Trend Report SS15 menswear: Summer suits

Dear men. If you’re only breaking out your suit for office adventures or special occasions, you’re doing it wrong. This season we’re begging you to get out of those comfy jeans and lift your bum and well trained torso in some fine tailored suit. Because it’s no question whether it looks good on you, but which one suits you best. No one told you it has to be old-fashioned and dull. Forget about black and grey suits, spring is serving you new minimalism elevated with unexpected materials, colors and details. Make the blue suit your best compagnon, a dominant theme on the Dior Home runway and seen at Louis Vuitton and Gucci. Or take Miuccia Prada as an example who showed stiff denim trousers paired with denim jackets. And how refreshing was the playful layering, wearing a blazer over a denim jacket as seen at J.Crew and Fendi. This season, we’ve seen it all from khaki, to electric pink, to stripes, to cool turquoise, to geometric patterns and dots to shiny fabrics. Dress to impress seems to be the main message. How far are you willing to go?

Are you ready for Balmania?

 

What better moment to announce the new designerxH&M collection than at the Billboard Music Awards. Posting a short video with the caption “THE WORD IS OUT #secretrevealed join MY new ARMY #HMBALMAINNATION #areyouready?”, creative director Olivier Rousteing made the internet and fashion world burst with excitement. He follows in the footsteps of a long line of designer collaborators, from Karl Lagerfeld (2004) to Wang (2014). A great moment to take a closer look on Balmain’s DNA.

 The History

1945: Balmain is a French haute couture fashion house that was founded by Pierre Balmain.

1982: Pierre Balmain passed away and designer Erik Mortensen took over his role.

1990: designer Hervé Pierre took over working as director of ready-to-wear and haute couture.

1993: Oscar de la Renta took the helm. He had a huge impact on the luxury fashion house. He once created couture for the label, but the line was shuttered over a decade ago.

2006: Christophe Decarnin was the next name to take over the label and he sought to completely overhaul the Balmain aesthetic. By focusing on eveningwear, his sparkling, power shouldered and strong designs he provoked the ‘Balmania’ madness as we know nowadays.

2011: Olivier Rousteing was named the new creative director and designer. His task: modernising the brand and cultivate an even stronger base, with lots of French influences, to build on.

 Oliver Rousteing
Olivier Rousteing (1986) is das wunderkind in the world of fashion. Famous for his razor sharp cheekbones (how?!), his utterly interesting Instagram account with tons of supermodel selfies, and of course, his major talent as a fashion designer. He initially pursued a law degree, dropping out to study fashion at Paris’s École Supérieure Des Arts Et Techniques De La Mode. Soon after he moved to Italy to work at Cavalli, becoming the head of ready-to-wear. In 2011, when he was only 25 years old, he was asked to become creative director of Balmain, which made him the youngest designer to head a Parisian fashion house since Yves Saint Laurent at Christian Dior in the 1950s.

 The Balmain Army
Whilst mister Balmain himself invented The Jolie Madame or Jet set-woman, Rousteing won’t be doing much different today, but in a slightly more modern way. He likes to describe his ladies as the so-called “Balmain Army” and his soldiers are definitely worth for a little name-dropping, as he is the fashion prodigy behinds world’s biggest celebs including actress Kate Bosworth, Kim Kardashian, Kendal Jenner, Rihanna, Naomi Campbell, Rosie Huntington-Whitley and Daria Werbowy. Rousteing has also been hailed as a champion for casting diverse models in his catwalk shows and advertising campaigns, which, he said, is a result of his own mixed roots and background.

 The Balmain Style
It’s not a first that people go crazy over anything that wears the famous Balmain name tag. It even has a name: Balmania. Remember Decarnin’s bold-shouldered blazers? It launched a thousand knock-offs. And what about the biker pants worn by many A-listers? No wonder H&M was aiming for some Parisian rock’n roll as well. Rousteing’s richly embroidered, luxurious designs have earned him legions of fans. The designer has been credited with infusing the influential Paris house with a fresh, pop culture aesthetic, without lacking the brand’s spirit and tradition of craftsmanship.

The Balmain x H&M collection – which includes menswear as well as womenswear – will land in stores on November 5 2015. Who’s ready for some Balmainia?

Miu Miu Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2015

For her Miu Miu-collection – the collection that closed Paris Fashion Week – Miucca Prada delivered a collection for lovers of real fashion. Fun house and funky fabrics electrocuted silhouettes that seemed inspired by the Sixties. Much of it was chic, a lot was tacky. But that is the tension Prada loves.
A-line swing coats with big collars came in blown-up herringbone plaids trimmed with color-clashing python pockets and borders.
Apron dresses with big plastic buttons and shirts with a wide ruffle around the shoulders expressed the naïveté that came through in the styling. Accessorized with costume floral earrings, necklaces and granny shoes, each look was put together with the enthousiasm of a young, fashion-hungry girl who just blew her allowance at a vintage store.

Iris van Herpen FW2015 Backstage

Take a look backstage at the show of Iris van Herpen yesterday at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris.

Marni Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2015

Please enjoy the pictures, our review and show report will follow shortly.

Alexander Wang Catwalk Fashion Show New York FW2015

Alexandser Wang presented a totally black collection, well almost.  Technically the lineup was not totally black — there were two ivory fisherman sweaters worn with stonewashed jeans, two red plaids and a few metallic mesh getups. The rest was pitch black and hardcore, framed within the street section of heavy metal.
It was a brave collection. References to metal abounded in the very sophisticated construction of the clothes. Severe, mannish tailoring of cropped pants and harsh jackets had pocket chains made of little silver balls that also trimmed coat collars and dresses with panels. The same pattern recurred on handbags. Quilted pieces looked made from luxe packing blankets  while silk pajamas and bathrobes reflected the lush side of Goth.

All of the details, the design equivalent of puns, were part of Wang’s playful spirit, yet the attitude of the show was seriously aggressive. The models stomped out in extreme platform lug-sole combat boots with wet stringy hair covering their zombie faces. Two fitted velvet crop tops, worn with skirts that swished with silver fringe, were womanly in a witchy way, but there was not a soft side to this collection. Wang was unflinching in his point of view and there’s a lot to be said for such conviction.

Viktor & Rolf Haute Couture SS 2015

The expressive landscapes of Vincent van Gogh provided the visual cues for giant 3D flowers and enormous straw hats in Dutch fashion house Viktor & Rolf’s Spring Summer 2015 haute-couture collection. Team Peter Stigter went back- and frontstage to capture the moments before and during the fashion show.

Dolce & Gabbana Catwalk Fashion Show Milan Menswear FW2015

The message of love that drove the latest collection of Dolce & Gabbana couldn’t have been timelier. Love, family, community—the eternal verities that offer security when the foundations are kicked out from under us.

The curtains opened on eight real families in a tableau vivant, friends and colleagues of the designers’, from grandmothers to babies, adding a new spin to the idea of DNA. The images on the clothing featured other families, from Renaissance renditions of the Nativity to naive cartoons of the classic nuclear mum, dad, and two kids. The model casting was cross-generational as well. Regarding the fashion, there was the reassurance of the familiar: a three-piece suit in black brocade, some artfully distressed denim, an embroidered sweatshirt, a graphic tee. There was comfort, too, in tweeds, jersey pants, pajamas, lounge suits, rubber Wellington boots, and shoes that looked like a sophisticated take on pony-skin clogs. And everywhere there were the appliqués: “Amore,” “Famiglia,” “Love Forever.”

DSquared catwalk Fashion Show Milan Menswear FW2015

When two designers like Dean and Dan Caten mark their 20th anniversary, one can expect an over the top celebration. The duo did not disappoint — at least on the frolic front — with a great venue and live entertainment.

Heavy rain did not withhold guests from flocking to the Hangar Bicocca in Milan on Friday night, where Anselm Kiefer’s installation “The Seven Heavenly Palaces” served as backdrop for a fashion show. There was one recurring look — skinny denim pants with cowboy boots, plus outerwear options ranging from common puffers to lumberjack jackets inspired by the duo’s home and native land. This looked best when the Canadian mountaineer took on a rock ’n’ roll guise in parkas generously lined with fur and styled with matching trapper hats.

The highlight was a surprise performance by Mary J. Blige, who walked out for the finale dressed in an embroidered burgundy tuxedo, followed by the twins lip-singing to her rendition of U2’s “One.” It was her birthday, too.

Avelon Catwalk Fashion Show Backstage Impression SS15

Take a look backstage at Avelon catwalk show during fashion week in Paris.

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