The Row Pre-Fall 2012

I thought I was done and dusted with Pre-Fall but then Mary-Kate and Ashley went and did a wonderful thing with The Row. This is one of those collections in which you don't just admire the clothes, but want to be the women that these clothes will make you.

Definitely worth mentioning is the commendable colour palette. Varying shades of navy and burgundy is somewhat of a revelation, and to then to go and throw in some salmon pink - how unexpected! How exciting!

I've been thinking about them a lot lately, and I have a theory as to why The Row is just so successful. Ok so obviously the main reason is that the Olsen's are good designers, but I believe that part of their appeal is due to how serious they are. I don't mean that they are serious about their vocation as designers, but that the whole tone of the label is deadly serious, and seriously earnest. Just look at the photos above to start with. Instead of the generic look-book assembly of photos you usually get for pre-fall, here we are presented with "A Portrait of Women in Clothes". It is almost unimaginable that their models will ever jump on the latest trend for smiling and their runway shows are more than - the set design, lighting and styling elevate everything to more of "A Study in Taste".

The Row is sometimes compared to Celine for their elegant, intelligent take on 'clothes for the real woman', but while I can find Celine's pretentiousness irritating, with The Row it is wholly endearing. Maybe it's got something to do with the difference between New York and Paris. East of the Atlantic you have enough big houses pompously prancing around with their hundred years of history and archives and highfalutin' traditions - you don't get more serious than Paris and Celine doesn't help. New York on the other hand has carved out a completely different niche and it's all street savvy labels like Alexander Wang and Rag and Bone (clearly I'm omitting labels like Carolina Herrera and Oscar de la Renta but I'm trying to form an argument here!) who carry with them a good sense of humour and large amounts of irony. There's not much solemn sincerity in NY, so The Row fill that gap nicely. And while it's easy to make fun of earnestness, at the same it can be totally refreshing.

I don't know if you guys know the band Xiu Xiu but they've got the same earnest thing going on. When they released Fabulous Muscles in 2004, Room on Fire had just been released a few months earlier and The Strokes were totally the rage. Back then everyone was digging this cool New York irony and laughing at Xiu Xiu lyrics like "I want you to like me". I was pretty impressionable at that time and assumed that The Strokes had the right idea and that Xiu Xiu were mildly embarrassing. But then a wise friend said something along the lines of "I would rather listen to someone earnest and sincere who commits completely than listen to some smug assholes who consist entirely of sickening levels of irony" . And that changed everything because I realised it was ok to care.

I will repeat this because it is important and everyone should always remember: it's ok to care.

And so bringing this back to The Row - they care, and that is cool. 

Pre-Fall 2012

Pre-fall is generally pretty boring isn't it? I guess it's more of a business enterprise than an exercise in creativity (fun for those who can afford designer clothes and always want new things to buy, not so much fun for those of us who can only write about them). However sometimes pre-fall delivers gems because designers can be more frivolous than usual - they don't have to have the kind of 'serious' inspiration found in Spring and Autumn!

Case in point Proenza Schouler (I talk about them a fair bit don't I?): what was their inspiration for Pre-Fall '12? Sleeping bag quilting of course! The collection is pretty tiny and to be honest a lot of it was pretty meh, but they used this emerald green and dark navy that's very moody and regal so I'll show you those looks:

On the other end of the scale, Chanel delivered a pre-fall collection that was huge (78 looks) and much better than any collection Karl Lagerfeld has made in the last five years (at least). Old Karl was tired of everyone looking to China and Japan and stuff, and so being the envelope pusher that he is, did something <sarcasm>totally different<sarcasm> and looked to India of all places! I don't think he understands that the reason that fashion has focused on China lately is that they are having a huge middle-class economic boom, not because of some lame-ass cultural appropriation 'creative' reason. Lagerfeld himself has never even been to India, so insults the country by confusing their culture with douchebaggy students from 2001 who travel there to find spirituality or whatever (there were dreadlocks, it was terrible).
I guess it's kind of good then that this collection was met with some outrage! HOWEVER. It was outrage for the totally wrong reason. While the critics should have been getting all angsty about the condescending way that European/North American designers routinely borrow from, and homogenize, 'exotic' cultures, instead they were getting riled up about how extravagent the whole show and collection was. Because of the current economic situation in Europe. Because it's rude or something (totally not rude to India btw).

And so all things considered, I feel a little bit conflicted about the fact that - I really liked some of the collection. Chanel collections are always way too big for everything to be a hit, and more than half of this one was a miss, but what he got right here he got SO RIGHT. I didn't have a problem with all the extravagance (yeah yeah I'm contrary), so all those dripping jewels and gold embroidery satisfied the princess inside of me  (a lot of girls have this). A sari is far more fitting for a princess than any stupid pink taffeta. Here are the looks that are good, while bearing in mind that originally there were 78:

As a p.s. here is one look that didn't fit in with anything else, but the colours of the stripes and that navy are just so satisfying it makes me smile and sigh. Also Julia Nobis always gets the best, baddass looks.