Louis Vuitton Menswear Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2013

June 29, 2012 by  
Filed under Fashion, Menswear, Paris

Next year is the 30th anniversary of the Louis Vuitton Cup, prelude to the America’s Cup, so it was no surprise Kim Jones took LV to sea in his third season as Men’s Style Director for the house. He added sport to LV’s two totems, travel and luxury.

There were chic options for all the crew aboard: handsome double-breasted navy suits,  rugged and colorful foul-weather gear and artfully frayed and decaying denim shorts and jackets.

Rick Owens Menswear Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2013

June 29, 2012 by  
Filed under Fashion, Menswear, Paris

The message of Rick Owens was lightness:  unstructured jackets in sheer organza, worn with shorts with  panels at the front and back, or fitted pants. Then monastic dresses entered the picture, like a sweeping caftan in blurry hand-painted gray checks, accessorized with bold chain bracelets.
More wearable –  read: urban – were the bombers and hooded parkas in summer-light organza, or cotton anoraks in graphic kite prints.

Streetfashion Paris Menswear SS2013 Day 1

June 29, 2012 by  
Filed under Events, Featured Items, Paris, People, Streetwear

What are you wearing during the fashionweeks? Your Jil Sander-shoes, your latest Prada-shirt or that vintage Gucci? 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 Menswear Fashionweek.

Mugler Menswear Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2013

June 28, 2012 by  
Filed under Fashion, Menswear, Paris

Nicola Formichetti, creative director of Mugler, choose an aquatic theme for his menswear-collection. He and menswear designer Romain Kremer brought in a new tailoring team and focused at fundamentals — jackets, pants and shirts — “without being too extreme,” as Formichetti said. The suits had a muscular presence. The look was sharp, with structured shoulders, no lapels, and attached, cutout tops revealing shards of skin. The theme worked well for graphic scuba tops and sleek trenchcoats in sea foam green or oil-slick black.

Raf Simons Menswear Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2012

June 28, 2012 by  
Filed under Fashion, Menswear, Paris

Raf Simons took elements of masculine and feminine dressing and mixed those into a sporty, tailored collection. Delicate floral prints, pleats, broderie anglaise and shades of pink were applied to modern, angular silhouettes. The models – with long, wet bangs – wore shorts with slits, boxy white shirts or overcoats with backs in floral prints and pleated skirts. Simons also presented long pants worn with colorful sneakers. Some T-shirts had illustrations of women.

Bonjour Paris!

June 28, 2012 by  
Filed under Featured Items, Menswear, Paris

Round Up Paris Womenswear FW2012

We have seen some supreme tailoring in Paris, resulting in sensual rounded shapes, exaggerated and challenging proportions and exciting fabrics. The world is clearly connected and the runways as well. Power looks, sculptured contours and very literary historical references were all over the place. Where we first spotted a hint of powder pink romance this was too scarce to be labelled a strong influence. The general feeling of tough powerplay and getting ready to withstand challenging times is ruling. Executed in a careful play with the existing parameters of couture, yet tailored with the contemporary flavor for bold statements. Think big.

It was not just the silhouette that takes on new dimensions this season; there is also the stage. Vuitton and Chanel confirm the feel for drama, stage setting and grand gestures. Catwalks became movie-sets, the models actors and the garments costumes. To quote one of the grand old NY ladies in the wonderful upcoming documentary: ‘Advanced Style’. ‘I dress up everyday for the theatre of my life’. That reflects clearly the attitude of women who opt for the most eccentric looks that where shown in Paris past week. These represent the icing on a cake that tasted very well, but were confirming the fact that the flavors of cakes today are not regionally bound any more. Globalization is a fact in fashion.

Stylespot is a collaboration with Stijlinstituut Amsterdam

FIERCE

Givenchy and Yves Saint Laurent staged fierce and perseverance. Ferocious, brave and powerful women with a provocative attitude. Forceful shades as black and red gain power by leather sheen, high polish and slick coatings.

 

SCI FI

Balenciaga and Chanel teamed up showing challenging material with a science fiction character. Priestesses of techno cult in bonded materials, plastics, liquid films and technical coatings and foils.

 

SCULPTURE

Lanvin was the master of sculpture. An expression of exalted womanliness with a generous emphasis on the curve. Comme des Garçons took it to an extreme by showing models as paper cut dolls and labeling these as ‘the future in two dimensions’.  The exaggeration of shape, the bringing back contours to the explicit essence, seems key.

 

HISTORY

Louis Vuitton takes us back in the old days by showing series of costume outfits that stand out by their absolute supreme elaboration and embellishment. Making history relevant once more by showing truly innovative skills and craftsmanship in embellishment, scattering crystals generously.

 

ORIENT

Style.com claims that Haider Ackermann has the most sophisticated color sense of anyone in Paris and we just want to confirm this. He seems to reflect on the orient; the passionate shades of the east in subtle monochrome harmonies are stunning and truly inspiring. This combined with the intricate and elaborate patterns Dries van Noten showed are great inspirations for garments that will please the crowd.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Streetfashion Paris Womenswear FW2012 Day 8

March 8, 2012 by  
Filed under Featured Items, Paris, People, Streetwear, womenswear

What are you wearing during the fashionweeks? Your Miu Miu-shoes, your latest Jil Sander-jacket or that vintage Gucci? 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. This is our last post for now, until new events show up. Thank you all for posing and watching this season, you’ve been a wonderful audience!

Miu Miu Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2012

March 8, 2012 by  
Filed under Fashion, Paris, womenswear

It’s been a while since Miucca Prada wove a common thread between her two lines, Miu Miu and Prada. But pantsuits are the only thing exciting to her after so many years of skirts and dresses, she explained to the press. And her pantsuits are still not ordinary. The Miu Miu clothes looked mannish and leisurely in a retro way. Jackets and matching ankle-length pants had roomy cuts, and were worn with buttoned-up blouses, scarves and ruffled, wide ties, all done in clashing patterns and color combinations.

First View Paris Womenswear FW2012: Hard & Slick

One more spot on power and hard-edge construction. Just to express the importance of this influence. Not to be pampered and cuddled in crisis. Women stand up and seem ready to fight. That is at least what designers suggest. Ready to march the battlefields. Dominatrix and fetishist and at the same time precious, upscale, ultra feminine and glamorous. From wasp-waisted x-shapes to rounded cape like sculptural silhouettes. Satin sheen, polished high gloss as well as slick. In leather, lacquer, chain mail and bonded satins. Metal, fur and rubber details. Creating looks with an almost sacral seriousness. Strict and severe and addressing the archetypal human need for religion as Gareth Pugh stated.

Monumental shaping is perfectly executed by Yves Saint Laurent, heavenly tailored by Viktor & Rolf, futuristic textured by Laurent, and it is hard to figure out if the look of Givenchy is monastic or vampire. It is an expression of utmost luxury.

Stylespot is a collaboration with Stijlinstituut Amsterdam

 

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