Preen Catwalk Fashion Show New York FW2011

Designers Justin Thornton and Thea Bregazzi’s of the British label Preen looked to the San Francisco crafts movement this season, but approached it in an ultra-modern way. They loved the idea of replicating hand-embroidery, tapestry and appliqué and incorporating it into their designs.

It was the first time Preen had knitwear and art and crafty embellishment in a collection, but it didn’t effect their future-vision. They experimented with proportions – hemlines were elongated, while single items looked like they were several garments. Shirt-sleeves and collars – appearing to be part of a shirt beneath – actually belonged to overcoats,  jumpsuits appeared as matching trouser-and-shirt looks and tapered skirts with  thigh-high splits were fitted with attached shirts. The effect was very modern. The vibrant pops of color, abstract geometric prints and embellished accents that jingled as the models walked by gave the classic silhouettes a touch of chic.

Gareth Pugh Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2010

Gareth Pugh may have used a softer approach for his fall/winter collection, his models – with black sprayed foreheads – looked as Gothic as they ever did. They wore heavy, stiff, leather designs and some transparent pieces. Many clothes were pointy to the sides and a lot of the fabrics had frayed ends.

Strong were the women on the runway, dressed in Pugh’s long silhouette accentuating pieces. They looked quite the opposite of some of the male models, who were dressed in tight pants and a rigging or a tank top.

Many of the clothes touched the floor as the models walked the runway. Especially the wide legged male pants were floor-sweeping.

A lot of attention went out to the collars of the designs. They came in many variations (pointed, standing, folded) and looked out of the ordinary.

The show pieces in Pugh’s finale must have weighed a few pounds extra while they had lots of gray chains attached to them. We didn’t immediately jump off our seats when we saw those, but they sure fit perfectly with the Gothic feeling of the show.