Friday 10 December 2010

Pre-fall A-plenty

It's that wonderful time of year again where we get the teasingly sneaky peak into the near future of fashion.

My pick of pics will warm you up more than a... picture of a fireplace (not including the cocktail dresses and evening wear). Although the best way to warm up is to buy something furry. Unfortunately, cold weather-triggered buying is generally quite costly - shearling this, fur that, distressed leather those...

I digress.

Let's start with...

Donna Karan:
I was drawn in by the masterful layering. I know that's the only thing I go on about for the autumn collections but you don't know nuthin' if you can't put garments on top of each other and make it look hot. Forget about statement pieces. It's the statement outfit. Loving the double and triple belts - brings a needed edge to the outfits to prevent looking like you had a shopping spree in the GAP.

At Chanel (aka the visual roller coaster):
Once again, a plentiful and heavily embellished collection. You may have noticed the Paris-Byzance theme in all its gold, chunky and emperial glory (if not, don't be alarmed but you may be blind). Unfortunately, 67 looks later and only a handful of stand out pieces/looks. And best not to mention the ever-embarrassing 'menswear' attempts randomly inserted at various points.
Or, maybe I'm just horribly biased because the only thing that might raise your core temperature are some weirdly festive knits and (quelle surprise) tweed.
But let's not forget the sheer workmanship and skill that is required to create these jewel-adorned pieces and the meticulous details. Also, there is no doubt that these evening looks will be embraced on the red carpet. Sadly, that's not enough to receive an all round positive review from me.
*(Karl, now shocked and saddened by the news of my mediocre review, issues a statement that he will be out of the business for a while to rethink his design aesthetic)

Now Eli Tahari:
*(love the matron look!)

I have to say I'm rather torn with this collection. I am definitely a sucker for elegant practicality - but where is the line between that and just quite a good outfit day at the office? The fur slung across the shoulder helps, probably. And the LBD is always a winner. Undecided.

Jason Wu (no relation):
His pre-fall is definitely more autumn than winter. But who can resist (not moi) the beautiful colour palette he chose for this collection?? The strong, yet not overpowering and obvious combinations make my eyes happy. Nude and pastels are still in the fray it seems and are stitched into dresses, jackets and whole outfits in a very pleasing fashion.
With only one obvious boo boo (the white shirt, black bow tie and black trousers combo - plain lazy), this is a very solid, if not a bit whimsical collection (I'm all about the oxymorons today!). Just pause to admire the floor-length stunners at the end.

Will update when more shows roll in and we move past (boring) New York!

No comments:

Post a Comment