26.2.12
25.2.12
London A/W'12 - Pringle of Scotland
Turns out Pringle of Scotland was the happy surprise of London fashion week! I've always like the idea of Pringle of Scotland - Scotland (duh), moors, moodniess, Tilda Swinton, argyle - but anyone can admit that all that potential has been continually wasted with yawn-inducing ready-to-wear collections (I'm looking at you Clare Waight-Keller, you and Chloe deserve each other). So I was pretty interested in last season's first collection from ex-Balenciaga designer Alistair Carr. That show was pretty meh to be honest, but he has more than made up for it with this outing.
Carr seems to have balanced out his Balenciaga-esque tendencies (asymmetry, unexpected prints, geometric leanings) with the personality and more formal elements required for Pringle. The collection seems very Scottish to me, but yes, I will admit that my only qualifying factor is whether I can imagine Tilda Swinton wearing it. A little bleakness doesn't hurt the Scottish-ness either, and those monochrome looks towards the end of the show definitely had a bleak air about them.
But of course Pringle is all about knitwear isn't it? This is how I imagine Carr thought up how to approach the staples this season: (voice over in head) "Knitwear knitwear knitwear... so cardigans... jumpers... wool... cardigans... who wears cardigans... 90s... fluffy... cardigans... KURT COBAIN!"
So in my opinion Carr has slyly looked to the 90s and what was the result? We get ribbed wool, fluffiness, turtlenecks, twinsets and icy grey/blue shirts. I guess you could call that beige twin set ironic, but in fashion the word irony is usually associated with ugliness and there was no ugliness here, just 100% Drew Barrymore awesomeness. I like a designer who infiltrates his influences throughout a collection. I also like a designer who can use such a tired trend and keep the clothes from looking like 90s-themed house party costumes.
The colour palette of the show is noteworthy, too. Apparently Carr was inspired by Ettore Sottsass and other Post-Modern artists, which explains how we ended up with beige, camel, baby pink, baby blue, rust red, burnt orange, navy, white and more and yet it all working perfectly. Also brought to mind was the navy, starchy simplicity of Margaret Howell. Which is nice - maybe a new, decidedly British aesthetic is beginning to form.
The absolute last thing that the collection made me think of is Charlotte Gainsbourg in that one movie with Johnny Depp where they drool at each other over Creep (man two Radiohead references in a week). She just looks so good leaving that record store. And nice Youtube screencaps right?
Carr seems to have balanced out his Balenciaga-esque tendencies (asymmetry, unexpected prints, geometric leanings) with the personality and more formal elements required for Pringle. The collection seems very Scottish to me, but yes, I will admit that my only qualifying factor is whether I can imagine Tilda Swinton wearing it. A little bleakness doesn't hurt the Scottish-ness either, and those monochrome looks towards the end of the show definitely had a bleak air about them.
But of course Pringle is all about knitwear isn't it? This is how I imagine Carr thought up how to approach the staples this season: (voice over in head) "Knitwear knitwear knitwear... so cardigans... jumpers... wool... cardigans... who wears cardigans... 90s... fluffy... cardigans... KURT COBAIN!"
So in my opinion Carr has slyly looked to the 90s and what was the result? We get ribbed wool, fluffiness, turtlenecks, twinsets and icy grey/blue shirts. I guess you could call that beige twin set ironic, but in fashion the word irony is usually associated with ugliness and there was no ugliness here, just 100% Drew Barrymore awesomeness. I like a designer who infiltrates his influences throughout a collection. I also like a designer who can use such a tired trend and keep the clothes from looking like 90s-themed house party costumes.
The colour palette of the show is noteworthy, too. Apparently Carr was inspired by Ettore Sottsass and other Post-Modern artists, which explains how we ended up with beige, camel, baby pink, baby blue, rust red, burnt orange, navy, white and more and yet it all working perfectly. Also brought to mind was the navy, starchy simplicity of Margaret Howell. Which is nice - maybe a new, decidedly British aesthetic is beginning to form.
To finish off, there were also very cool shoes. I would definitely like to stride purposefully around in what looked like less dainty versions of those Giambattista Valli pseudo-platforms. And finally tell me, what is more edgy and thus, more Scottish, than having tin cans on your heels.
23.2.12
Thoughts on Calvin Klein
I was driving around town about a month ago and kept seeing those Girl with a Dragon Tattoo posters everywhere, and I realised that this was one pop culture thing that had completely passed me by. I had had absolutely no interest in it before, but the thought that I knew nothing about something that millions loved and even critics adored, well that I couldn't stand. So to Wikipedia and Youtube I went. I love me a good trailer, I think they are an art forum unto themselves and I wish there was an Oscars for trailers because damn the trailer for this movie was GOOD. Right up there with the trailer for The Social Network with the acapella version of Radiohead's Creep. I think the key is definitely the song choice, I remember the first Wall-E trai- woah ok I'm getting way off topic. To make up for lost time: Francisco Costa went all Lisbeth Salander for Calvin Klein and it was all dark and cool except for the orange which totally sucked.
The dim lighting for the show was perfect because it enhanced the textured graininess of the charcoal wools, and the effect is especially enhanced when reproduced in photographs. The collection was also best when Costa experimented with the materials' textures - panelling sheer black and dark grey wool was fantastic, especially when paired with a salt-and-pepper knitted woolen sweater.
And these are the dresses I want to see on Sunday.
The dim lighting for the show was perfect because it enhanced the textured graininess of the charcoal wools, and the effect is especially enhanced when reproduced in photographs. The collection was also best when Costa experimented with the materials' textures - panelling sheer black and dark grey wool was fantastic, especially when paired with a salt-and-pepper knitted woolen sweater.
And these are the dresses I want to see on Sunday.
All images from vogue.com
21.2.12
Don't Wanna Gloat
But summer is pretty nice today. Will probably be gone tomorrow. My friend Tim has a new camera, took some photos on my deck, and this is probably the closest you'll get to a post about me. Mmmmm sun...
20.2.12
New York A/W'12 - Proenza Schouler
For Winter 2012 Proenza Schouler were influenced by samurai. SAMURAI. This is immensely awesome. To be more accurate Jack and Lazaro looked not just at samurai but also martial arts and more general elements of eastern dress. All a recipe for a show full of western condescension and cultural appropriations, but by boiling down these influences to the notion of protection, any cringe inducing, Lagerfeld-esque cliches were avoided and instead we were presented with a thing of beauty.
The idea of protection was presented at first through swaths of white cotton wrapping models' bodies, asymmetric coats and low-slung pants bringing to mind karate and judo. Comments were made on the unusual choice of cotton for a winter collection, but right now the thought of layer upon layer of the stuff seems very comforting. And it is with this protection theme that the collection worked right the way through to riffs on samurai armor (!!!).
Although the collection may have been about protection, after last season's tailored ladies Hernandez and McCollough wanted to relax everything, drop waists and loosen. You can see this in the roomy cotton shirts and pants as well as wrapped miniskirts which, when the models walked, flicked out, their sharp edges exaggerated. And so as well as everything being wonderfully slouchy, there were elements that were totally stiff and angular. Hal Rubenstein (who I admit I had to google after finding this quote) said "It's about movement, it's not about the form", which for me hits the nail on the head. The show felt wonderfully complex because not only was this movement loose and slouchy but stiff and angular too. To see what I mean you will have to watch a video of the show.
In the skirts you can see the forming of samurai-style wrapping, but Jack and Lazaro went all-out samurai for other ensembles. Wearable, no, kickass, yes.
Proenza Schouler always makes sure to include interesting craft elements, and Bhutanese basket-weaving was the starting point for this collection. Woven leather was used on everything except pants, it seems. For skirts, jackets and tops, thick and thin strips of died leather were used to create an amazing assortment of patterns. The texture of the weave varied, and for coats the weave was much finer - were it not for close ups I wouldn't have been able to tell that the black and red coat was woven leather at all.
While they claimed they didn't want this collection to be about Asia, obviously it's pretty hard to ignore the total proliferation of Asian influences. However they've extended the influences enough and, in most cases, interpreted them subtly enough to avoid this being "Proenza Schouler's Asian Collection". And with the final brocade looks (brocades they developed themselves!) they saved themselves from anything too close to appropriation by filtering everything through a New York view of Asia. And since these looks reminded me of the late 90s/early 2000s cheongsam dress trend, I'd say they did that well.
The idea of protection was presented at first through swaths of white cotton wrapping models' bodies, asymmetric coats and low-slung pants bringing to mind karate and judo. Comments were made on the unusual choice of cotton for a winter collection, but right now the thought of layer upon layer of the stuff seems very comforting. And it is with this protection theme that the collection worked right the way through to riffs on samurai armor (!!!).
Although the collection may have been about protection, after last season's tailored ladies Hernandez and McCollough wanted to relax everything, drop waists and loosen. You can see this in the roomy cotton shirts and pants as well as wrapped miniskirts which, when the models walked, flicked out, their sharp edges exaggerated. And so as well as everything being wonderfully slouchy, there were elements that were totally stiff and angular. Hal Rubenstein (who I admit I had to google after finding this quote) said "It's about movement, it's not about the form", which for me hits the nail on the head. The show felt wonderfully complex because not only was this movement loose and slouchy but stiff and angular too. To see what I mean you will have to watch a video of the show.
In the skirts you can see the forming of samurai-style wrapping, but Jack and Lazaro went all-out samurai for other ensembles. Wearable, no, kickass, yes.
Proenza Schouler always makes sure to include interesting craft elements, and Bhutanese basket-weaving was the starting point for this collection. Woven leather was used on everything except pants, it seems. For skirts, jackets and tops, thick and thin strips of died leather were used to create an amazing assortment of patterns. The texture of the weave varied, and for coats the weave was much finer - were it not for close ups I wouldn't have been able to tell that the black and red coat was woven leather at all.
While they claimed they didn't want this collection to be about Asia, obviously it's pretty hard to ignore the total proliferation of Asian influences. However they've extended the influences enough and, in most cases, interpreted them subtly enough to avoid this being "Proenza Schouler's Asian Collection". And with the final brocade looks (brocades they developed themselves!) they saved themselves from anything too close to appropriation by filtering everything through a New York view of Asia. And since these looks reminded me of the late 90s/early 2000s cheongsam dress trend, I'd say they did that well.
Runway images from vogue.com
Backstage shots from Self Service
18.2.12
Looking Good Ladies
My favourite looks from New York on what just happened to be some of my favourite women in fashion.
Even though New York fashion week is officially over, I've still got posts on Proenza Schouler, Calvin Klein and Rodarte to come. Rodarte is causing some serious conflict within me guys, serious conflict.
Top L-R: Arizona Muse; Shala Monroque; Emily Baker
Bottom L-R: Oroma Elewa; Tavi Gevinson; Jenna Sauers
Even though New York fashion week is officially over, I've still got posts on Proenza Schouler, Calvin Klein and Rodarte to come. Rodarte is causing some serious conflict within me guys, serious conflict.
Tavi's photo from her blog
Oroma's photo from The Sartorialist
All other photos Victoria Adamson at The Cut
16.2.12
Badlands
A second Stevie Dance styled editorial for RUSSH magazine, and an example of her storytelling at her best. It may be a borrowed story, but one worth telling and Dance perfectly presented the most memorable clothes of that season. Oh Louis Vuitton. Oh those ears.
In case you were wondering, the movie was Badlands (duh, but if you haven't seen it, then do) and the season was Winter 2009. Apologies for any bad scans (oooh I can see a bit of a pun formed there).
In case you were wondering, the movie was Badlands (duh, but if you haven't seen it, then do) and the season was Winter 2009. Apologies for any bad scans (oooh I can see a bit of a pun formed there).
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