THE BEAUTIFUL FALL

MY FIRST FASHION BOOK REVIEW
http://www.nyjournalofbooks.com/2010/02/beautiful-fall-by-alicia-drake.html#links

IT'S THE CHRONICLE OF THE PARALLEL AND DIVERGENT PATHS OF ST LAURENT AND KARL LAGERFELED 1954 THRU 2004

RALPH, MARCHESA, BADGLEY MISCHKA, THE ROW, DENNIS BASSO

RALPH LAUREN
While I am usually a fierce fan of this collection, I am sorry to say that this season's offering left me cold. I can't say that that I didn't like it but I can say I was expecting something a bit more exciting,the dark ground floral prints with dark accessories didn't leave room for any of the usual Ralph flourishes.
MARCHESA
Besides the spectacular dresses, it was brought to my attention that these pieces are all made in NEW YORK CITY...............and that is pretty impressive given these times. Each dress/gown is an individual work of art when you examine it. I am duly impressed that the collection has become such an important collection with such a limited amount of time. I am thinking that there are so few companies who want to just do what they do best ................and in this instance it is most definitely beautifully made gowns(long and short).
BADGLEY MISCHKA
The guys showed a knock collection of gowns and plenty of short dresses for their loyal clientele as well as some more rock n roll looks which made for an expansive total collection...............and by the way i am happy to say that the models wore hose !!!!!!
THE ROW
The Olsen girls have certainly garnered good reviews for their collections as well as their sell thrus at retail. They have a quirky and yet sophisticated look that seems to register with the consumer...............simple and black. BUT WHY did they choose to show these dark looks with sandals.
DENNIS BASSO
Let the fur fly and boy oh boy the fur was great..........he clearly went back to his roots as a furrier and let the clothes play a supporting role to the stars. the clothes were a perfect complement but the leading ladies were the fur pieces.

NY FALL 2010 OSCAR & MICHAEL

So in a perfect world there would be tons of clients who could afford and lust for the clothes from these 2 designers.............Oscar de la Renta and Michael Kors. The reality is that the audience is even smaller than we know but that does not make these clothes any less luxurious, lush, chic and wearable.
Oscar brought the much needed dose of color in a season that could double for funereal and Michael oozes that "lady of leisure" that so many wish they were..........words are a bit uselss for clothes like these but I thought I would offer up a few.
P>S> Do not be mistaken ....Oscar was not as fabulous as I had hoped but in a season of black and grey and platforms and no hose and leggings....I say I 'll take this anytime DO NOT FORGET TO CHECK OUT ALL THE COLLECTIONS AT STYLE.COM

NY FALL 2010..VERA- NARCISO- RODARTE

VERA WANG
It's a blackout at this house, but I find this collection to be appealing. I am not normally attracted artsy clothing but this has a finished refined quality about it. There are so many pieces that can be worn other than the way they are presented...it would be hard not to find something to like. I can live without the weighty platform shoes and the overly slouchy pants but take a close look at the pieces that make up this collection.
NARCISO RODRIGUEZ
There seems to a "curve" circulating in the air around 7th Avenue and Narciso has made full use of it with this collection. The shapes may be sharp and precise but that curve softens it up just enough......least effectively in the all silk pieces. What i cannot understand is the shoe selection for the deceptively simple and minimalist clothes.
RODARTE
While I marvel at the prospect of these clothes being reproduced in any multiple at all.................I cannot help but ask myself "are these the emperor's new clothes?" Besides being astronomically expensive, where does one wear them? (other than for a photo shoot or red carpet event) At first I was in awe of the creations and now I am slack jawed as to why they get so much attention and raves..........

NY FALL 2010 .... DONNA, CAROLINA & ZAC

DONNA KARAN
When faced with the fact that this was the 25th anniversary of the Donna Karan business, I can only say so what. 25 years ago we witnessed a defining moment in fashion and this week we saw just a better collection than most of the last ones but certainly now what DK was about 25 years ago. I found this collection to be far more appealing than so many of the past ones where all the intellect/inspiration/words never lived up to the product...........but here we see a truer Donna without so many drapes and flyaways.............just clean beautiful shapes in beautiful fabrics.
CAROLINA HERRERA
If I had to find an inspiration here I would say that Mrs. Herrera has more than tipped her hat to Mr. Blass and his dames. These clothes are for those ladies, some young some old but all with lots of style and big bank accounts. Even the models looked so sophisticated and chic in comparison to so much we have seen during these shows. It's good to know that some things don't change ............expensive clothes should look the part.
ZAC POSEN
At a time when the consumer is having some serious thoughts of what should I buy,is it it too expensive, will I wear it more than once.............this collection answers all those questions with a resounding NO, YES and NO!!!! I find it exceeding difficult to find a reason for these clothes..........if I had to describe them I would have to say the collection looks like a school project that interprets 80's Ungaro moment

NY FALL 2010...BECKHAM---DVF--SARAFPOUR

As we lumber on with the collections,It becomes increasing difficult to get through all the shows that are presented................I am starting to feel like this is more of a circus entertainment than a business. Any way I soldiered on to find some notable shows and all for different reasons

VICTORIA BECKHAM
Admittedly, at the beginning I would hardly be called a fan, but as time goes on she has won me over. This is a small well edited collection which is indicative of a strong hand and a designer more seasoned than Ms. Beckham. She may be appealing to a microcosm of the top tier of the female retail client, but she does it with great aplomb. If you have the perfect body by birth or worked for it at the gym ..........then this is one stop shopping.

DIANE VON FURSTENBERG
This lady certainly has her sights set on appealing to lots of women out there...grey flannel, pinstripes, velvets, sequins, leather, skirts and pants just to name a few of the options available. she gives her ladies a huge choice in fabrication, silhouette and the possibility of combinations. Ms. Von Furstenberg has always had a particular personal style and now she offers it up to her faithful followers every season.

BEHNAZ SARAFPOUR
Her approach for the season was "What women might like to wear" and I would have to say that she may have hit the mark with this grouping. Simple and tasteful, not over the top, and she had the temerity to even have her models wear hose with nary a platform shoe in sight ..................the easily understandable palette of tan and black is as timeless as the designs

NY FALL 2010....THE OPENERS-WU-RUCCI-GARUNG-BCBG-SOM

As the curtain rose on the latest collections for Fall 2010, I was happily surprised by the presence of some wonders for the season at hand and yet disappointed by what I thought would be wondrous.
RALPH RUCCI / CHADO
Chic, Raffine,Soigne all of that and more..thru the use of slicing as in the manner of Rodarte but with considerably more sophistication, the designer and architect of the creations delivered a flawless collection..............imagine that there wasn't a platform shoe in sight and the models wore hose. With that in mind, these distinctive clothes are for real women of means and discerning taste
JASON WU
here lies my disappointment as i was expecting something totally different from this young yet accomplished designer. After having seen Spring< I really believed that Fall would have been a far more sophisticated collection that displayed his wisdom for fashion. He clearly has the talent and intellect< beyond his years, which would have enabled him to do so. I found it jarring to have sleeveless dresses with black opaque tights, open toed shoes, and yards of cashmere wrapped at the neck. After all you cannot turn a sundress into a winter dress by those additions and even more upsetting is that the clothes looked shapeless and disheveled.
BCBG
I always thought that there was a commercial if not fashion elements to this collection but WHOA!!!! The collection was drab and decidedly weighty by using those awful overbearing shoes through out the collection.............
Prabal Garung
While I was not as impressed as i was the last time around, I did find his crisp use of color a happy moment. What thrilled me less was the overuse of folds/draping but the tailoring was still there...........unfortunately not quite as razor sharp as Spring.
PETER SOM
Well no one will say prints are dead after seeing this collection ..........which is a good thing. He is creating his own kind of chic by pushing the envelope almost as hard as he can ..........sometimes to his own detriment..........like the pouff of fur on various left shoulders!!!! I would love to see this 21st century chic mixed with what he did at Blass.