Showing posts with label spring 2021. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spring 2021. Show all posts

Saturday, March 27, 2021

Ralph Lauren SPRING 2021 ... see it now ... buy it now

Ralph, as the lone ranger, continues on his show it and buy it in his stores. Some say, including myself at times, that Ralph is repetitive or boring, but there is not one single designer who has managed to tweak and massage his brand’s DNA better than Mr. Lauren... yet its never really boring and never unwearable.

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As you can see, he is well aware of the state of this pandemic world we live in and offers clothes that hopefully within in a few months women will be wearing to go out to lunch, perhaps to some one’s home for dinner or even possibly to a social event while observing all the protocols that have been put in place and continue to change day by day,

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I think I’d like to say that this collection displays a facet of the brand that we rarely see and that is minimalism. No muss, no fuss, very little ornamentation or decoration; just simple beautiful clothes for women of all ages that serve a multitude of purposes and occasions that lie ahead.... hopefully.

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Maybe we can call it Ralph Light, but no matter what you call it, it’s slick, lean, clean, refined and just as much at home in in NYC, Malibu, Beverly Hills, Paris, Milan or Tokyo. To me that is something that few other designers can claim. He designed intelligently, realistically and most of all fashionably!

Wednesday, January 27, 2021

Armani Privé haute couture spring 2021

 “The times we are living in do force us to stay at home and have a very limited social life, but the quest for beauty is eternal,” Armani wrote. “That is what this collection is all about.”

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For me this was like seeing 2 different collections and yet all so seamlessly cohesively woven together. The dichotomy was in the palette from neutrals to pastels to jewel tones and all with the most amazing quality being the clothes had a fragility and delicacy that made them appear almost ethereal and weightless.


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The embroideries beyond one’s imagination, the flourishes of the horse hair “collars”, the exquisite jeweling of a velvet jacket, the embellished tulles that appeared almost floating and all of them made and fitted to perfection.


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It is hard to think that at one time, decades ago, Armani only made dresses that looked like uniforms rather than real people dresses but look at what this man has accomplished in terms of expanding his vocabulary and enlarging the DNA of his brand.


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 The variations from the structured to the almost negligee like fragility, the extraordinary femininity and the variety of silhouettes … jackets of every conceivable nature and clothes that women will aspire to and covet which is exactly what haute couture is supposed to do…lust! I urge you to watch the film and look at the slides anywhere you can find them as these images do not do justice to the extreme beauty of this collection.

Tuesday, January 26, 2021

VALENTINO haute couture spring 2021

 Someone far smarter than I will need to explain to me what this is!! Why is this couture when so many pieces look like loving hands at home and there are men on the runways?  Then after that you can explain to me what the point of view is and who this appeals to!

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There is no point in me trying to make a silk purse from a sow’s ear...  this is just clothes with no point of view, no signature looks and just a name with highly generic clothes and ridiculous accessories and styling… so why is he considered such a great designer when every season he searches for a different client and he still has not carved out a signature look that he can call his own?


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So….  you tell me! The emperor has no new clothes!

CHANEL HAUTE COUTURE SPRING 2021

 Was it a perfect show ….NO! but it was a show that firstly was severely curated which is to Virginie Viard’s credit given the times BUT for some reason I sensed a much more youthful spirit in the clothes.

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No, the styling wasn’t perfect, the models weren’t  all gorgeous but the clothes felt lighter even the sleeveless tweeds. Yes of course, I guess it wouldn’t be a Chanel show without the Karl Klunkers but in the vast majority this was a show that will draw in the Chanel ladies because they don’t have pieces that look like these.


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Dressy clothes, realistic day clothes nothing really that over the top and most of it extremely commercial without being trite and pedestrian. It is odd that in these turbulent times that Ms. Viard may have flexed her Chanel muscle at last.


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I’d call this a discreet haute couture and it suits the times perfectly. It’s pretty its not ostentatious and it’s not overly tweeded or buttoned or jeweled or accessorized and most of all it did not drone on and on... for Chanel this is sort of a capsule collection.

RAMI AL ALI HAUTE COUTURE SPRING 2021

 Call it distraction, call it wishful thinking and let’s just make believe for a short time that the world is not in dire straits with a pandemic. Let’s think that in a perfect world with just everyday strife, some joys and issues, this refined collection would be considered quintessentially haute couture in every way.

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It is razor sharp, feminine, appealing, offers a variety of silhouettes, impeccably made and it is timelessly elegant. The use of chocolate brown is something I found refreshing and most of all appealing as well as flattering. Of course, the pale shades are emblematic of a spring collection, the precision with which these clothes are made is beyond the pale. In a way, this is the couture of women of every age…  provided they have the means to own it.

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These is drama, simplicity, maybe a hint of old Hollywood glamour and just a touch of over the top. It is a lean and mean presentation with no “fillers” just clothes to sell to his very loyal clients. I must say, personally, that each season I am invited to his presentation and for that I cannot thank him enough for being so gracious. This attitude is reflected in the collection as it is lighter than air and graceful which are qualities rarely seen in couture today.


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Imagine… no gimmicks, no sleight of hand, no over the top ways to torture fabric... just beautiful clothes for those lucky enough to own them.


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