Thursday 31 January 2013

J'adore, J'adore













I don't care how cheesy it sounds using a Dior fragrance name in the title, I am summing up in a Mozzarella themed way how much I am totally in love with Raf Simons' second couture collection for the house that Christian built. 

I don't know why I love it so much, I just do... I am biased as I have been a Raf fan for many a year, but I just love his stunning sense of minimalism and such a fresh take that he has brought to the house. I love that he has taken small details from the archive and things Dior and the New Look era were synonymous for and added a modern Raf-themed twist. I find the utter simplicity and un-couture mood that he has brought to the table. Don't get me wrong, the pomp, theatre and general OTT mood that Galliano and couturiers past and present are themed for will always hold a special place in a corner of my fashion heart, I just love how it has evolved and developed with time and varying degrees of economic hardship. 

Back to the show... I loved every aspect of it! The garden themed setting was my favourite part (another of Raf's recent signatures) addig to the romance and delicacy that the collection itself evoked. The detailing and ways that the petit mains created the illusion of flowers and, buds and all thing botany based was just wonderful. Despite a distinct lack of utter drama oft associated with the couture collections, Raf showed off the talents of the ateliers with subtle intricate detailing and his usual trompe l'oeil effects used to create certain effects. I loved the coccoon shapes and simple, minimal silhouettes that slithered through the garden. The pixie crop wigs added a sense of Audrey Hepburn and bygone era couture mostly forgotten by designers these days... I loved that the pastels, lighter weight fabrics and illusion of dresses made of tiny flower buds instilled that this was a SPRING show, and helped to enforce what season it represented. That is my favourite part about couture, it represents the current season rather than predicting how we will look in 6 months time... It is like a fizzy, girly aperitif to the impending fashion month kicking off in a few weeks time.

I don't care what the haters say... Boy done good!

images courtesy of style.com

Wednesday 23 January 2013

boys boys boys (part deux)

I'm quite getting into the swing of things with this mens collections malarkey, as much as I adore looking at the usual women's offerings because I can technically wear it all, looking at men's is a refreshing take on putting pieces together and seeing what the designers offer up. One of my favourites at the moment is JW Anderson, especially for next season...







I absolutely adore this collection... There are frills. Frilly shorts. Filly boots. Frilly gloves. And bustiers. WITH POCKETS! FOR MEN!!! It is so far removed from anything I have ever seen from a menswear collection, and exactly why it is so directional, and random and unerringly cool. Mainly because it is so not commercial, or wearable and for that I think Jonathan deserves an award, simply for producing a collection that breaks so many boundaries of what is acceptable or normal for men to wear. And that is why it is utter genius, simply because it totally fucks with logic of any kind and makes you questionis it actually menswear at all, and if so should it be considered abnormal or silly to wear frilly boots? No... you should be able to wear whatever the fuck you want. Even if you look like a rather unhinged cross dresser on day release from the local psychiatric hospital.







 Ami, designed by Alexandre Matiussi, has summed up that slinky French style to a t... All louche, relaxed and sharp all at the same time. He has captured that essence, that little something that Parisian style encapsulates and that designers, hipsters and folk on the street desperately try to emulate. And can't. I simply cannot put it into words because there isn't a word for it, the French just well have it. In spades. All French designers seem to have a knack of encapsulating it into a collection for us all to buy and hope that we too can be just as damn cool as they are. Not many can translate it into real life, but those who do just do it perfectly. When I meet my Prince Charming this is exactly how I want him to dress... Not too shabby but not too smart. Polished, chic, elegant and just so. In my head I am some marvellously cool French woman whose man, children house and even pets are achingly cool, gorgeous and fabulous... And the Ami man is my dream boat. Now I just need to find him.








Not content in making Opening Ceremony one of the coolest concept stores to come out of New York, and thank god landing on British soil, Humberto Leon and Carol Kim took on Kenzo as Creative Directors and my, have they made an impact. They have turned the fledgling 70s brand into one of the hottest tickets in Paris, and in the process one of the mot sought after brands of the past year or so... Not only are the well priced tees and sweats flying off shelves but I'm guessing that vintage Kenzo is probably whizzing off eBay and out of shops too. The Lion is once again roaring across the tits of hipster kids and rude boys, and fast being splashed onto outfits of fashion editors and bloggers alike. I am excited to see were Humberto and Carol will wave their magic wands next... Bon Marché? Marks and Spencers?







Topmn Design impresses me more as each season passes, mainly because I simply cannot believe it comes from our humble little high street, and secondly because it is so far removed from its parent company Topman. There are no identikit chinos or slogan tees, just simple, honest, fantastic design. I love that it started off all hiking boots, parkas and off to climb a mountain-esque and finished off with some top notch skinny tailoring via an assault on the senses blast of orange. From observing past collections they tend to follow this bold, brash and somewhat schizophrenic route... But with aplomb. I just love it every season, I especially love the deep red tailoring and orange swirls amidst lashings of thick cream wool. If I was a boy and rather outdoorsy, or just pretty cool, I would rock a whole heap of that. Go Topman!

So there you have it... Some of my man perving for another season...

images courtesy of style.com

Monday 21 January 2013

boys boys boys boys


It's that time of the season and its all about the boys (hence the title, get what I did there?) I am super excited because mens week is right before the holy week, the week that is haute couture. I do love a cheeky peek to see what will be going down in the land of the penis packers though... I don't know why, I guess just because I am curious and it is a world so damn foreign to me and most of my other female counter parts... So here are some of my highlights for y'all to peruse...







  If I were a boy (as Baddie Bey sings...) I would definitely wear Acne, I would also be Swedish and fabulous and very tall and slender. And a model. Probably for Acne. So, back to the collection in question, I as usual loved it. Not just because I am a biased Acne lover, and love most things Scandi at the moment but because I think it is a brilliant mens brand. I love how they do tailoring that doesn't look too tailored, and because they do basics terribly well. The tee shirts are always of the highest quality, and not of the highest price either. The jersey is always super thick, and the knits just the right side of edgy, and making them not too basic. My favourite part of this collection is the silhouettes, not oft seen in mens collections... Super skinny on the trouser and all boxy, 60s Cristobal Balenciaga coccoons on the top. And lashings of grey. I love grey. Long live Johnny! And let's all move to Sweden.








   I heart Classics! was the name of Mr Bailey's foray into mens this season, after a metallic fun-fest for S/S 13 fall seemed on the surface to be a much more staid affair. Alas! Look deeper into it and the theme of the day was clearly classics with a twist... Outerwear sculpted in oxblood leather, ponyskin and a flash of zebra slinked down the runway. Duffel coats with toggles made of whip thin leather, and cable knits sitting cropped at the hip... Ohhh and the latex, with the heart prints flashing through to smbolise Monsieur bailey's LOVE theme. If the brand has had a bumpy ride pf late, it proved with this collection alone that one thing they do (and always have) outstandingly is classics. And loving them can't be a bad thing either.








After a rather colourful S/S collection, peppered with nautical details and sharp tailoring Kris van Assche went stripped bare to what he does best for next season, to the point where there was something almost repressive about it. In a weird, creepy Berlin sex club way I actually loved it... It is like the Dior Homme personification of austerity. This happened the last time there was a recession, well in womenswear anyway, but it is almost odd to see a mens collection reflecting times of money woes... Despite this it was eery, dark, edgy and well fabulous. There was something uniform, and repetitive, almost mathematical about it. The same silhouettes, and pieces marched down the runway with the only difference being the colour palette, it felt almost Nazi-esque and that only added to the concept. 








  I was devastated to hear that Riccardo wouldn't be showing haute couture this season, it is always one of the highlights and a massive fashion perv-fest for me, but alas! when I came to researching this post I was relieved to read that he was creating couture for men instead. And couture it was! I t was chic, polished and was filled with perfectly cut weight weight wool suiting. His usual fan fare of tee shirts were produced in cashmere and taffeta aswell as the usual super soft jersey. I loved the teeny tiny muscle man shorts outfitted with socks and the fabulous metal detailed monk straps. The best part was the casing, instead of the usual scrawn fest of skinny boys that stalk the catwalks Givenchy was all about the MAN! HURRAH!!! I don't know why I was so excited by this... probably the thighs. Mr Tisci referenced his favourite photographer Robert Mapplethorpe, along with his lust for the American Dream by way of the occult and all things dark side. I'm glad I got my couture fix, even if it was by way of the mens collections...