First View Paris ss2012: Poetic Vision

Viewing the first Paris collections immediately made clear that 50’s Retro, Tropicana and Crafts are definitely on trend, worldwide.

But here we want to highlight a different mood. A lovely tale of heroines travelling the world, picking up inspirations, connecting and merging the east and the west and marrying these influences in lovely, narrative and poetic stories.

The spirit is romantic, exquisitely elegant and fuelled with craftsmanship in tailoring, embellishment, pattern as well as cut. Some glowful decadence in androgynous looks with a daring sensual twist. Shades of China show in dangling tassels, kimono-like wraps, north-African caftans and western suiting. Manipulated city- and landscapes in photo print as well as historical engravings of gardens of Eden.

Ann Demeulemeester goes sensual and combines fluid flared skirts and dresses with elongated suit coats. Severe black suiting with barely-there veils and free flowing fringes. Dries van Noten adds ruffles and ruches to pure, stern silhouettes and narrative prints to bold black and white. Rick Owens adds roundness and softness to column-like contours. Each of them envisioning a positive future. To speak with Owens: a gateway to heaven.

Stylespot is a collaboration with Stijlinstituut Amsterdam

Christian Dior Catwalk Fashion Show Paris ss2012

The house of Christian Dior is still in transition. And while they are in this vacuum, the only thing the design-team can do is designing commercial stuff. The loyal customer still wants to buy new clothes, no?

Bill Gaytten showed a new, subtle version of the Bar jacket with a wide neckline and more streamlined silhouette. The collection never went to the extremes. The jacket was worn over organza blouses and bubble skirts done in airy fabrics. It looked pretty and feminine in pale colors as well as a few shots of red. The color was a light contrast to the graphic black-and-white check motif and geometric embroideries on shirts and dresses. For evening, it was a steady stream of filmy silks, plied with tulle and lace.

A.F. Vandevorst Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2012

Kenya was the big inspiration for A.F. Vandevorst’s spring collection. The designers felt inspired by special African tribes to design unconventional clothes with even crazier accessories and hat pieces.

Their asymmetric looks were layered, fringed, tassled and embroidered to make sure they kept our attention. Military references were placed chests and shoulders.

A color palette of black, deep blue, red and camel didn’t feel very spring like, but the beautiful earthy toned paisley prints sure made up for that.

Headbands and extravagant Mohawk headpieces gave the collection even more character.

Welcome to Vandevorst’s warrior jungle!

Streetfashion Paris Womenswear ss2012

What are you wearing during this fashionweek? Your Gucci-shoes, your latest Celine-dress or that vintage Givenchy? Maybe we’ll spot you in Paris, Milan, New York or Amsterdam. During the fashionweeks we refresh our streetwear posts regularly. We don’t judge, we’re not the fashion-police, we just enjoy fashion and your own personal style. Next stop: Paris Fashion Week.

Rick Owens Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2012

It were not necessarily bright summer looks at Rick Owens, but it was a great collection. Lean column dresses, long tops combined with knee length shorts and all kind of other unexpected sculptural silhouettes were shown. All in black and white, of course.

With their hair flat on top of their hats, bleached eyebrows and orange-colored lips, Owens’ models looked anything but natural beauties. But of course that’s never the point at an Owens show.

The Californian designer likes his looks to be edgy, out of the ordinary. And that’s why he has such a solid fan base, ‘cause don’t we all wanna look special or at least of bit different from others?

Ann Demeulemeester Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2012

Today Ann Demeulemeester presented us with some witches. All of them were dressed in black, white or a mix of both. Half of them had leather floppy hats on, the other half wore their hair stuck to their heads in a creepy kind of way, like they’d just crawled out of a swamp.

Yet no matter how Gothic and spooky their appearances looked, there was still a beautiful side to the collection. These were good witches in airy, sheer designs with their boobs on display. They showed their love for long silhouettes, tassels floral details, loose knitwear and the ‘color’ black.

Like a true Demeulemeester collection there was not a real color in sight. Yet those cream and white shades and the degrade pieces made sure there was enough variation.

Many fashion fans already claimed this collection as the best of the season and we must agree. Even without the bright shades, the pastels, the floral prints, the bikini’s and the flirty dresses Ann Demeulemeester showed a killer spring collection.

Watch the video of the show below

Balenciaga Catwalk Fashion Show Paris ss2012

It must be so embarrassing when you invite the creme de la creme of the fashionworld at your show and the benches you arranged crash while they are seated. It happened at Balenciaga this morning. And for the first time even that fashion-elite had to stand during the show.Luckily for Balenciaga and designer Nicolas Ghesquiere the clothes mad the audience forget they were feel uncomfortable. The collection was about volume and structure. Oversize was Ghesquiere next big theme this season, trying to discover how body and ultra light fabric work together.

There were high-shine, round-shouldered jackets light as air, which  came in graphic color plays over wide but otherwise tiny shorts. The dresses were impressive ,  whether in ottoman knits in  simple  T-shirt shapes or complicated fabric collages.

Gareth Pugh Catwalk Fashion Show Paris ss2012

Again a film opened the show of Gareth Pugh in Paris. Ruth Hogben made a short movie with a naked Chrystal Renn, who appeared to be bound and completely ferocious. It set an angry tone for the collection. The first part of the show the clothes looked like cages, coats made of stiff horizontal strips. Was this about protection or defense? The cages were followed by tight dresses and cropped vests in black and white.

At the end the film screen burst into purple flames, and dark warriors appeared in shiny molded coats and matching helmets.

 

Streetfashion Paris Womenswear ss2012 Day 1

What are you wearing during this fashionweek? Your Gucci-shoes, your latest Celine-dress or that vintage Givenchy? Maybe we’ll spot you in Paris, Milan, New York or Amsterdam. During the fashionweeks we refresh our streetwear posts regularly. We don’t judge, we’re not the fashion-police, we just enjoy fashion and your own personal style. Next stop: Paris Fashion Week.

Dries van Noten Catwalk Fashion Show Paris ss2012

The collection Dries van Noten sent out this afternoon was build around various themes. One seemed old couture, regarding the tailored trousers, peplum pleats and drop-waisted dresses & tunics with a frilled bottom. The strongest however were the photoprints of city’s by night, nature, leaves, trees and flowers, it looked as if the designer copy-pasted parts of images into one print. It gave a contemporary character to classics like mens shirts, dresses and skirts. It also added some color now and then, green, pastelshades, blue and green. White, black and sepia were also favorites.

Other key-elements were broderie anglaise and lace, used for skirts and short jackets.

 

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