House of Dereon, On, but not Daring

Dreamgirls, a movie loosely based on the Supremes, features several A-list celebrities such as Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy and Beyoncè Knowles. It was released over the last week to astonishing reviews, though not amongst some controversy. The gossip bloggers are whispering that Beyoncè is being attacked by the green-eyed monster. No, she doesn’t have the Christmas spirit going after her, but the rumors are that she is extremely jealous that her costar, newcomer Jennifer Hudson, is receiving all the Oscar buzz and rave reviews. Green eyes for the green thumb, so to speak.

I decided to look into just what makes Beyoncè the superstar she is rumored to think she is. Her singing and dancing are undeniably what made her big, but does that give her the privilege to be amongst the same ranks as the uber-sucessful, multi-ventureful celebs such as Sean Combs and Jennifer Lopez? Her acting is rather blasé, so that leaves her clothing line to be examined. Can her fashion catapult her into the super-celeb she wants to be?

As usual, I decided to scope out this celeb’s fashion line online. House of Dereon , Beyoncè’s young clothing endeavor, was launched in November 2005 with the help of mom, Tina Knowles. The actual creator behind this project is Tina, though Beyoncè is the inspiration and the name behind House of Dereon. The website itself was, at first, not fun to navigate. It seemed as though each link would lead to another window opening, then another, but eventually I got to the main screen for House of Dereon.

Clicking into the “tops” category, I was pleasantly surprised to see the prices listed beneath each blouse, sweater, and tank. The prices ranged from $55 to $155, and the tops were very wearable. Many of the shirts were demure enough to wear to work, such as the baby pink blouson top with three-quarter sleeves ($75), and the burgundy jersey kimono top with silk trim (on sale, $74), but others were sexy enough to wear out at night (my fave, the banded halter, is sexy, yet sophisticated and comes in black and white, $145). So far, I’m impressed.

The jeans, pants, and skirts, are all also sophisticated enough to wear to work (well, maybe if your office is casual enough to wear jeans), with the exception of the one mini gabardine skirt featured on the site. Each bottom appears to be made with the curvier woman in mind, so rejoice if you don’t live off of the famous one-cracker-a-day with a side of vomit diet. The prices here are a little steeper, ranging from $99-$210. Still, the skirts are flirty, the jeans are fitted, and the pants are streamlined.

The accessories sections are less impressive however, though that may be just a preference of taste. There are too many sparkly jewels, sequins, and feathery things for me to make use of much of it, though there are one or two pieces that are understated enough to wear with the elegant skirts. Her hat section is rather sad; there is only one piece there, and it’s a baseball cap with a large House of Dereon logo boldly placed front and center in gold.

Surprisingly, Beyoncè’s line is quite decent. Clean, but not overwhelming; pretty, but not eye catching. It’s talented in some areas, but does not encompass the ubermensch quality of some other star clothing designers. Her line, is simply, like Beyoncè herself—capable, but not spectacular.

By Susan Bynum

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