Supermodel of the Bahamas is please to announce a partnership with Vancouver Fashion Week to have both of this year's male and female winners walk in their Spring/Summer 2014 event taking place this September 2013 in Vancouver, British Columbia, which is located in western Canada.

"I am very moved by our collaboration with Vancouver Fashion Week, which will expose the Supermodel of the Bahamas winners to a new market and media.

 We've had previous winners walk in shows in the USA, but this is our first time in Canada," said Oilinsha Coakley, CEO of Oilnsha's Models and Talent Management  / Founder, Supermodel of the Bahamas.

This week was deemed the most difficult week for Mission Catwalk contestants.

 With only eight hours placed on the singer sewing room clock and a surprise same day runway show. Our group of design favorites got first hand knowledge of being push to the max.

 As designers gathered around their cutting tables, show host Keneea Linton-George presented each designer with five yards of white cotton.

The challenge was then given to paint their personalities into this fabric and then produce a garment from it. As expected this became a true test for the designers to push beyond the walls of Pablos Fabric store and explore the world of textile.

Bahama Hand Prints A Bahamian success story

Vivid colours, enchanting prints and hand-printed fabrics are combined to create a unique 100% Bahamian-made line of clothing and accessories. Completely inspired by The Bahamas, its history, and its indigenous flora and fauna, Bahama Hand Prints' exclusive designs are loved by Bahamians and visitors alike. Located in the Island Traders Building Annex, off East Bay and Mackey St, just south of Paradise Island exit bridge, Bahama Hand Prints (BHP) is a Bahamian creative success story that has been producing stunningly beautiful and unique products for decades.

Bahama Hand Prints was established in Nassau, The Bahamas in 1966 by graphic artists Helen Astarita and Berta Sands. On a trip to the Florida Keys, the two visited a small factory in Key West where they observed fabric being hand printed, using silk-screens. So impressed were they by the procedure and the spectacularly coloured fabrics produced, that they decided to start their own company back in The Bahamas.

Helen and Berta were enthusiastic and quickly mastered the techniques involved in making silk screens, mixing the inks, hand printing the fabric, designing and sewing the final products. Their bold and brilliant designs became the trademark of BHP. Through the years, the company changed hands a few times including owners Ziggy Brozozog and Amanda Lindroth.

Model Gabriella Carusone in a Megan Tunic

Vintage Print "Bahamarama" designed by Berta Sands



Today, BHP is a small factory and boutique where the tradition of hand screen-printing continues under the ownership of Bahamian sisters-in-law Linda Brown and Joie Lamare who purchased the company in 2001 and now own all the vintage prints and artwork. One day Joie walked into the establishment as a customer and was completely blown away. She presented the idea of possibly taking the business over to Linda, together they made some enquiries and when they found out it was available, they jumped on the opportunity. The rest is history.

It hasn't been an easy road for the pair. It has been back-breaking work that has brought them through a number of highs and lows. But through blood, sweat and tears, they have managed to catapult BHP from a small portfolio to a successful brand that incorporates lines of resortwear clothing, fabric, handbags, and home accessories. They operate from their own factory and sell from their signature retail boutique as well as wholesale to retail stores in The Bahamas and the US.

Model wearing BHP's Dilly's paisley print



May 2006 was the real turning point for BHP's success when Lamare and Brown moved their manufacturing from New York to Nassau. They had developed a wonderful relationship with their manufacturers in New York but in order to streamline the company and really control cost, bringing the bulk of the operation home to Nassau made much more economical sense. It also gave them control over supply and demand so they are able to provide more or less product however the market requires.

Over the years, they have hired a series of sewers and today a talented crew of three sewers manufacture everything for BHP, with the exception of the handbags which are done in Italy.

Bahama Hand Print's custom printed fabrics decorate many Bahamian homes

While the signature style of Bahama Hand Prints began with Helen and Berta, and can be seen in their collection of vintage designs, it continues to evolve today under the direction of their master printer & designer, Dylan Rapillard.

Dylan Rapillard was born in 1979 in Freeport, Grand Bahama, grew up between Nassau and Switzerland, and received a Bachelor’s Degree in Hospitality Management from Ecole Hoteliere De Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland in 2002. His choice of study was purely an economical and stable one but he soon found himself bored and in need of more profound challenges. Freedom was important to him and a desk job was just the opposite of what his soul searched for. Never did he dream he would become a textile designer.

Under his skillful hand, Dylan produces bold and gorgeous prints for BHP that display strong technique and are drawn from essentially four different inspirations: florals, leaves, shells and abstracts. Dylan was the first designer to introduce abstracts to BHP. This line of work has been extremely gratifying to the artist and designer whose chief reward is to know that people choose and wear and outfit their homes with what he has created.

Bahamian master printer & designer Dylan Rapillard at work at Bahama Hand Prints

From the printing table, their fabric is used to create garments and accessories, which are developed in-house, crafted by their talented sewing team and introduced as a new collection each Fall.

In August 2012, Bahama Hand Prints opened its newly renovated boutique where vivid colours, captivating prints and fine fabrics are combined in their stunning collection of garments, bags and home accessories. Their new Fabric Room is a colourful and inspiring space, containing a wide variety of fabrics available by the yard for home design and other projects.

Custom Printed Fabric At Bahama Hand Prints, fabric may also be custom printed to the customer’s specifications. They offer a variety of ground fabrics appropriate for a multitude of applications including upholstery, drapery, bedding, indoor/outdoor furnishings, clothing and more. A print can be chosen from their repertoire of designs and hand printed in the colour or colours desired, on any fabric they offer, including cotton poplin, twill, cotton-linen blends, linen and outdoor fabric.



Visitors are welcome to drop-in at the factory and watch their printers at work. (They recommend you give us a call in advance.) It is a thrilling experience to observe yards of plain fabric being transformed into colourful art, with designs that capture the beauty of The Bahama Islands.

Click HERE to visit Bahama Hand Prints' newly updated website.

Click HERE to view Bahama Hand Prints' Facebook page.

Local Fashion Designer Makes Reality Show Debut

Bahamian Fashion Designer Theodore Elyett

Mission Catwalk, a Caribbean based fashion reality television series is in search of burgeoning fashion talents in the region; and the hit series which recently ranked as the number one television show in Jamaica, is about to get a Bahamian invasion.

When Mission Catwalk Season 3 premieres on Saturday, April 13, The Bahamas will be represented by witty and incomparable Bahamian fashion designer Theodore Elyett who has put his needle and thread in the race.

Mission Catwalk is filmed in Kingston, Jamaica – the country which also delivered the show’s past two winners. But this year, Elyett is seeking to give the contestants from Jamaica and the seven other Caribbean countries represented a run for their money.

Elyett began his climb on local fashion catwalks in 1998 and says all the hard work is certainly paying off. “_Mission Catwalk_ is an opportunity of a lifetime,” Elyett explains. “Not only do I have the opportunity to showcase my talents to the region and the world, but I also have the responsibility of ensuring that The Bahamas is well represented in this competition as well.”

“There is no doubt that I entered this competition with the mindset to walk away with the grand prize, but I have also allowed myself to embrace this opportunity as a learning experience for growth as well.”

Theodore Elyett 2012 Line





Elyett, along with his competitors, will be mentored throughout the season by veteran fashion quality control specialist Kay Devitian. Devitian has worked with international fashion brands like Jones & Co. New York and Ralph Lauren to name a few.

A total of 15 aspiring designers are set to take part in the highly popular show; all of them vying for a hefty cash prize, a suite of industrial sewing machines, the opportunity to showcase at London Fashion Week and an intense course at renowned London College of Fashion with dual courses in Paris, France. Elyett describes the competition as “intense” but based on the local and international awards and mentions he’s already racked up, it’s evident that he knows how to put in work and make every stitch count.

Elyett has been crowned Stylezine Magazine’s People's Choice Award for 2012 Designer of The Year; champion of Runway to Fashion Week 2010 competition and winner of Harl Taylor BAG Scholarship in 2010. A staple in the fashion industry in The Bahamas, Elyett has studied at one of the world’s top fashion school's -- Parsons The New School For Design, in New York City during an intensive summer scholarship. In 2010, he aggressively launched the eponymous label “Theodore Elyett” and has had his meticulous and breathtaking designs featured on the cover of every local fashion magazine over the last three years including Profiles 98, Nu Woman Magazine and Ca Mari.







But just like a big fish in a little pond, Elyett sees beyond this archipelago and has even gripped international headlines with his work also featured on Italian Vogue Black Blog, Essence Magazine’s online edition and he’s represented The Bahamas at the inaugural International Caribbean Fashion Week in New York City.

When the season begins on Saturday April 13, Elyett is seeking to stick a pin in Jamaica’s reign and bring the Mission Catwalk crown home to The Bahamas. “I’m not going into this trying to be just another competitor,” he added. “I want to bring them a brand already in action. I am seeking to offer them something; a mutually beneficial relationship is how I’d like to think of it.”