82 posts tagged "Christopher Kane"
Designers Flock to Daytime Feathers
“There are boys and girls, there is night and day, but above all there is love,” Dries Van Noten told Style.com’s Tim Blanks backstage before a Fall show that balanced the masculinity of Fred Astaire with the overt femininity of Ginger Rogers in Top Hat. The Belgian designer (who might want to consider a second career as a poet) mixed menswear fabrics in tailored silhouettes with frothy feathers for a result that was surprisingly realistic for daytime. Although plumage is typically reserved for special occasions, we couldn’t help but notice that many of this season’s collections were filled with afternoon-appropriate quills. The Proenza Schouler boys paired a tiered ostrich skirt with a degradé novelty sweatshirt, while Christopher Kane trimmed biker jackets and kicky kilt skirts with the downy stuff. Used sparingly—as seen at Erdem, Pringle of Scotland, and Louis Vuitton—feathers offered an unexpected alternative to fur accents. We have a feeling the peacocking street-style set, in particular, will take to this trend.
CLICK FOR A SLIDESHOW of noteworthy Fall plumage.
Shop The Look: Baroque Basics
If Spring ’13 is any indication, extravagance need not be reserved for the evening hours. This season, designers amused themselves with some sartorial contradictions: We’ve seen jewels on sneakers, crystal brooches on T-shirts, and sequins on sweatshirts. Adorn yourself, and shop our picks from Christopher Kane, Suno, Miu Miu, and more, below.
1. House of Holland sweatshirt, $196, available at www.brownsfashion.com
2. Christopher Kane top, $1,955, available at www.matchesfashion.com
3. Suno skirt, $325, available at www.brownsfashion.com
4. Venessa Arizaga bracelet, $317, available at www.brownsfashion.com
5. Miu Miu sneakers, $595, available at www.bergdorfgoodman.com
To view more looks, click here.
Versace Nails It
Versace’s Fall 2013 collection walked down the Milan runway just hours ago. The looks—some of which were in plaid or PVC—definitely had hints of the punk sensibility that’s been gaining steam this season. But what really jumped out at us was Ms. Versace’s use of metal nails in a few of her sexed-up wares. One purple dress, in particular (above, left), recalled that famed Versace safety-pin gown that Liz Hurley wore in 1994 (above, right). (Side note: Hurley’s gown will appear in the Met’s upcoming Punk: Chaos to Couture exhibition.) We’re also reminded of Christopher Kane’s ultra-feminine Spring ’13 collection, which was literally held together with plastic nuts and bolts. So, we have to ask: Could Kane’s Spring fastenings have ignited a sartorial hardware movement? Or perhaps more pressing: Is Donatella doing for the nail what Gianni did for the safety pin? We may need to wait until the end of fashion month (and until the Fall ’13 collections start popping up on the red carpet) to find out.
Modelizing Fall ’13 Thus Far
With the London shows wrapping today, and editors and models jetting off to Milan, it’s time to reflect on the catwalking highlights from the past two weeks. More so than any in recent memory, this season has been dominated by fresh faces. Nearly every new girl on our top-ten list from Spring, like Marine Deleeuw, Irina Kravchenko, Manon Leloup, and Esther Heesch, had majorly successful sophomore outings. But the Fall shows have brought in an additional crop of noteworthy rookies in demand.
Let’s begin with the handful of former Balenciaga exclusives, whose takeoffs were all but inevitable. Sam Rollinson (above, top left), who starred in a Burberry ad back in 2010 and was handpicked by Nicolas Ghesquière last season, had a strong NYFW. (She opened Reed Krakoff and walked Jason Wu, Alexander Wang, Altuzarra, Proenza Schouler, and Narciso Rodriguez, among others.) With a hometown advantage, the British brunette—whose cheekbones could cut glass—kept it up across the pond, scoring spots at Christopher Kane, Jonathan Saunders, and Giles. Two other Balenciaga favorites—Kremi Otashliyska and Chiharu Okunugi (above, lower right)—are also becoming runway regulars. The former hit catwalks at 3.1 Phillip Lim, Altuzarra, Proenza Schouler, and Marc Jacobs, while the Japanese stunner took turns at Rag & Bone, Rodarte, and Marc Jacobs in New York, and Erdem and Giles in London.
Opening the Alexander Wang show is usually a surefire way to go straight to the top, but this season, the second girl out—Tess Hellfeuer (above, top right)—is getting all the buzz. The model finished New York by closing Marc Jacobs, then emerged as a clear favorite of Michelle Lee in London, where she opened Jonathan Saunders and walked in Christopher Kane. Mijo Mihaljcic has also been making all the right appearances in London. Her tomboy appeal landed her spots at Burberry Prorsum, Jonathan Saunders, and Richard Nicoll. Continue Reading “Modelizing Fall ’13 Thus Far” »
Seeing a Pattern
On February 15, Phaidon Press will release Pattern, a book that highlights one hundred compelling fashion designers on the rise. Phaidon handed over the book’s curatorial duties to a group of ten designers and industry insiders (including stylist Keegan Singh, Preen’s Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi, the SHOWstudio team, and Business of Fashion‘s founder Imran Amed, just to name a few), each of whom chose ten talents to fill Pattern‘s pages.
The book (which is a follow-up to the 2005 fashion tome SAMPLE) features established designers (Phillip Lim, Alexander Wang, Christopher Kane, Sarah Burton), well-known emerging labels (Eddie Borgo, Thomas Tait, Creatures of the Wind, Mary Katrantzou, whose work is pictured above), and proper newbies (Simone Rocha, Marques’ Almeida, Phoebe English, Maarten van der Horst). The designers’ diverse aesthetics, techniques and outlooks are presented via detailed introductions, backstage, campaign and editorial photographs, and never-before-seen sketches, all of which serve to give readers an in-depth understanding of their work. “For me, seeing that the designers had a consistent point of view that’s true to their style was important,” said Singh, whose picks include Cushnie et Ochs (left), Olivier Rousteing of Balmain, Tabitha Simmons, Dominic Jones, and Gianvito Rossi, among others. “You know, it’s like Azzedine Alaïa. He has his thing, and he always sticks to it,” he added. So does Singh think the next Alaïa is somewhere between Pattern‘s covers? “It’s a possibility!” he laughed. At the very least, he notes, “the book gives the young designers a chance to reach broader audiences; it exposes them to a whole new group of people.”
Pattern: 100 Fashion Designers, 10 Curators will be available on February 15, on phaidon.com.