eBay Obsessed: Designer Chris Benz

After leaving his Seattle home at age 17 to attend Parsons School of Design, designer Chris Benz arrived in NYC raring to go. He blasted through his school years, then did stints in the press departments and design rooms of both Marc Jacobs and J.Crew. With an eye on the tastes of his generation, he launched the Chris Benz collection in 2007 as a chic and stylish jumble of pop culture references from high to low. From the world of interior design, to reality star housewives, to brilliant Broadway ingénues, Chris keeps tabs on just about everything and grabs the best of the moment ideas for his clothes. Benz recently moved into a historic Chelsea brownstone apartment, and decorating the place has provided ample inspiration for his resort 2011 collection—modeled on his collection of Sascha Brastoff pottery collected over the years on eBay. The Inside Source checked in with him to find out some of his auction tricks—and just what heʼs been buying to influence his clothes for Spring Summer 2011.

The Inside Source: You seem to be often inspired by the past and vintage looks - are there particular periods that you like to revisit?

Chris Benz: I love American sportswear, so I am always paying homage in one way or another to that pastiche ... 20ʼs for itʼs sportiness, 30ʼs for casual glamour, 40ʼs tomboy, 50ʼs optimistic beauty ... And to the originators of that ideal, Norman Norell, Claire McCardell, and recently I have been loving Liz Claiborne very much. For the Resort 2011 collection, I was inspired by the work of mid-century ceramist Sascha Brastoff, whose exuberant motifs inspired much of the collection.

TIS: Iʼve read that you used some interesting new fabrics and techniques in your resort collection- chiffon tweed? Can you tell me about them?

CB: One of my favorite parts of fashion design is fabric selection! For the Resort 2011 collection, we used some really interesting new techniques. One of the most interesting is a silk organza that is embroidered overtop with strips of chiffon, cotton tulle, and cotton ribbon which gives the illusion of a traditional “spring tweed.” It is super lightweight and lovely. It sort of feels like an old tee shirt, but looks very special and dressed-up!

TIS: What are your favorite key looks from the resort collection?

CB: Some of my favorite looks from the Resort collection revolve around a more tempered use of color. It was important to me this season to bring our Chris Benz girl into a more refined place in her life. Very bright colors I restricted to use as accents, and used more subtle colors as the main focus. An example of this is the Evelyn Dress which is all about refined casual elegance. Another key look is the Bristol Jacket & Mitzi Pant in the turquoise/green print on grasscloth. I particularly like the novelty of this jacket, which is trimmed in tattered chiffon embroidery, as well as the macramé rope bib necklace. Itʼs the perfect thing to wear for a tropical holiday party!

TIS: How did you discover this seasonʼs inspiration, Sascha Brastoff? What was it about his stuff that attracted you? How did his work translate to your collection?

CB: I came across Brastoffʼs work on ebay ages ago, and have been collecting his ceramics piece-by-piece for a number of years. Itʼs very charming, brightly colored, and the spirit of his work is both loud and quiet, both of which I try to bring to the collection. He was also a dear friend of Carmen Miranda, and so thereʼs a bit of her in the collection, as well as a very 1950s California temperment overall. I tried to imagine all of the clients coming by the Sascha Brastoff factory to place orders and how and why they responded to his work, what their houses looked like, and ultimately what they wore. The trick was interpreting that mood to the way a modern woman dresses, and how to update and more forward.

TIS: The collection has an underlying Los Angeles vibe - when you visit LA what are some of the places that you have to hit?

CB: I love Los Angeles, and we do travel there a couple times a year for work. I love visiting all the boutiques on Melrose and the Fairfax flea market. I love the way people in LA put clothes together, which is completely different from what we see in New York everyday. Itʼs like they must be ready to hit the beach at any moment or something. And, I definitely canʼt leave LA without having the spaghetti bolognese at the Chateau Marmont.

TIS: Youʼve personalized your new work space with lots of cool & quirky furniture and objects- what is your criteria for shopping? How long have you been in the new space? Can you send a couple snaps?

CB: We moved into our new design studio in October, and recently went on a rampage finding all sorts of accoutrements and furniture to dress the space and envelop the new collection with complimentary accents. Most everything came from ebay, and I think not a day goes by that at least a little something arrives in the mail at the studio. I really have no criteria for my shopping, just if something jumps out to me. I love midcentury pottery, vintage industrial, funny paintings and prints, pretty much anything that is interesting.

TIS: Would you ever like to be an interior designer or design a home collection? what would be the first thing that youʼd want to make?

CB: I love interior design and it is a great hobby to have. A lot of aesthetic design is so cross-pollinating, which is such a good thing. Sometimes a pillow will inspire the trim or treatment of a jacket, or a certain color room will inspire a new palette that translates into the collection. Another trick I like to use is find rooms that inspire, and then imagine the woman that lives in it ... What does she do? Where does she go? What do her friends dress like? Who all is in the room and what are they wearing? I of course would love to design anything for the home. Iʼd love to do upholstered pieces that would compliment each collection. In fact, there is a large floral print in the Resort collection that is an original Italian upholstery layout from the 1950s!

TIS: Any special projects coming up? Any CB retail stores in the works? Collaborations? New lipstick, etc?

CB: We always have little projects going on, which brings a lot of great energy to what we do every season. Delivering this week to Saks Fifth Avenue is an exclusive, limited edition dresses collection that Iʼm really excited about. Each dress has a personality of itʼs own, but all made of the same heavyweight silk crêpe. Thereʼs a tank dress, a strapless, a print, a sequin, a leather ... All in terrific signature colors. I really wanted there to be great, easy-to-wear dresses available for this time of year, and style that are timeless. I think theyʼre terrific! No immediate plans for our own retail location as yet, however weʼre getting a lot of practice experimenting with the interiors and merchandising of the new studio, so never say never!

TIS: You are working on Spring 11- what is the vibe so far?

CB: Needless to say, I am loving color for Spring 2011. The inspiration boards are just now coming together, but I can say that it is all about easy breezy flowy dressing, in great prints, stripes, and a bit of subtle sparkle.

TIS: I know that you have quite a few ebay watch-lists set up...can you give us some tips for being a successful ebay searcher and bidder?

CB: I always have the maximum number of watched items on my list (200), but I could certainly fill it with many, many more. I think the best way to navigate through ebay listings is to really be open to finding new connections, new paths to other items, and really following your own aesthetic to new discoveries. I often search more vague conacepts (“mid century” or “vintage red”) just to get the ball rolling. I also find that if youʼre able to resist bidding until you get a sense of the popularity of an item, that is a good tactic. No reason to bid too early and drive up the price if the item is highly sought-after. I like to wait, and sometimes youʼll find something more interesting as a replacement while youʼre watching another item.

TIS: Is there anything that you are currently collecting that you can talk about?

CB: Of course I still love a Sascha Brastoff piece here and there, but also I have recently been adding to my collection of 1930s Chinese figurines ... I only collect them in turquoise glaze, and theyʼre rather hard to both find and search for. Iʼve also been working on my book collection. Ebay is such a great resource for out-of-print design books, scrapbooks, and monographs. Iʼm loving vintage auction catalogues from Sothebyʼs and Christies which are an amazing source of inspiration for any discipline.

Here are some items on Benz's current watch list:

Roll over items for details

1970s Vintage Bugatti Sunglasses Goldplated

(current bid, $66)

Pair X Base Hollywood Regency Benches Stools Ottomans

((winning bid, $634))

Mid-Century Modern Bold Abstract Art Painting Eames Era

(buy it now price, $1,499.99)

Rare Mid Century Berber Moroccan Rug

((buy it now price, $795))

70s Life Size Curtis Jere Era Lollipop Type Tree

(buy it now price, $799.99)

Antique White Metal Medicine Cabinet

((buy it now price, $599))

Hollywood Regency Brass Nail Head Trunk Coffee Table

(winning bid, $270)

Vintage Distressed 80s Soft T-Shirt

((buy it now price, $24.99))

NEW Lot of 12 Friendship Bracelets

(buy it now price, $20)

Vintage Antique Crocheted Purse

((winning bid, $8.83))

Antique Embroidery Christian Sacred Bleeding Heart Art

(buy it now price, $575)

** Portrait and images provided by Chris Benz. **

Guest writer Stephen Watson was the fashion director of Men's Vogue. Prior to that, he worked in the Vogue fashion department for 17 years. He currently freelances and lives in Brooklyn.