her leather bustier meets soft pleats creation from “Mel Boutique“, and Sonya went with a Cavalli inspired Zebra print blouse paired with black skinny pants with white piping.

The atmosphere was electrifying – all around us we heard every language from Italian to Russian to Japanese! The shows were fantastic, but you need not enter the tents in order to see fabulous fashion, it was walking amongst us! There was drag, prep, and formal evening wear – every end of the fashion spectrum was represented. We saw bright colors (red and neon blue seeming the most prominent), sequins, black leather, feathers and furs, and a lot of high heels!

Yosef Show

The first show we attended was Yosef, and what a show it was! His signature prints and rocker / goth inspirations were ever present- we never wanted it to end. He is well known for his avant guard style, and it was evident on the runway. In spite of all this, his clothes still looked easy to wear. He specializes in fitting the female form without restricting it, which means his clothes can be translated into reality yet still remain other-worldly. The icing on the cake was rocking out to some bad ass live music by Israeli rocker girl, Ninet, during the show!

Photo by Inna Gutman of Modaland

Roberto Cavalli show

A few of the Dreed*Tea team made it into the Roberto Cavalli show which was not an easy feat, as this was the main event of the day! Daina even tried pretending to be from American Express, but that tactic got her only so far. Hundreds of local and Foreign Press jockeyed for the prime position in front of the stage as our camera guy crawled up the side rails and hung on for dear life to capture footage without his light man, who was left behind.

Nonetheless, the show was magical. Hundreds of people surrounded the stage as stunning models wearing Cavalli’s exquisite creations strutted down the runway. Cavalli presented his Spring / Summer 2012 Collection and as expected, he did not disappoint! True to his style there were flowing silhouettes mixed with rocker / bohemian undertones, sparkles, prints, and a prominence of white. Everyone cheered at the finale as Mr. Cavalli himself came down the runway to take his bow. Poorly lit video coverage to come!

Photo by Hamaguen

The Interviews

Here are just some of the people Dreed*Tea snagged for an interview: Yosef Peretz, Tamar Primak, Nurit Bat-Yaar, a representative from Fashion Politics, Daria Shapovalova (writer for Russian Vogue), Zvika Pik, Sandra Ringler (Israeli stylist), and many many more!

We have all been told that Israel hasn’t hosted a Fashion Week in 30 years…However we have the interview with Nurit Bat-Yaar, the former fashion-editor of Yedioth Ahronoth to prove that it was actually only 20 years ago- 1989 to be exact!

We can’t wait to publish our interviews, but one common theme was expressed- FINALLY fashion visits Tel Aviv again!

This article (with even more pictures) was originally posted on the excellent guide to fashion in Tel Aviv, Dreed*Tea.

Tel Aviv Fashion Week 2011 is being held at HaTachana from November 21-23 (yes, this is the same hip and happening venue as the Tel Aviv Fashion Weekend, held back in September).

With a huge array of local talented designers expected to take part, Tel Aviv has also gotten support from one of the world’s leading designers, Roberto Cavalli, giving the Fashion Week a international flavor. Cavalli will be there to attend a Gala evening event (and also a cocktail event on the eve of the Fashion Week), and in turn, put Tel Aviv well and truly on the international fashion map. Which, we’re guessing, is the main point of the Fashion Week, to give an international stage to some of Tel Aviv’s leading fashion lights…

Organizers have planned six fashion shows on each day, and among others you can expect to see renowned Israeli fashion icons Gottex, Mira Zwillinger, and Dorin Frankfurt. On show will be Spring/Summer 2012 collections. You can also expect to see many of Israel’s top models and celebs at the event, just don’t go all paparazzi on them…

Tel Aviv originally had a Fashion Week back in the 60s, which primarily promoted its renowned leather and swimwear items. We’re not sure when the last official event took place, but it’s been long overdue!

Organizers have reportedly invested some $7 million in the event, presumably in the hope that more major names will join Cavalli near the catwalk.

For more info, see the official Facebook page (mostly in Hebrew). As soon as we have info on tickets and exact times and locations, we’ll add them here.

If you think you’ve got an ounce or two of street cred and love looking for hot, new fashion items from some of the Middle East’s (and beyond the Middle East) coolest, hip t-shirt and clothes designers, then the T-Market is where you need to be between the 13-15 October.

Head down to HaRachev 13 in Tel Aviv (off HaMasger Street) to catch some great clothing items, plus accessories and other goodies. The clothing is aimed at both men and women, but is definitely on the cool and clubber side of things.

It will cost you 10 shekels to get in, but that’s pretty cheap considering the number of designers on display and the discounts expected on many items (not always though, so shop wisely). There’s also a DJ spinning some tunes in the background, just to get you in the mood to part with your hard earned money.

The scheduled opening times over the three days is as follows: Thursday 13 Oct: 11:00 – 21:00,  Friday 14 Oct: 10:00 -17:00, Saturday 15 Oct 11:00 – 21:00.

Below is a taste of what it was like a couple of years ago…Happy Shopping!

Click here to view the embedded video.

HaTachana (otherwise known as The Station) has, of course, become one of Tel Aviv’s hot tourist sites over the last year or so (check out our full guide to HaTachana over here), and with its own plethora of cute Israeli designer boutiques, it’s perhaps appropriate that it stages one of Tel Aviv’s premier fashion events.

At the Tel Aviv Fashion Weekend expect to see some 50 designers presenting their latest work, with a mix of some of Israel’s most well known designers and some young upstarts hoping to steal their crowns.

You’ll also be able to catch a variety of exhibitions over the weekend that will present some of the work of top art students, including fashion, photography, and video art. There’ll also be some typical HaTachana musical performances, meaning some pleasant jazz and acoustic freestyle to get you in the mood for some fashion-spotting / shopping.

The Fashion Weekend starts on Thursday evening at 5pm until 11pm, kicks off again Friday morning and lasts til sundown at 7pm, and then blasts you with a full day on Saturday, from 10am to 10pm.

And if you’re around in Tel Aviv a few days later, there is also a Home and Design exhibition featuring many leading interior designers from Israel and abroad (20-24 September). Could well be worth spending some time in Tel Aviv in September!

Where to find the big name brands isn’t such an issue; the much buzzed about arrival of international names to the Israeli market is big news (including some of the biggies of the last couple of years, Benetton and H&M). And once they’ve landed, it’s not too hard to seek and apply thy credit card…

But where does that leave the home-grown talent? There are many new, and established brands in Israel, producing awesome fashion goods for our ever expanding tastes. So where can you find out about smaller, but no less important, Israeli brands, designers and boutiques?

A great place to find up to date information about Israeli fashion and where to shop in Tel Aviv is DreedTea.com.  This online fashion magazine focuses on independent, up and coming designers and places that sell their clothing, accessories and jewelry.  Not only will you discover where all the great shops are and which designers they carry at what prices, but you can also peruse designer look-books so you can plan out exactly where you want to go and what specific pieces you are interested in buying.

In addition, Dreed*Tea is full of great articles by industry insiders who share news about the fashion scene, fabulous photo shoots, designer spotlights and much much more. If you want to get a feel for Israeli street fashion, DreedTea.com has also collected the most popular blogs for your browsing pleasure. There is even a section on how to style must have pieces that are certainly in your closet already.

If your interests in the Tel Aviv fashion scene go even deeper, you can find out about events, sales and giveaways by signing up for their Dreed*Tea Digest.

It’s always great checking out international brands finally arriving in Israel, but don’t let that divert you from inventive and original Israeli designers.  For the essentials, big brands are great, but if you want to be truly unique you really should check out some of the boutiques that carry local brands.

Shop til you drop baby!

Benetton is believed to be investing NIS 1.5 million ($430,000) in the Dizengoff store. Plans are to keep Israelis and tourists awash with Benetton goodies with ten stores in total. Each store is expected to mirror Benetton stores throughout Europe, with the United Colors of Benetton and Undercolor brands.

For those of us who remember, Benetton were here in the 1990s but screwed up price-wise. Meaning they overcharged an ever-consumer price savvy Israeli public…

That expensive branding has now gone and Benetton is expected to compete with other lower-priced brands such as H&M and Forever21.

And talking of H&M, the Swedish retailers are planning to open their first store in southern Israel in 2013, in a new shopping mall in Beersheba, capital of the Negev region. H&M has proven very successful ever since landing in Tel Aviv just over a year ago (remember the H&M tsunami?), with additional stores in Jerusalem, Haifa, Kfar Saba, Petah Tikva and Netanya.

Guys, all we can say is make sure there’s a bar nearby…

Damn shame. I was looking forward to her and Johnny Depp adding some buzzz to a typically boring February, but what you can do. The reasons are as yet unclear, but pressure on hubby Depp from anti-Israel groups seems to be the consensus.

Anyway, to lessen the pain you’ll probably be delighted to know that you can now get your chavtastic Burberry gear from a local store here in Tel Aviv. The store opened in Tel Aviv’s Kikar HaMedina last week, and covers some 370 square meters over three levels.

The Tel Aviv store has apparently adopted the new creative design of Burberry Chief Creative Officer Christopher Bailey, as the company continues to try to disassociate itself from the UK underclass…

Our question: will the arsim of Israel soon be swanning around in Burberry?

The friend, who shall remain nameless, was walking down Ibn Gvirol around the Kikar Rabin (Rabin Square) area in Tel Aviv when she noticed a huge H&M billboard. In the sign, a woman is popping out of her turtleneck. Underneath, the Hebrew words, “Sof sof, we’re here.” Slowly, slowly, the international budget-phenom brand H&M makes its way to Israel and its fashion capital, Tel Aviv.

The billboard directly opposite it in the same area is one by Castro, one of Israel’s most popular clothing retail chains. One that hasn’t yet made a dent on the international scene…and perhaps it never will. The sign shows a woman lying in a field of flowers. You can’t see her face clearly. But underneath, the Hebrew letters read “We are the people of the city.”

Looks like Castro is quite nervous about the incoming of H&M. Looks like they are truly afraid of getting pushed out as Israel’s most popular retail brand. More so, it sounds like they are angry over the “Americanization” of Israel and want to hone in on the fact that they are truly “Israeli.”

With the inception of stores like Gap, FCUK, and H&M making their mark on this tiny Middle Eastern country and the fact that Israelis know the English language quite well, watch American and English-speaking TV and movies, often hope to leave the country, and overall, yearn to dress and act like Americans, perhaps stores like Castro are afraid that these Israelis are losing their identity. The essence that truly makes Israelis what they are today.

The culture I love and the reason I moved to this country.

Should we be afraid?

Castro, as you may know, is arguably the most popular Israeli ready-to-wear brand for young men and women who want a clean, elegant look that is nevertheless trendy in that season.

In the spirit of a true fashion show, the exhibition was delayed and models walked the runway more than an hour later.

The collection was highlighted by a British electro group with great beats called Crazy P (lead singer wore large pearls, sharp shouldered jacket, statement tights and a lace bow in her head; she was OBVIOUSLY decked out by Castro) and Castro’s two top models Gal Gadot and Yonatan Wegman (the ones that appear in all the avant-garde Israeli commercials for the brand.)

Famous Israeli model Gal Gadot (you’ve probably seen her in Fast & the Furious 4) stole the show. With a sassy runway walk and a sparkle in her eye, you could tell that she was born to model. Yonatan Wegman kept his beautiful, piercing stare but had a hard time keeping up with Gal.

Castro seemed to go for that light-skinned, fair-haired Eastern European look as most of the models that followed (with a few exceptions) looked nothing like Gal Gadot and Yonatan, who appeared the stereotype most men and women think of when they imagine beautiful Israeli locals.

The collection featured Castro’s take on spring trends including denim on denim, dark florals for girls, plaid (both mismatched and color coordinated) for boys, as well as casual, but trendy looks for both like gray hoodies and a dip-dyed piece or two. The show ended with the more glamorous pieces for a night-on-the town. Finely cut blazers and light sweaters with their jeans and sandals. International trends like leopard print, sequins, and belly shirts (for both men and women!) came through during this series.

Until the very end when female models sported an interesting shaped peep toe sandal, I didn’t like the shoes worn in this collection. The first included lace up tan shoes for boys and gladiator sandals for girls in an ugly beige color. I did like the dominatrix-inspired black garter stirrups around the knee with black ankle socks and round toe pumps paired with the dark florals. Unfortunately, though, this was followed by a weird take on a shoe fashion faux-pas that most people don’t find particularly flattering—sandals with socks! (Oh Crikey! – Ashley) These final touches added to the prepster-meets-nerd boy look accentuated on some of the men.

Nevertheless, all looks were stylish, Eurochic, and definitely in Castro’s good taste.

Head to Castro’s official site to catch the show in its entirety.

A huge billboard prominently displayed on Ibn Gvirol (central street in Tel Aviv) announces the arrival of Gap to the Azrieli Center at the end of February!

While I’m not as huge a fan of Gap as I am of H&M, the Israelis can’t possibly be getting any more American! Gap, known for its grungy, but stylish flannel shirts for men, khaki pants and soft knit cardigan for women is the epitome of rugged American fashion.

The corporation that owns Gap announced a franchise agreement with Israel’s Elbit Trade & Retail Ltd just last year. Looks like Banana Republic won’t be far behind…

And the American fashion keeps on coming…