Andrew Gn PFW fall 2017

I have been an on again off again fan of Gn but this season I am most definitely back on his trail. What a delight to see a collection that has been well thought out and magnificently brought to life at a time when ugly passes for pretty and seemingly that 25 year olds are the sole target customer for every aspect and brand of fashion.

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Yes, these are the clothes of adults and by that I mean that anyone who has found that blue jeans and sweats are not the sole uniform of women over 15. The tedium and repetition of mediocre design that pervades the runways is maddening especially when heritage brands have become so diluted as to become glorified Lululemons or high priced H&M collections. Andrew Gn is the anti-trend answer to the “me too” attitude, mindset and mood of fashion minus the blah blah blah. 

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He is a master at polish and presentation. No question in my mind that the echoes of Yves are loud and clear as are the influences and references of Klimt and Beardsley. Isn’t it refreshing to be able to read the references without an instruction manual? Isn’t it a pleasure to see models dressed as models with fab hair and makeup and runway perfect accessories? It’s called making a statement and Gn has emphatically made his.

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The clothes are unequivocally chic, polished, urbane, elegant, grown up and... Imagine… actually designed without any gimmick striving for a look at me factor. In other words these are the clothes that once made Paris the true fashion capital. Gn offers us a glimpse back with no retread but he propels us to the next generation or at least what can be done when there is actually talent at work and not just hype. The clothes are slick, original, and impactful and... Get ready... tasteful! OMG imagine that!!

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P

S ... Please take note of the almost couture like details that this designer do deftly uses in his collections!

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Christian Dior PFW fall 2017

Let’s call this “Alternative Dior” as in alternative facts!

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WTF is this woman thinking here ... she can quote Monsieur Dior till she is BLUE in the face but there is absolutely nothing about this collection that says DIOR! If anything, one might go so far as to say it is fashion blasphemy or an inept attempt at designing a collection! 

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What little of this so called collection that is wearable is also so horribly generic and pedestrian; that there are so called fashion pieces that look like sad versions of very old YSL is more than deplorable and inexcusable. I mean really Maria Grazia must be drowning in her Kool Aid as all this says to me is that she hasn’t a clue who Dior was, what the brand represents in the annals of fashion and least of all does she have any idea what to do with an archive such as his. 

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 I could go on and on but suffice it to say Monsieur Dior has spun out of control in his grave and has possibly struck oil because this is barely an excuse of a collection that has a “royal blood line” such as this. Combat boots with taffeta skirts with bulky sweaters …. WTF is that? And oh yes then there is the one thing that the world identifies with Maison Dior ... DENIM...  as well as buffalo checks.. I mean can there be anything that says Dior more than that…gimme a freakin break ... home girl denim … so here’s the deal … SPIN  ON THIS!

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Balmain PFW fall 2017

As a big nosed comedian once said... HOTCH CHA CHA CHA and this my friends is fashion as spectacle ... Rousteing unapologetically if not absolutely forcefully presented a collection that places him surely near the top of the heap when it comes to design. His imagination is seemingly endless here and not the so what expectations of his past collections. Think Wilma Flintstone meets Bob Mackie on steroids!

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This was primitive, polished, slashed, fringed, studded, sueded, skinned, cinched ….  You name it; this was all out, balls out true glamazon red carpet klieg light fashion. The beadwork is astounding. The treatments are incredibly inventive  but sadly there sure isn’t much to jive wit  real life … .car wash hems and fringe till hell won’t have it are hardly the flourishes aimed at a wallflower.  Unquestionably there are some spectacular pieces that mere mortals might wear and I’m sure there are more realty based pieces in the showroom. 

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The point is simply that Rousteing grabbed his moment and milked it to the hilt. A presentation like this that isn’t boring is a feat that few can pull off. Past collections echoed and reeked of that stigma from  those dreadful half Armenian schvesters but thankfully that has been shed here. Yes, the theatricality is in bloated supply as is the unmistakable and sexual potency of the collection but there is great polish and surely an extremely heavy dose of showmanship involved. 

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Obviously the clothes are not for the Babe Paley aspiring types but sheeeiiiit this is what fashion shows should do and that is ignite and excite, and not shake ones head in disbelief. It is conceivable that he has overshadowed the likes of that clown at Gucci and I’m guessing he surely out did that ill-fated new crown principessa at Dior and he did it with clothes!

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I say BRAVO to you Olivier and don’t get lazy… stay the course and show everyone who you are and what you can do .. this is rock em sock em, knock em dead stuff… for the fullest effect you should watch it streamed … http://www.balmainlive.com

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Jacquemus PFW fall 2017

Here’s my conundrum: I know this is a hyped up collection and frankly I can say I don’t get it but in the same breath I say who cares. Yes, the clothes appear to be beautifully made BUT explain to me why I find it so yawn worthy and boring. At first I thought it was reminiscent of Delpozo but upon second and third examination it is a distant cousin.

Yes the clothes are rooted in volume and sculptural aspects and yes many of the silhouettes are wildly exaggerated especially in the shoulder department but after that what’s left? An absence of color induces the sensation of ... Didn’t I just see that … it is then that the lack of color becomes a source sameness. The draped pieces come off a bit heavy handed if not just plain odd. Apparently the hats set a mood each season but can someone tell me that mood? Apparently my memo got lost in the mail telling that I MUST love and pander to this collection. I don’t love it … I don’t hate it...I am ambivalent…  I just want to know what all the fuss is about… simple!

PS ... maybe it’s the smorgasbord of references which include Ric Owens, the Japanese, Delpozo to name a few

Saint Laurent PFW fall 2017

Here, with me there is no spin... it is all about the truth... of course, as I see it but trying to be objective by speaking of fashion in a professional way minus the fawning or the regurgitation of a press release.

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Let’s say that Vaccarello has missed his moment. This should have been a breakout moment to shed the shackles left behind by the departed Hedi but instead all he did was perpetuate the legacy, if you will, that the past designer left behind … how sad! Think of cooking left overs for the second or third time! One might argue why fix what’s not broken but on the flip side one might say YAWN! BTW Anthony… that Gucci boy stole your thunder but then again, you gave it to him on a silver platter....he is just copying himself but you are rehashing and trying to one up the one who came before you!

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Let’s talk about the heavy handedness and theatricality of it, the almost coma inducing ennui event replete with 1001 variations on a theme. The pre-crush boots ala QVC, the non-runway worthy majority and then of course the fact that it is almost entirely black … there was some minor diversion in candy wrapper blue and green and a more commercial, well sort of, Strasse group which called to mind more Tom Ford than Saint Laurent  and by that I mean YSL.  The excessive use of leather which comes off clumsy to say the least and then again there is nipple gate which is now hackneyed beyond words especially how it was rendered in this collection. Dare I mention the flying buttresses of ruffles!

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On the plus side at least the so called models didn’t look as strung out as Hedi’s but surely not up to the task of showing off the 1000s of Euros worth of clothes that hung off them as they paraded down that endless runway. 

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Let the swooning begin… whose tongue is longest? Who’s got damp pants this season?