The Creation of Callula Lillibelle; Melanie Fraser Hart and William Calvert Combined!

Melanie Fraser Hart and William Calvert are from similar traditional backgrounds but their current partnership is an amalgamation of knowledge and expertise meeting with a lifelong passion for art, design and fashion.

William Calvert, the veteran of the fashion world, has created a couture empire for himself which was established in 1998. Since 2001, his brand has evolved in to a Haute Couture house. Previous to launching out on his own, William worked for Balenciaga, Pierre Balmain and Rochas. He also developed collections for Diane Von Furstenberg and consulted for Perry Ellis Women’s Coats. In 1999 he was selected for the first Moet and Chandon Designer Debut, and during the same year, received the Rising Star Award from Fashion Group International.

Melanie Fraser Hart vigorously studied art and design in high school at the Museum of Fine Arts School in Boston and went on to major in theater at Bennington College.

Graduating early from Bennington, she moved to Los Angeles to work with legendary producer Arnold Kopelson and within three months, became the Vice President of Creative Affairs. When the film business no longer satisfied her creative spirit, Vidal Sassoon stepped in and hired her to write speeches. The speech-writing turned to managing all aspects of his hair empire, side by side with Sassoon at all times. While working for Sassoon, she earned her MBA from the prestigious Anderson Shool of Business at UCLA.

The story continues with an introduction from Jeffrey Poe, the owner of famed Blum and Poe Gallery in Los Angeles, CA. Melanie Fraser Hart had worked for a few years with Jeff’s brother, a West Coast fashion design icon in his time, to develop and design creative urn and casket options for Hollywood Forever, the publicity darling of the death industry. The overall principal behind “House of Poe” was to design beautiful options for urns that were so outstanding that people would want them in their homes. Hollywood Forever gave them the task of also designing caskets for those who were not comfortable of the option of an urn-as-art.

As life often takes an ironic turn, Gregory Poe passed as their business, which met a sought-after niche, was developing. It was then that Melanie Fraser Hart looked to Jeff Poe for advice, wishing to carry on in the design world but hoping to bring the fashion world something which it lacked; a line which embraced tradition yet enhanced the female figure of all types. The line was to be a sleek and feminine wardrobe of contemporary silhouettes for the modern woman, a “from desk to dinner” line. With William Calvert’s technical genius for engineering any fashion piece and Melanie’s drive to succeed in her task (but needing a well-established partner), Jeff made the introduction and it was from there that Callula Lillibele took off. The look was formed with the overriding concept of television’s popular Madmen meets 2010/2011.

William and Melanie are constantly inspired by stars of the past such as Marilyn Monroe, Jayne Mansfield, Tippi Hedren and Betty Paige. The sexual sirens of the past would be able to find their place in the Callula Lillibelle current line. Joannie from Madmen would thrive in the clothing! Melanie and William feel that women of today, while met with so many fashion trends and choices, should feel empowered enough to dress the womanly body, while still looking appropriate enough to work their wardrobe with class and style; it can be flaunted in to the boardroom or the bedroom. The Callula Lillibelle partners feel that, at the end of the day, that is what every woman seeks and yearns for; societal acceptance and admiration with the knowledge that under it all, a little “naughty” is fantastic too!