Schiaparelli ... Haute Couture Fall 2014/5

WHOA! Let’s get this straight right from the get go. For his freshman outing at the brand, Marco Zanini presented this highly generic and not even mildly referenced collection which to my eye was … well... meh! To say that Suzy Muchless and I saw different collections is an understatement. This season he not only hit the DNA  button but he slammed it with a leaden hand and maybe he fell on it! Me thinks that the ES was a nice touch …once! The hats would have been fab if they were not on the head of EVERY model, but it was the heart that was most successfully played out albeit not every time!

This go round provided us with Elsa Schiaparelli circa the decade of the 40’s and is complete with supersized broad shoulders, chubbies and over exaggerated dressmaking. The clothes suffered really by being direct copies rather than inspired by or referenced to and that is an invitation to disaster. .. Not to mention we went a wee bit overboard with the very Schiaparelli inspired accessories. .. Ya think? Let’s call this a visual gluttony of sorts. What comes to mind is “what she couldn’t wear, she carried!”

I understand that the designer is still trying to gain his footing and put his imprimatur on the brand but hell, he didn’t have to do a 180. Honestly, it is a lot of overdone and over conceived clothes. Haute Couture is all about perfection in the details and the exquisite manufacture of a garment but my  eyes saw a lot of sloppily made pieces that really didn’t live up to the hype of the season. Please take note here that even if the clothes were flawlessly designed, poorly rendered pieces are ... well ... inexcusable!

Okay, so calming down here, I can say that there were some beautiful dresses albeit retro in feeling and some beautiful embellishments but overall this is much more of a costume wardrobe for a period movie than it is a collection of clothes for the so called modern 21^st century couture client. The happy medium, when it comes to the overall timbre of the collection has not yet been found … or at least I hope it hasn’t been found, so I remain hopeful. What strikes me is that when YSL did the 40s collection and everyone was up in arms over it, the clothes still retained a slick chic about them as was the case with Ungaro as well but that has not happened here save for maybe 5 pieces. Then if I really wrack my brain here I see an awful of what reminded me of Gaultier who might have been referencing Schiaparelli in his collections expect JPG did it better!

Well, all I can say is Bon Chance Marco! Better luck next time!

Schiaparelli ... Haute Couture spring 2014

After the one off collection executed by the immensely talented Christian Lacroix, this latest Haute Couture collection for the house of Schiaparelli was one of the most hotly and eagerly anticipated of the season. Besides the waiting for this collection there was also the game of who would be named as creative director/ designer and that momentous position went to Marco Zanini.

I always thought that Mr. DellaValle was quite smart but alas that can be proven as an incorrect t assumption when viewing this collection especially in the aftermath of the Lacroix tour de force.as for Ms. Khelfa, well I am not quite sure of her credentials as I am always hesitant about situations like hers. It brings to mind a similar analogy that even if you stand in a garage you can’t become a car!

As far as the track record of Mr. Zanini, I was never a huge fan but in this case I was hoping that he would assume a more “adhering” pretense for the collection but alas, that too fell apart upon seeing this collection. My take away here was that he hooked  onto the veiled face as his referential point and then hooked onto Yohji Yamamoto and went from there ! An antidote might have been to learn about Elsa and infuse some of her humor into the collection instead of trying to reinvent the wheel with an old warhorse of a name!

The prints are pedestrian and yes maybe a bit retro in feel but the clothes... yes the clothes are just a big who cares and what for. Yes, haute couture is not exactly based on need and most certainly a key factor is having the wallet to support one’s lust for clothes but why or how do these qualify on any account.

To be honest, the collection is a huge let down and an ever bigger disappointment. If this can reinvigorate the sleeping brand, then, all I can say is that maybe the entire fashion business has lost its mind and it surely its way.

p.s. I Think Suzy may have seen a different collection that this