Courtesy of Brizo

September is a busy month in New York.  Much like everywhere else, school is starting up again, the air is getting crisp and the workforce begins to cope with the lazy days of summer drawing to a close.  What distinguishes the New York September from that in other locations is the unique vibe created by Fashion Week.  Occurring semi-annually, Fashion Week has been a dynamic fixture in New York City since the early 1940′s.   

Speaking of fixtures, what exactly does Fashion Week have in common with a faucet brand?  I’m glad that you ask.  First of all, we’re not talking about your Grandma’s faucets here.  Brizo is officially the “fashion brand” for kitchen and bath faucets.  A premium faucet brand launched by Delta in 2004, Brizo has taken the fashion world by storm with its collaborative partnership with fashion design icon, Jason Wu.

Jason Wu + Kimberly Dowdell (photo credit: Jayme Thornton)

According to Brizo, “Fashion applies not just to the clothes you wear. High-style can be achieved on the runway, in the home and all around.” After spending an afternoon learning about the Brizo design process and their innovative product line, I support the notion that fashion can in fact transcend the runway.  Jason Wu has designed an exclusive collection of clothing and accessories for Brizo since they initiated their partnership in 2006.  In return, Brizo has been Jason Wu’s primary sponsor, supporting his shows at fashion week and hosting branded cocktail parties with leading designers to celebrate the poetic fusion of fashion for the red carpet with fashion for the stone countertop.

In an effort to promote heightened awareness of the Brizo brand, they teamed up with the savvy media relations folks at MS&L to engage the blogging community, hence the connection to Life at HOK and yours truly.  Brizo and MS&L did a great job of pulling together nearly twenty design bloggers to fuel discussion about the unique intersections between the fashion, architectural, interior and industrial design worlds.  The group was composed of bloggers from around the U.S. and Canada who were flown into New York and hosted at a swanky Park Avenue hotel to learn more about the Brizo brand and product offerings. 

The first day included an interactive Brizo training session followed by a fabulous Moroccan dinner at Barbes on 36^th + Madison.  Friday was kicked off with the Brizo Bath Challenge, followed by the Jason Wu Spring/Summer 2011 Fashion Show on Mercer Street.  The September 2010 Brizo Fashion Week Experience was concluded in style (of course) with a marvelous cocktail party at the Showtime House, where Jason Wu made an appearance to thank Brizo for their continued support.  My fellow bloggers at Build LLC posted a great review of the weekend’s events in a blog entitled, “Cross Pollination is the new Synergy”. Check it out!

Jason Wu's Kitchen ft. Pascal by Brizo (Courtesy of Brizo)

Together, the Brizo and Jason Wu brands represent luxury rooted in fashion, sharing the design vision of, “timeless style that is both innovative and fresh”.  While I can appreciate the emphasis that Brizo places on design, I must also applaud the brand for striking an appropriate balance between function and form to create products that make a statement as they perform the very important function of delivering healthy and refreshing water.  One might argue that water is water and the faucet brand doesn’t matter, but I would counter that our world is increasingly dependent upon products that conserve our natural resources and protect our drinking water from harmful toxins.  Brizo has expressed a commitment to offer, “superior fashion-forward designs that are environmentally responsible.”  Brizo products offer water-saving technologies such as electronic sensors, water velocity and thermodynamic controls, as well as aerators.   Many of their products are WaterSense labeled, which means that a certified third party has verified that a given product meets or exceeds EPA standards for water conservation.  Hey, why not “be good and look good” at the same time?

Virage by Brizo (Courtesy of Brizo)

The Brizo experience has afforded me an opportunity to connect with a great group of bloggers and it has completely transformed the way that I look at water hardware.  Many thanks to Brizo for hosting a spectacularly memorable series of events during Fashion Week 2010.  As a brand, Brizo does some very interesting things that I would like to highlight further in what I’m calling the Brizo Blog Series.  This will serve as the first of three posts that explore the Brizo approach.  The next post will deal more specifically with The Brizo Experience through Art + Innovation.  The final post will be an actual product review of a Brizo kitchen faucet that I will be installing in my apartment. 

Check out my view from the fashion show: JasonWu2010_finale

Until next time…keep fashion on tap!