Originally I wanted to start this blog in time for the 5th anniversary of 9/11, then I was hoping to time it to other significant world events (I can't even get started on the whole Terrorist Detainee Thing), instead I started the blog in time for another premier event:
Fashion Week in Milan. :)
My friend Jennifer and I like to go through the shows day by day as they are posted, and comment on what we see. She and I approach this from somewhat different angles - as a woman, and a stylish one, she is looking for the looks that will guide her purchasing choices. My interest in women's clothes (aside from drag) is more cerebral (i.e. not much drag. Today brought pictures and notes from Fendi, designed by Karl Lagerfeld; Jennifer loves Lagerfeld for obvious reasons (two words: Cha Nel. Okay, one word. But you get the idea - Jennifer is mad for Chanel).
I really liked Fendi - Lagerfeld, like Ralph Lauren, stuck to a strong palette dominated by black, white and silver (with some navy and shocking pink accents). In a season of often garish colors, both seemed just boldly antithetical enough to be strong statements. Plus, who doesn't like black and/or white? Simplifies the accesories, slims you (black, anyway). What's not to love?
Lagerfeld also worked in cutting edge fabrics - Fendi being primarily a leather and fur house, Lagerfeld uses them as an opportunity to work in developing new ways to cut and drape leather, skins and fur as fabric. This time the results were sharp edged and modern, almost space-age without (at least to me) feeling like the usual "in the future, we will all wear modular jumpsuits" type collection (are you listening, Gucci?).
Jennifer's concern was more practical:
I am HUGE fan of Karl Lagerfeld and think he is a genius (though others over-use the term, I don’t say it lightly) so I'm predisposed to like anything he sends out. For Fendi, there were a lot of silhouettes and pieces that I really liked but I couldn’t see as wearable I wonder about pleather or silver leather being shown for spring/summer. Who exactly is going to be able to wear this?
Max Mara is also a fur and coat house, and they showed a lot of anoraks and raincoats as well as sportswear and evening. The lines were very clean and spare, but there was a lot of extra fabric, billowing here, tucked there, adding volume, but also looking - as Jennifer and I usually point out - excessively rumpled. Your dress shouldn't say "I need to be ironed." Plus the abstract prints this season are starting to give me a headache. Still, if your look falls on the sculptural, dramatic side, some of this might be for you.
Jennifer was just as mixed:
I have very mixed thoughts on MaxMara. First of all, I am not wearing tin foil this summer-gold or silver. But there were also some very beautiful pieces that I would run out to buy. In fact, whenever I pass the MaxMara store, I am drawn in by the beautiful and wearable pieces in the windows. The Capri pants with fitted yet boxy jackets were very well done-very chic. The pleated jackets were a little “high 80’s” for me to be ready for but I can the possibilities here. Furry sweaters for Spring? And what on earth is on the models’ feet????
And I'll let Jennifer speak first on Jil Sander:
Jil Sander-I thought the jackets and shirts were boxy to the point of shapelessness and therefore quite ugly. And a blouse that is too big and buttoned all the way up is just laughable. My eye is beginning to adjust to the less body hugging shapes we have begun to see over the past year or so-I love all those bubble dresses and skirts. But I still cannot find oversized blouses attractive they just look sloppy (especially with below the waist skirts). The dresses of the collection were fabulous showing all the right shapes for right now yet still very wearable. Also, they were soft and pretty without being at all childish.
For me, the whole collection seemed to "high eighties" - the jewel tone silk yellows, pinks, blues and greens felt like refugees from the bargain blouse department. I love the narrow pant, but paired with a boxy jacket all I think is "lab coat." Some of the dresses were indeed lovely (and the pastel rainbow beading was sublime). But I still feel the profound absence of Jil Sander herself, whose laser perfect cuts and sharp tailoring gave severity a very good name. Raf Simons is trying, but the effect is blandly utilitarian, not sharply commanding.
I think I'll stop there for now. More later.
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