Archive for the ‘Fashion Show Pictures’ Category
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Allegra Hicks
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
What season could be better suited to the talents of Allegra Hicks, queen of caftans, than Resort? Her prints—this season a bold tropical motif and some smaller florals—naturally lend themselves to flowy, beach-friendly separates in jersey, stretch poplin, toweling, and a crinkled gauze that especially captured the sea-and-sand mood. Still, there were no surprises here. And for all of its patterns, the collection lacked a real creative imprint.
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Moschino
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
Moschino came clean for Resort with a collection that focused on washes of vibrant color. There was little flash and even less of the typically cheeky prints. Instead, house classics like ladylike coats and pretty party dresses—including a head-turning mini-frock in lipstick red—featured drapes and pleats as their sole embellishments. Refreshingly straightforward, these clothes are a, ahem, solid investment in more ways than one.
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Alexander McQueen
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
Alexander McQueen showed his women’s pre-spring collection on the runway alongside his Spring menswear “because they both go into the shop together,” but also to mark the season’s commercial importance. How reassuring to hear from the designer that 60 percent of his business comes from these gorgeous, uncompromising outfits. There have been times when McQueen seemed like the new Charles James, but here, he was all about Travis Banton—the Hollywood costume designer who made Marlene Dietrich into a goddess. “Über-partying, über-glamour” was McQueen’s theme. His always acute tailoring flawlessly contoured jackets and jumpsuits to the body (an all-in-one tux had nouvelle Marlene all over it). Bias-cutting and draping produced impactful party dresses. The chiffon that veiled fishtailed dresses was exquisitely embroidered with koi or hummingbirds. And the designer insisted that a heavily beaded holographic sheath reminded him of Natasha Henstridge’s second skin in Species. It wouldn’t be McQueen without a horror-movie moment.
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Louis Vuitton
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
Marc Jacobs sailed Louis Vuitton smoothly into Resort with a collection of mostly
pared-down and shipshape looks. There were trim, belted coat-dresses, and
sharp skirts cut from a painterly striped print commissioned from
London-based illustrator Tanya Ling. Among the nip-waisted suits was one
in a classic Jackie O. silhouette, cleverly freshened up in white
leather with black satin bows and worn with teetering wedges. Adding
some spice to the safe, ladylike lineup were sexy embellished bathing
suits and colorful Grecian draped jersey looks for evening. “[They have]
a Miami feeling, which is a bit of a cruise cliché,” explained
women’s studio director Peter Copping. “But why not?” -
Giorgio Armani
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
The days when cruise collections were all about clothes for holidays and parties are long gone. The 30 looks in Giorgio Armani’s latest ran a full gamut, from a reinterpretation of Armani’s office-bound classic suit to a midnight blue tux. Draping was a theme: Tops were gathered to one side with a single button. The emphasis was on a long, fluid silhouette in soft, natural fabrics like linen and shantung. Pants were full enough to evoke the languorous loungewear of a thirties vedette. Calm and restrained as the collection was, there were still a few of the eccentric touches that Armani injects to keep things interesting for himself: a hit of color here, an abstract floral print there.
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Stephen Burrows
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
How apt that Stephen Burrows decided to take a vacation from jersey, his signature fabric, for Resort. Instead, the designer showed a collection cut entirely in wovens and lace. Despite the shift, Burrows retained his easy silhouettes, using the soft give of elastic, for example, to control volume on an animal-print dress. He also introduced tailoring in jackets, as in a pale plum, petal-sleeved one that wrapped around the body. Embracing change chez Burrows is a good thing.
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Balenciaga
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
Instead of a complete change of direction for Resort, Nicolas Ghesquière evolved themes from his Fall runway. But the spotlight mostly swung away from last season’s sculpted, über-feminine look—seen here in a stiff, silvery skirtsuit with matching pointy bra as underpinning. Ghesquière developed Fall’s small group of highly wearable looks that paired skinny pants with draped and twisted tops. He did so through mix-and-match themes of nineties minimalism (painted jeans, layered tops, a refreshingly simple tomato red cotton suit) and rock ‘n’ roll (tough-chic tailoring and studs aplenty). What it all added up to was a collection filled with great pieces that will get them shopping come November. A shrunken leather bomber, for one, has wait list written all over it.
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Akris
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
In May, Albert Kriemler’s pre-fall collection for Akris briefly quieted retail doomsayers when it netted a cool million dollars at a Bergdorf Goodman trunk show. From the looks of Resort, the cash registers are set to keep cha-ching-ing. In addition to the house’s classic full trousers, there was a new scrunchy, carrot-silhouetted pant. Kriemler took a lighter than ever touch in his perennial play with transparency, seen on sleeveless tops worn under tailored jackets, twenties-style pleated dresses with delicate meshlike panels, and a deep-sea-colored number with Deco-inflected insets that was a sheer delight.
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Ralph Lauren
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
The message was crystal clear as a Baccarat glass tinkling with iced Campari and blood orange on the beach at Parrot Cay: Ralph Lauren’s take on Resort is unabashedly classic. He calls it “takeaway” (but, nope, it’s got nothing whatsoever to do with Chinese food). It’s a wardrobe that says Mustique, Palm Beach, and St. Bart’s in a happy rainbow of paisleys, white cottons, sunshine yellows, and kelly greens, with bags and jewelry to match. Imagine long silk button-down cover-ups, worn with gold sandals, that magically transform into dresses as you go from beach to lunch. Amid the traditional five-diamond fare, green silk cargo pants seemed slightly out of place…but, hey, even on vacation, a girl can’t pay homage to Babe Paley 24/7.
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Jill Stuart
Wednesday, August 20th, 2008
Jill Stuart re-created her Fall show in Tokyo during the city’s March fashion week. (Stuart is big enough in Japan to be thronged for post-show autographs.) But the designer didn’t take home any Far Eastern references. For Resort, she stayed well within her comfort zone of short, girlish dresses in Laura Ashley-esque florals and fresh, vaguely Victorian white cottons—just the sort of thing that makes her a hit among kawaii-loving Japanese girls. Still, the only news here was the white denim with a seventies cut, a hint, we hear, of the designer’s direction for Spring.