Lutz Huelle fall 2022

If anyone had told me 5 years ago that would write I LOVE LUTZ, I’d have said ... Have you lost your mind? Well, times change, people change and collections evolve and this season is living proof that Lutz Huelle has not only grown up but evolved and yet held onto its own original vocabulary and DNA.

Yes, the denim in there, white shirts, the bombers are there and the innate quirkiness is there but it is somewhat disguised by the fact that you do have to look a little harder to see it and find it. I’m loving that ruffled scarf, that sort of poncho cum gilet, the coat with one front on the bias one on the straight, a simple raincoat, a divine any time-of-day short opera coat, the beloved denim jackets and jeans and some great easy dresses!

I don’t want to say that the collection has matured as I feel that gives the wrong vibe but maybe what can be said is that the collection is more polished, more soigné and that dreaded of all words.... more commercial! Lutz has said that even in this pandemic era, his business has grown and with a collection like this I do believe that was only the start of an even more pronounced growth spurt!

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Alexandre Vauthier fall 2022

Well, here is a rarity if there ever was one at this juncture in the fashion cycle.... ready to wear that is a continuation of a couture collection. It was the common practice moons ago that couture was the tease of what was to come in the nearby future for the ready to wear collection and Vauthier has done just that !... BRAVO!

The segue to this collection is as smooth and slick as the clothes. He is already a red-carpet favorite, a master tailor and designer that does not fall victim to trend. He is his own man... an independent in a sea of wannabes. It seems that every season I want to see more and more but this season I can now say he is truly coming into his own as a master of footwear... especially luxury boots and statement making stilettos. They complement his clothes yet stand alone as unique entities.

The clothes are unabashedly sexy without being vulgar... imagine that ... he hits the right notes with the right silhouettes and fabrications without a trace of gimmickry. He actually celebrates his women!

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Loewe fall women’s 2022

One great coat and one basic blazer do not a collection make! Absurdity, deformity, and ill-conceived clothes do not belong on a runway as somehow at these prices, I highly doubt the consumer will find the humor in any of it! Protective shoe covering. Lips covering one’s boobs is one to way to see it or possibly a more lascivious body part and tubular necklines are not high on the list of must-haves along with looking like you swallowed a snow tire... the hard way!

The pundits can rave about Jonathan Anderson but the humor or praise is all lost on me as when he is not supposedly designing, he is riffing on other designers’ work. If you think this is fashion then, good luck to you and I can’t wait to see you in any of this!

PS ...  Loewe was once a leather brand! And the last time it looked great was when Narciso Rodriguez designed the ready to wear about 20 years ago and has been floundering ever since!

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Balmain fall women's 2022

I am compelled to write this because of the absurdity of this collection and the lip service this designer pays to a series of world crises. You wanna make a statement ... get a soap box, encourage donations, how much did you give, what have you done? Fencing clothes meet Battle Star Galactica lycra won’t change anything or even sell .. pull your head out of your ass and either design clothes or run for office but geez stop whining and get a grip on reality! These few images speak for themselves.

Dries Van Noten fall 2022 women’s

I am not a dyed in the wool Dries fan but I sure as shit know when he is on fire and with this collection, he is a 3 alarmer!

Let it be known I am not a fan of greasy haired models and ghoulish makeup but to my credit I can block that out when I’m looking at FABULOUS clothes! Dries gives you a reason to own another puffer or trench and even riffs on that famous Charles James satin jacket more than once. As most of you know I am a big fan of animal prints and so come one come all they are all here and from retail reports women of all ages still find them irresistible.

There is soft, there is rigid, there are prints there is solid, there is color there is black. Dries delivers on all counts. The statement is bold and that goes for that incredible rhinestone torsade that immediately caught my attention when watching the film. This is a made in the shade collection for all Dries lovers and sure to attract new ones as well as these clothes have no age.

I’m not gonna pick it apart but as you can see the collection runs every gamut from a to z on every possible possibility. He is right on the money actually designing a collection at a time when gimmickry and bad fashion seem to be taking over and now here, he is proving that real fashion does exist by actually not giving into any trend or gimmick!

I urge you to watch the short film of this collection!

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Saint Laurent fall 2022 women’s

Vaccarello has done what is rarely if ever seen on the runways these days and that is .... HE SHOWED THE WORLD THE DNA of the brand that employs him! This is one of the most well put together, cohesive, slick, chic, soigné, urbane, sleek and razor-sharp collections to have come down a runway in what seems to be eons. This was unquestionably an homage to the master that worked perfectly without looking retro or directly copied from the vast YSL archive. Vaccarello has truly come together with his brand here and shown the fashion world that it is indeed impossible to adhere to an eponymous designer’s vocabulary without looking like retreads or been there done that. This was a watershed collection of acumen!

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If timing is everything, then this was the time that a collection such as this stands on its own and stands out as a triumph amidst all the dross that we have seen in the past few weeks. This show was brilliant exercise in its cohesion as well as massaging the nuances of Yves that he used season after season on the runway. The sunglasses, the Nancy Cunard bracelets stacks and the all over slick sharp, luxe for this season was just stand out. Looking at past collections of Rive Gauche, there was always a common thread woven through each collection and that practice was demonstrated here in spades. These are clothes that are timeless, classic yet of the times and perfectly in harmony with the brand.

                                               

                                           

If there is anything, and you know I have to find something, that I would have wished for here it would have been some color since Yves was a master colorist, a hit of leopard for obvious reasons and maybe a tad of embroidery or prints. That being said none of MY issues takes away from the fact that Vaccarello mined the archive and came out with a stellar collection worthy of the brand and its founder and shows him off as being pitch perfect in tune with the heritage of the house.

Dior Fall 2022 women’s

After watching this seemingly endless parade of nothingness I have come to the conclusion that “she” is a misogynist, among so many other issues that she has when it comes to designing, and I use the term loosely, clothes for women. So, were they football player protection pads or maybe life preservers, and team compression socks, laced up and boned waist cinchers or laser cut waist cinchers that looked painful?  Do I need to ask why so many pieces looked as if they were listing to the left side, ill fitted or why is there a Levi jacket in a Dior collection of any kind? Or why so many pieces look as if they are the French version of Talbots?

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I would say it’s a wet dream of a collection if there was anything sexy or even arousing about it but to think you paint some leaves on a trench add a cincher and that makes it Dior is an affront to the brand and using that same idea applied to so many other generic pieces. Where did that floral taffeta come from and why? I can’t even go into her shoe fetish with those teeny, sculpted kitten heels or Doc Martinish boots. I suppose the models were made up to echo the skin tones from those Renaissance paintings that lined the walls but instead they looked like cadavers on parade. While I’m on the subject, aside from that and the last few gowns which might have been more effective in ecru rather than a blinding white especially the last exit with the inner waist support strap showing!

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Given the extraordinary number of pieces there were some that weren’t bad but hell, okay that’s not good enough here as they need to be stellar. Unquestionably there will be esoteric blather on the part of designer who will once again explain her inspirations for the collection and the double eyes on all surrounding art. It just boggles my mind that no one gives a crap about the heritage and glory that was once Christian Dior!

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