not quite the best
I wasn't all that intrigued by the Paris collections, a tragedy when Paris fashion week is usually my favourite week. Yes, there were nice things to be seen here and there, but compared to the fall collections, where clothes actually excited me, this coming spring seems a bit tired.
The positives: a cool new minimalism that isn't all hard and austere or dull - I like Stella McCartney and Marni.
Stella McCartney's collection could be called great for one single look -
Well, make it two -
It's the best trouser suit I've seen in a long time, all long and lean and sexy in a casual way.
And I also rather like this, kind of a cool and chic riff on Christian Lacroix's 80s poufs (though I don't know if that's what Ms McCartney had in mind) -
And a bit of colour for spring -
Marni was also very nice for spring, nothing very new there, but at least the label appears to be getting over the hippie thing it got famous for - the new looks are clean and spare with the volume giving it a carefree feel -
And even their signature prints have cleaned up -
They also worked the leggings thing without making it such a obvious 80s' reference -
Prada confused me with a repertoire of rather unflattering looks like these -
The first top gave the fine-boned model man shoulder, the second dress managed to give the model a huge ass, the third is just mumsy.
But I liked the colours and the richness of the satin here, and I don't usually like satin. And the little dress is cute with a couture vibe (even if still unflattering poofy at the boob area) -
The shorts/skirt things doesn't exactly look wearable, but they're obviously not meant to be literal. I prefer to think that Miuccia Prada is recommending short for spring. Which is fine by me. Short is always nice in hot weather, and short looks great when done in unexpectedly rich textures.
Could this be the last of the pretty blouse-empire dress combos that have been spilling out ad nauseam from Chloe? With a new creative director (formerly of Marni) to take helm, maybe we'll finally see something new. I'm not really complaining, I did like the last two Chloe collections sans Phoebe Philo - they do the short dress/heavy shoe thing like no one else - but I think the label deserves to see a little more creative breakthrough.
Really like these shoes.
Lanvin seemed just okay to me, with more of the gorgeous dresses we've come to love and expect, with a bit of a darker edge to it all.
Some critics have pointed out a few futurism themes coming through (a very big theme Vogue seems to be trying to push this season), but it wasn't all that obvious to me.
It's not that I don't like the collection - Alber Elbaz rethinks the cocktail dress like nobody does - but I hope he gives a little more next season - it just felt a repetitive to me this season, even if still a cut above the rest.
YSL Rive Gauche was more of the same problem - not much new going on there, and here, some of the looks were just too retro. Pretty, but kind of costume-y , like someone playing dress up -
There were a couple of nice looks -
But this really pales in comparion to the great collection for fall '06.
Alexander McQueen was kind of a surprise for me - I saw a bit of the magic he made his name on this season, with some beautiful, slightly disturbing looks.
Not exactly groundbreaking but it's a good reminder why people love him in the first place - he can do things no one else thought of.
Balenciaga was great, if kind of unwearable. This has to be the most elegant rendering of a robotic look I've ever seen. And he's doing the futuristic thing without being all Mod-ish.
I'm still kind of undecided on whether it'll get tired after a while though.
Chanel was happy and flirty and bright and full of great accessories. I liked this collection a lot more than the Mod-ish stuff Karl Lagerfeld had been doing, and I think it's great the way he re-imagines Chanel every season while remaining very Chanel. The sequinned shorts are a hoot.
Very nice accessories; I love any reimagining of the classic quilted bag -
Rochas, sadly, has shuttered. Olivier Theykens has moved on to Nina Ricci, and I will be looking forward to seeing what he can do for them, but pity he replaced Lars Nilsson. Even though Mr Nilsson's aesthetic wasn't quite my thing, he did the pretty, romantic thing for the label pretty well, and I think he deserved more credit for the easy way he has with an evening gown. Such a cutthroat world, fashion.
Here's a final look at one of his creations for spring '06, one of his better collections for the house -
Pictures from Style.com
The positives: a cool new minimalism that isn't all hard and austere or dull - I like Stella McCartney and Marni.
Stella McCartney's collection could be called great for one single look -
Well, make it two -
It's the best trouser suit I've seen in a long time, all long and lean and sexy in a casual way.
And I also rather like this, kind of a cool and chic riff on Christian Lacroix's 80s poufs (though I don't know if that's what Ms McCartney had in mind) -
And a bit of colour for spring -
Marni was also very nice for spring, nothing very new there, but at least the label appears to be getting over the hippie thing it got famous for - the new looks are clean and spare with the volume giving it a carefree feel -
And even their signature prints have cleaned up -
They also worked the leggings thing without making it such a obvious 80s' reference -
Prada confused me with a repertoire of rather unflattering looks like these -
The first top gave the fine-boned model man shoulder, the second dress managed to give the model a huge ass, the third is just mumsy.
But I liked the colours and the richness of the satin here, and I don't usually like satin. And the little dress is cute with a couture vibe (even if still unflattering poofy at the boob area) -
The shorts/skirt things doesn't exactly look wearable, but they're obviously not meant to be literal. I prefer to think that Miuccia Prada is recommending short for spring. Which is fine by me. Short is always nice in hot weather, and short looks great when done in unexpectedly rich textures.
Could this be the last of the pretty blouse-empire dress combos that have been spilling out ad nauseam from Chloe? With a new creative director (formerly of Marni) to take helm, maybe we'll finally see something new. I'm not really complaining, I did like the last two Chloe collections sans Phoebe Philo - they do the short dress/heavy shoe thing like no one else - but I think the label deserves to see a little more creative breakthrough.
Really like these shoes.
Lanvin seemed just okay to me, with more of the gorgeous dresses we've come to love and expect, with a bit of a darker edge to it all.
Some critics have pointed out a few futurism themes coming through (a very big theme Vogue seems to be trying to push this season), but it wasn't all that obvious to me.
It's not that I don't like the collection - Alber Elbaz rethinks the cocktail dress like nobody does - but I hope he gives a little more next season - it just felt a repetitive to me this season, even if still a cut above the rest.
YSL Rive Gauche was more of the same problem - not much new going on there, and here, some of the looks were just too retro. Pretty, but kind of costume-y , like someone playing dress up -
There were a couple of nice looks -
But this really pales in comparion to the great collection for fall '06.
Alexander McQueen was kind of a surprise for me - I saw a bit of the magic he made his name on this season, with some beautiful, slightly disturbing looks.
Not exactly groundbreaking but it's a good reminder why people love him in the first place - he can do things no one else thought of.
Balenciaga was great, if kind of unwearable. This has to be the most elegant rendering of a robotic look I've ever seen. And he's doing the futuristic thing without being all Mod-ish.
I'm still kind of undecided on whether it'll get tired after a while though.
Chanel was happy and flirty and bright and full of great accessories. I liked this collection a lot more than the Mod-ish stuff Karl Lagerfeld had been doing, and I think it's great the way he re-imagines Chanel every season while remaining very Chanel. The sequinned shorts are a hoot.
Very nice accessories; I love any reimagining of the classic quilted bag -
Rochas, sadly, has shuttered. Olivier Theykens has moved on to Nina Ricci, and I will be looking forward to seeing what he can do for them, but pity he replaced Lars Nilsson. Even though Mr Nilsson's aesthetic wasn't quite my thing, he did the pretty, romantic thing for the label pretty well, and I think he deserved more credit for the easy way he has with an evening gown. Such a cutthroat world, fashion.
Here's a final look at one of his creations for spring '06, one of his better collections for the house -
Pictures from Style.com
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