Three’s A Trend: Racy Lace
Judging by the wares spotted on recent red carpets, like the sheer-paneled Antonio Berardi gown Gwyneth Paltrow donned to the Iron Man 3 premiere and the posterior-flashing Givenchy frock Ke$ha sported at last night’s Billboard awards, it would seem there’s a risqué trend afoot. And it’s spilling over onto the Resort ’14 runways, but with a ladylike twist. Chanel, J.W. Anderson’s Versus Versace, and Christian Dior each offered examples of flowery, diaphanous lace. Karl Lagerfeld opted for subtle applications, namely with a bra-revealing blouse shown under a matching blazer, while Raf Simons went full monty-ette, splitting one dress with a mint-colored, neck-to-knee filigree. Anderson offset the neon pink of a slash-away skirt with a hip-high black-lace inset. Needless to say, it left little to the imagination—save what one would possibly wear underneath.
Three’s a Trend: Rococo Riot
Eschewing pins, plaids, and pugnaciousness, a few of last night’s Met Gala attendees opted for a different sort of ornamentation: all things baroque. Curious, you might think, since gilt and whorls don’t exactly fit with punk’s middle-fingers-up grittiness. But with parallel underlying airs of metallurgy and commoditized Gothicism, we’d say these ladies picked up on a bloodline between the zeitgeists.
Beyoncé’s hellfire custom-made Givenchy gown evoked monarchal muscle and flamboyant architectural tones. Katy Perry arrived in head-to-toe Dolce & Gabbana—florid gold-leafed crown included. Dolce & Gabbana also dressed Giovanna Battaglia and Tabitha Simmons. The former wore the label’s Alta Moda couture line, and both looks recalled a seaside Palermo church awash in halcyon daylight. Hilary Rhoda also walked the line between rococo and rebellion; her Wes Gordon top featured fine-lined Aurelian patterning on diaphanous black sheer—but her cropped leather pants were 100 percent King’s Road.
The Must-Have Accessories of Fall 2013, According to the Editors
Each season, Style.com’s market director, Marina Larroudé, combs through every collection to find the most covetable accoutrements. In our Fall 2013 Accessories Index, she highlights the best and biggest trends—from funny furs and demure pearls to spikes, studs, and combat boots. We couldn’t help but pick our own favorites, so below, the Style.com editors reveal what we’ll be craving come fall.
“It’s a long process to work on the Accessories Index. We feature almost 200 brands and around 5,000 images. Every season, I like to discover new brands to add to our list. It’s unfair to ask me for a favorite accessory, but I would be happy to have Rochas’ earrings, any Prada shoe, or any Victoria Beckham day bag.” —Marina Larroudé, market director
“I love the schoolmarm-meets-sexpot look of this Narciso Rodriguez pump.” —Nicole Phelps, executive editor
“In my imagination, I’m that chic kind of girl who cabs to and from appointments in a pair of single-sole Manolos. In reality, I’m subway-ing everywhere and need shoes I can really stomp around in. These lug-soled Stella McCartney beauties are the footwear equivalent of all-terrain vehicles, placing them at the top of my must-have list for fall.” —Brittany Adams, associate fashion editor Continue Reading “The Must-Have Accessories of Fall 2013, According to the Editors” »
Snuggle Up for Spring
Happy Spring? Well, not quite. Today is the official equinox, but judging by the recent chill, not to mention the impromptu snowstorms (more flurries on the way tomorrow!), it might be a little early to break out the shorts and sundresses. Instead, we suggest ringing in the season with some of Spring ’13′s suede jackets, full-length furs (thank you, Miu Miu), and leather everything. When we saw them on the runways last September, the cozy wares from Haider Ackermann, Sacai, and Salvatore Ferragamo may have seemed nonsensical, but given the frigid weather, they’ve proven more than seasonable.
Dressing for Laughs
There’s been lots of talk about the controversial practice of “peacocking” this season. But as we look back at four weeks of Fall ’13 shows with weary eyes, a few designers (and street-style stars) remind us that the f in fashion stands for fun. And perhaps embracing that with a little panache isn’t such a bad thing—particularly when it comes to novelty accessories. Take Dior, for instance: This season, Raf Simons brought a dash of wit to his slick collection by embossing boxy handbags with Warholian sketches of pointy single-soled shoes, thereby fusing two of our favorite things into one. (His raised-eyebrow sunglasses also deserve an honorable mention.) At Fendi, Karl Lagerfeld garnished his handbags with furry multicolored dice (one of which reminds us a little bit of an Angry Bird), and over at Chanel, he sent out models with mini-globe handbags and cobalt, powder-pink, mint-green, or red fur Anna Wintour bobs that looked like they were plucked from an anime cartoon. Speaking of fur, we can’t forget the giant skunk-striped mittens that turned up at Altuzarra or, for that matter, the arctic-appropriate full-length black gloves at Alexander Wang.
We also saw loads of cheeky headgear (Yazbukey‘s Plexiglas heart-and-arrow hat, Piers Atkinson‘s devil-horn cap, Meadham Kirchhoff‘s unicorns-in-love crown), jewelry (Henry Holland‘s crystal martini earrings, Lanvin‘s wildly appropriate “Help” pendants and wasp brooches, Louise Gray‘s eggbeater earrings), and miscellanea (Dsquared²‘s Sunset Boulevard-worthy extra long crystal-encrusted cigarette holders). But the sartorial satire wasn’t just on the runway. Outside the shows, Tommy Ton captured everything from skeleton gloves to Vika Gazinskaya’s scarf, which is made out of what appears to be a stuffed-animal iteration of a lemur. Sure, many of the shows were dark and somber, with their punk themes and muted palettes. But that just made the odd touch of zany all the more welcome.