Backstage at John Galliano: his own boudoir

Céline Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2010

Phoebe Pilo’s debut springcollection at Céline was a huge success. Copies of her crisply chic safari jackets and dresses, the long white shirts and A-line skirts are dominating the stores of  cheap fashionlabels as we speak, but the house’s originals are also selling very well. Philo’s first collection was  a breath of fresh air at a time when fashion needed a respite from recession and the glamazon  look of black leather and big shoulders.

So expectations were high for her second collection. But as Philo said in her interview with T-magazine, she continued her work with great investment pieces in the best fabrics and in her signature clean, sophisticated cut. No frills, but deep blue coats instead, tailoring, short jackets, skinny pants, white (lace) shirts and leather pockets as a contrasting detail at A-line skirts. Ultra-chique and a winner were the white lammy capes. Simple, but feminine.

Hussein Chalayan Catwalk Fashion Show FW2010

When we arrived at Chalayan’s fashion show the building was filled with the sound of busy city traffic. After everyone was seated (in the way too small chairs) smoke was blown in the air and we heard Chalayan paying a tribute to designer Alexander McQueen on his show soundtrack.

The first few models that were sent out on the runway wore some kind of fireman hats with long flaps at the back. Stiff, dark-colored coats, jeans and grey gym shoes completed their looks.

Then the traffic sounds changed into the sounds of birds, a church clock and a tram and models in different styles entered the runway. They wore headpieces like straw bonnets, metal antenna’s with a feather at the end and some face-covering silver Lurex.

A few pairs of glasses, which read ‘mirage’ (also the name of the show) seemed to give us some explanation on the crazy line-up. Were the diverse designs and headpieces made up in one of Chalayan’s fashion Fata Morgana’s?

While the ‘music’ changed to all kinds of radio channels (we even heard Justin Timberlake’s –  Rock your body) models in big ruffled jackets came on. The jackets were purple- and red-colored and had a lot of volume. The ruffles popped up on a pair of shoes too and some models even wore red clogs.

Raincoats- and hats, capes with matching binoculars and high-waisted woolen pants were part of the mirage too. They were followed by long glitter dresses, shown in black, white, purple and blue. At the end of the show several black dresses with black and pink hats came by.

Altogether we thought it was one messy collection. It was only after Chalayan explained that the clothes represented different states in America (New York, Pennsylvania, Dallas, New Mexico, Utah and Las Vegas) the whole show idea became clear to us.

We felt like Chalayan could have explained it all a bit better…But then again, yesterday even Jean Paul Gaultier didn’t manage to portray his different countries so well in his show.

Karl Lagerfeld Catwalk Fashion Show FW2010

The latex headbands and leather leggings the models wore at Karl Lagerfeld almost were as shiny as the catwalk that was just polished by hand, right before the show. Powerful modern women walked the runway as if their life depended on it.

They looked like man-eaters attracting men with their sexy black outfits. Their streamlined clothes clearly accentuated their bodies. And it seemed like a flash of their shiny, embellished outfits would be enough to make any men indulge.

The woman must have known how much men like latex leggings, cause they were there in almost every look. Of course these leggings are easy to combine with many different outfits, yet Karl’s combinations – with skirts, dresses and coats – were superb.

Apart from the crystal embellishments Karl didn’t accessorize his looks too much. And that, we think, was a wise decision. Because when you show a collection like this, you don’t need all the extra fuss. All eyes needed to be on the strong, streamlined man-attracting designs.

Streetfashion Paris FW2010 Day 4

What are you wearing during the coming fashionweeks? Your Balenciaga-heels, your latest Marni-dress or that vintage YSL? Maybe we’ll spot you in Paris, Milan, New York or Amsterdam. During the fashionweeks we refresh our streetwear posts regularly. We don’t judge, we’re not the fashion-police, we just enjoy fashion and your own personal style. Next stop: Paris.

Comme des Garcons Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2010

Again the female body and fashion’s obsessions with it triggered Rei Kawakubo to create her fall winter collection for Comme des Garcons. And again, like in her spring 1997 collection, she aded bulk and heft to all the places fashion avoids if it seeks to flatter and make sexy.

Humps and bumps were placed on shoulders, hips, backs and bodices. Kawakubo used pillowform outcrops of padding which she added to the clothes – coats, jackets, pants, skirts, dresses – and therefor completely changed the silhouette. This was a show that discussed the rules of beauty, ‘Inside Decoration’ was the description the designer gave in her press release. It’s probably the beauty within that makes her ugly clothes shine and elegant.

But you’ll never know with Kawakubo, the only thing you know for sure is that she keeps on tickling you and you fashion-expectations over and over again.

Viktor & Rolf – Backstage – FW2010

During the V&R show there was not as much excitement backstage as there usually would be. The reason for this, of course, was the fact that Viktor and Rolf were dressing their models on stage, in stead of backstage. It took away a lot of the tension behind the scenes, but on the catwalk the pressure was on!

With each outfit Viktor and Rolf had to put on one of the models we were worried whether or not they would make it in time. And fortunately they did. All the dressing and undressing was done in about twenty minutes.

Of course backstage a lot of the preparations were done. Viktor and Rolf had to be able to easily take off the many coats Kirsten McMenamy wore. So they shouldn’t be too tightened. V&R had to know exactly what to do with each dress too, so the rehearsals were more than necessary. Also, the models that walked in the second half of the show did have to be dressed before entering the catwalk (they were going to be undressed by V&R).

Though well-known models like Karlie Kloss, Mirte Maas and Patricia van der Vliet walked in the show. They were hardly recognizable. They all wore caps and sunglasses and had large ponytails. Their make-up was plain: bleached eyebrows, light-colored lips and a rather pale skin tone. So the make-up wasn’t too special but the spectacular show totally made up for that.

Cacharel Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2010

Today Cacharel showed us a lot of what the brand is famous for: prints. They were there on the skirts, tops, dresses and coats and were computer printed. Some designs had small flowers all over them, others had larger patterns. A 16^th century French tapestry appeared to be the inspiration for these prints. So Cedric Charlier, whose second collection for Cacharel this was, literally ‘used the history of the brand (the prints) and took it to the future’ (computer prints), like he told the press.

The warm colors (red, gold, burgundy, green) were breathtaking and perfect for autumn. Especially a golden skirt with a red top and a black cardigan looked lovely, and very wearable too!

Made of silk and wool most pieces looked pretty decent. The long sleeved dresses (knee-length), the belted coats, and the skirts (above the knee) were not very exciting when it came to shape. Still the models looked very elegant and well-dressed in it.

The great thing about this Cacharel collection is the fact that almost any woman will find something she likes. And, while the designs are so wearable, she will easily be able to mix and match that item with clothes from her own wardrobe.

Streetfashion Paris FW2010 Day 3

What are you wearing during the coming fashionweeks? Your Balenciaga-heels, your latest Marni-dress or that vintage YSL? Maybe we’ll spot you in Paris, Milan, New York or Amsterdam. During the fashionweeks we refresh our streetwear posts regularly. We don’t judge, we’re not the fashion-police, we just enjoy fashion and your own personal style. Next stop: Paris.

Yohji Yamamoto Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2010

Fleece blankets had to be handed out to the audience at the Yohji Yamamoto show. There was no heat in the venue. After Yamamoto filed for bankruptcy protection in October many stores had to be closed. So maybe Yamamoto had to cut down on his heat expenses. Fortunately his fall collection soon made people forget about the cold.

Yamamoto showed a fine collection of navy, black and ivory pieces. He designed lots of sober asymmetrical coats and pinafore dresses. Pleated and netting fabrics were used a lot.

Due to the colors and the oversized shapes not a lot of the designs felt very feminine, yet they all had something special.

The coats in this collection will probably sell the best. And since there were a lot of them Yamamoto needn’t worry about the future of his brand. With more collections like this the Japanese brand will surely survive.

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