Andrew Rosen and Diane von Furstenberg for Fashion for Haiti

It’s been a few crazy days which kept me pretty busy on very exciting projects but I wanted to break my temporary silence for a BIG cause. A friend of mine who work at Theory got me some super nice goodies to promote the Fashion for Haiti tee which is helping to raise funds to bring relief to Haitian people. Our sweet friends at the CFDA is donating all the proceeds to the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund. So if you still don’t have the tee, it’s time to contribute and it only costs you $25 to do something good for your karma.

You can find a list of retailers on CFDA’s website or I also know you can find a lot of these tees at Theory store in the Meatpacking District (NYC).

NB: Alright, note that I am “obviously” not getting anything out of promoting this great cause, but if I can get that $85 plain white tee just to say I sleep in an “85 bucks plain white 100% cotton tee” would be awesome!

Christian Dior, Lanvin

Christian Dior

As a follow-up of the excellent previous Couture show, the Fall collection is again highly-inspired from the equestrian world. But for the ready-to-wear, John Galliano presents the collection with a seductive woman liking strong utilitarian leather coats over light and suggestive dresses. The boudoir aesthetic was definitely a turn-on, with romantic ruffled chiffon dresses, lots of laces and silks embellishments, leather was purely chic and even crocheted. The use of ribbons added a perfect “undress-me” appeal to this glamour show. Only, I found the choice of boots out of place. Even though it was a good show, I was truly expecting more from Galliano for this season, maybe something innovative rather than just showcasing what will hit the stores soon.

Lanvin

When you have a designer like Alber Elbaz, you know you will always be unexpectably pleased by his talent to never get his head stuck in a look or a style. Instead, he reinvents himself each season, bringing new styles, shapes, techniques and inspirations. That collection looked so simple and sophisticated, it was probably the best and strongest collection of the season undoubtedly. Elbaz created a world where Cleopatra travels in our time, styling herself in structured and minimalist clothes with African-inspired embellishments. It was surprisingly fun to watch all the famous blonde models wearing the Cleopatra do impersonating the famous Queen in a very edgy-chic version. The half-ankled shoes, ostrich fur coat and gold-lame pleated top were stunning as everything in this show.

Dries Van Noten, Gareth Pugh, Balenciaga

Dries Van Noten

Has Dries delivered the unexpected? Was it really him? Less ecclectic than ever (meaning less prints), definitely understated but more and more elaborated to create an effortless chic factor and stunning feminine shapes. Simply by looking at these oversized skirts and trenches, a softer color palette and slouchy shapes, you can tell the designer worked on a highly sophisticated and minimalist feminine silhouette. The show gave me the impression of being in the streets of Paris, dressing chic with confidence and a bit of classics. Fresh and modern, what an excellent way to start Paris Fashion Week!

Gareth Pugh

Probably the most commercial and wearable collection so far. But the British designer did not forget to stay ambitious in this sophisticated futuristic goth inspired collection. Not being a huge fan of Gareth Pugh neither Rick Owens, I had enjoyed looking at each really dramatic look during the show which revealed a high level of execution. It was a full-blown of geometric patterns and modern fabrics like these neoprene-leather suits, cashmere-wool-neoprene coats and jackets. The shapes were unusually softer than ever to focus on the body by experimenting transparency and the body’s natural curves. I really liked the latest pieces with the fine chains that represent more the designer’s signature.

Balenciaga

First you hesitate, the second you scream GENIUS. Nicolas Ghesquière delivered his most and greatest experimental Fashion, optimistic and avant-gardiste; it’s been long awaited in this industry for a couple years. The illuminated tiles on the floor integrated in the very classic interior of the ” Hotel Crillon” was the perfect setting for this cosmonaut-chic collection. The mix of modern and synthetic fabrics with amazingly structured shapes blasted an extraordinary show and optimistic, desirable vision of the future of clothing and styling. The use of pastel and bright colors, and computerized patterns were unexpected for a Fall collection but thankfully fur, cashmere and wool reminded me that Global Warming has not yet arrived. The fantastic use of bubble wrap patterns and lace, combining classic and futuristic, to create sexy outfits that Parisian women would love to wear.

Pucci, Gucci, Etro

“Like an Italian classic.” By this saying I would describe the poor Milanese Fashion Week we had for the upcoming Fall 2010. As Cathy Horyn said it so well on the NY Times, this week, Italian designers had presented “The Looks of Lowered Expectations.” But don’t get wrong, it was not bad like if the clothes were absolutely terrible, it was bad like a spectacular trailer for a bad movie. Perhaps the current economic situation has pushed the designers to focus more on selling wearable clothes than making a true creative fashion show. For example: Dolce & Gabbana have designed what I call a parody of a fashion show with nice pieces but absolutely uninspired neither appropriate for the season. Defending their collection to be their “back to the roots” trip, in my opinion it was purely a show that played on emotional feedback hiding the designers’ fear of moving forward in fashion: “taking risks”.

Pucci

There was something outrageously sexy in this setting. Beautiful models walking down the hallway of a museum in ultra-sexy clothes. Peter Dundas took a new route where Gucci meets Versace to make a classy, elegant yet luxurious sexy body-cons/voluptuous dresses. The fox fur was just a wow in my mouth and some dresses were maybe getting too close to the trashy side but remained chic in the context. Beaded black dresses reminded me of Balmain or the printed skirts had a Versace appeal from last season. But nevertheless, all the pieces were quite wearable for women who like to be starred at. The last gown will be see on every red-carpet of Hollywood.

Gucci

Perhaps the economic reality has hit Italian Fashion right in the hearts, Gucci proves this season that, like other designers, it’s not anymore about showing the house’s true and creative ID but about selling clothes to a broader public. The Fall collection was truly a classy and elegant show with very chic clothes every women would wear and this is where the point is. Looking at the collection, it was a missing a thread that would create a plot from beginning to end. Instead I saw a line of multiple looks and separates with redundancy. The tailoring is sharp and some details were luxurious, but a not-so-great-neither-so-bad collection. I also wished to see more spectacular dresses. On a bad note, the shoes were poorly designed, the black stilettos with snakeskin were purely “deja vu” and these suede boots were out of place.

Etro

Where Italian designers were trying to focus on their couture origins and demonstrating the authenticity of their work, Veronica Etro went the opposite way by conducting a collection that may have perfectly incorporated Chinese traditional fashion into Western clothes. Etro definitely did not fall into the total “cliché” by creating stunning separates of chinoiseries and other patterned items into fully wearable and modern pieces. Rich and detailed, the printed silk dresses were fantastic and ultra flattering to be worn for evening wear and catch everyone’s attention, Mao-inspired military suit, Mongolian fur jacket, wrapped skirt and long cape with fur tails. The collection was an explosion of beautiful prints and colors blending the Chinese sub-cultures.

If there one thing I am still fascinated when it comes to Versace, it is the group finale. During that finale, the models were revealed from this huge box located in the middle of the public. A stunning effect. For those who have not seen the video of the show, just follow this link.

Prada, Blumarine, Versace

Pretty busy week and I could not really catch up on London and Milan Fashion Weeks until this weekend. Due to the late posting, I will be writing my reviews in separate parts to give me enough time to (at least) look at all the collections and focus on the worthy highlights. Nonetheless, I had the feeling until writing this first part of the Milanese fashioin week that I did not miss that much. It feels like this season is definitely below everyone’s expectations – and overall a none event. But I could always count on major fashion houses such as Prada, Blumarine and Versace to show some interesting or promising collections for Fall 2010. And in between we had a very constructed Fendi collection yet chaotic and tasteless, a quirky and playful Moschino Cheap & Chic but cheap over-dominated the collection, DSquared2 was simply the worst collection I’ve ever seen with a full-on and repulsive vampiric/gothic theme, Gianfranco Ferré’s intriguing minimalist/sophisticated show and Emporio Armani’s 80’s look that is so outdated this season. So far I did not catch any strong trends like I did for New York fashion week, however give me more time to look at all the details and I’ll bring you some tips for next season.

Prada

Miucca Prada is one of the rare designers I always enjoy to follow season after season without disappointments, even though I let a few hiccups slide. Prada is one of those talented ones, who can twist any type of look to make it unconventional but with the ability to arrange it into fully wearable clothes everyone is envious of. The theme of the season was definitely late 50’s and 60’s, with an atmosphere very Jackie-O and Mad Men with tweed peacots suits, A-line leather skirts, cat eye glasses, classy-updos, vintage prints and shiny plastic brown coats which really stood out in this collection. Then at some points the show became a bit gimmicky with the revisited librarian look that would probably not attract lots of her clientele. Otherwise it’s a quirky collection, elegant and well-structured with a major noticeable move by the designer. The emphasis on the bust was clearly obvious by amplifying the breasts with ruffles or pointy cones, which was remarkably a nice direction and quite fun to watch. I bet the stylists had to be very creative to fill in the bras on the models.

Blumarine

The popular saying is usually “Less is more” but Blumarine’s designer Anna Molinari disregarded it to prove that “The more the better” for commercial success. How did it translate? Blumarine’s Fall collection was a full-on animal prints with suede and shiny embroideries highly inspired from Balmain and Isabel Marant. Undoubtedly, this show could have been the tackiest mess of all time but the styling was just so perfect that it looked ridiculously and unexpectedly great. Lots of zebras prints and fringing made the show, and watching the collection a second time whispered me that Brigitte Bardot would have killed it in Blumarine. The only sad note were the dresses at the end- out of place – don’t understand what the tulle dresses were doing in a show heavily dominated by strong fabrics such as leather.

Versace

Hit and miss! That’s how I would describe Donatella Versace’s show. Far from her S/S 2010 show where glamour, pastel shades and tiny body-con dresses were “de rigueur”, the designer followed another path by continuing the futuristic theme she presented for menswear a month ago. Unfortunately, her collection was not as strong, missing what could have been a great show. Heavily geometric, minimalist and sexy (I’ve seen some nice cut-outs), the tailoring felt somewhat not refined or too uninspired (example the boots are the big failure of this collection). And it went all wrong when colors started to pop-out from the darkness. Yellow, white or orange did not fit well, as well as other prints. The gowns at the end were actually stunning and smelt Versace-esque – as usual – but they felt like a collection in the collection. In my opinion, the last dress for example is the worst dress of FW so far, but the first looks were sensational. Which lead me to hope that next season will be way better and stronger if she continues that path.

All eyes on Bailey. Probably the live-streamed show with the biggest audience this year  since many and many websites were able to stream it live worldwide. Like a Marc Jacobs show in NY, the famous British trenchcoat brand has that potential to attract more than just fashion editorials and fashionistas. I may offend many of the amazing designers in London but London Fashion Week would probably be nothing without Burberry and Christophe Baily this week, grabbing the attention of the fashion people for the past few days, fighting to get into the show or making website servers crash. High at the expectation level since last season and the previous stunning menswear collection last month, I could not miss watching the show…well, unfortunately I did miss it. You know what? It was all fine! The show was basically what I was expecting: strong trenches with aviator inspiration, highly utilitarian collection and infinite options for styling. Although I was not expecting and highly surprised by these amazing thigh-high snake boots, the buckled boots with sheep skin inside and sophisticated tailoring. Extremely feminine yet masculine, the collection had that versatility to actually look like the jackets were made for both genres. As a pure fan of Burberry’s Spring ‘10 menswear line, I could not be more delighted to see coherence between both collection which, correct if I’m wrong, almost never happens. With high details like the lace dresses, a little bit of drapery like the top khaki sweater, the big shiny buttons were here too and those stunning boots! A militarian color palette between khaki, white cream, pruple and some bright colors like blue and yellow. Burberry Prorsum F/W ‘10 is strong, sexy, cutting-edge and ready for the street.

From left to right: Marc Jacobs, Alexander Wang, BCBG Max Azria, Doo.Ri, Aquascutum, Altuzarra, Proenza Schouler, Calvin Klein

Spotted on many many collections, long sleeves are the new “laisser-aller” of the season. There is nothing more comfortable than longer sleeves to wrap your hands during the cold winter.

Anna Wintour photographed by Tommy Ton

I just checked the weather forecast and I have to tell you this week is going to suck big ass… Between the temperature that has been rising over the weekend, then the rain tomorrow afternoon and snow coming later this week. In the middle of the week expect huge temperatures rises and drops. Don’t know how to answer to the global warming effect… I wonder what would Anna Wintour wear this week? Ha, never mind, she is probably just wearing a raincoat in London this week.

Calvin Klein, Ralph Lauren

What happens when 3 traditional American brands and heavyweight present their collection during the last day of New York Fashion Week. A last day at Bryant Park where all the media are focusing their attention, by consequence a failure would be catastrophic. Where Calvin Klein and Ralph Lauren were able to deliver two classic and ultimately good collections, Tommy Hilfiger just failed. Nevertheless, this whole Fashion Week was probably the less exciting I had experienced in my young life of critic, despite a few interesting trends I will report in the few coming weeks while this 3 Fashion weeks will be over. Don’t know for sure if it’s the aftershock of last year’s recession, but designers in NY have not been able to present innovative yet exciting Fall Winter collections, whereas for most of them they’ve been taking their inspiration from their archives or mostly playing with impressive styling. For the moment, I’ll wait and see what will happen in Milan and Paris before making a final judgment.

Ralph Lauren

Fleetwood Mac blasting on the soundtrack was the perfect way to describe Ralph Lauren’s collection. The Ralph Lauren women, in fall and winter, will live a bohemian life with a twist of grunginess. The overload of floral prints were definitely unexpected for his Fall collection, creating a vintage and hippie look far from his traditional preppy look. In appearance, Ralph Lauren did not go too far by doing what he does best and what sells. Classic shapes and same black and brown vintage colors, the details however were pretty neat. I liked the ruffled skirts, fishnet gloves, the tulle dresses with incrusted pearls and the large distressed leather belts. Despite the awful invasion of velvet during NY Fashion Week, Ralph Lauren is probably the only one able to pull this off properly (except that one green pant – ewww).

Calvin Klein

At Calvin Klein, the show started with a very conceptual sound that immediately set the mood of Francisco Costa’s collection. The entire collection was a pure wave of minimal tailoring, futuristic, effortless and fluid. The streamlined coats attracted the attention with rounded shoulders and long sleeves. Coats did not have any buttons neither lines, revealing extremely structured looks, as if the models were enveloped in a cocoon. Colors were traditionnaly between white an black, but the splash of blue color in the middle of the collection was quite refreshing. The white fur coat will be probably the client’s favorite. Overall, this was one of the best shows of New York Fashion Week, I enjoyed to watch Francisco Costa’s vision of Calvin Klein’s futur in clothing, minimalism in Fashion and hiring 90’s & edgy supermodels Kristen McMenamy, Stella Tennant and Kirsty Hume was just genius!