The Best of Raf Simons for Jil Sander: 2006 – 2011

Designers come and go. Some stay longer than you expected. Some are more succesful than the other. Raf Simons surely set things in motion when he started working for Jil Sander. Looking at all the collections he designed for the house, you can see his confidence growing by the season. He took the time to develop his signature and blend it with the heritage of the house. The cut of the clothes, the silhouettes, the fabrics, the colors. For the first time in a long period the Jil Sander show was something to look forward to.

The last few seasons Simons experimented with couture-shapes and see what it brought us. Other designers got inspired and followed. The same happened with his color-blocking, the longer skirts, the stripes and the play with transparency. We’ve tried to find the best of Raf Simons for Jil Sander, and we realize there is so much more to show you.

Thankfully Raf Simons is not leaving the fashion-stage, we will see much more of him in the future. Maybe at Dior, but definitely at his own menswear-label. To be continued.

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2012

Raf Simons used all kinds of fabric to give his pitch black-collection for Jil Sander the right edge. On a black rubber runway and before a graffiti-stained door he sent out his darkest of dark collections. There was black leather and industrial-age fabrics glistening like wet asphalt to give archetypal male cliches like the businessman, the father, the office nerd an unbelievable and dangerous power.

The collection looked formal with handsome greatcoats, sculpted suits with seamed backs, and pristine shirts and ties. Simons played with proportions, from pencil slim to voluminous and flaring. Longer line coats, either tight or hanging straight, were a major statement.

Accessory of the season will definitely be the Jil Sander lunch-bag shaped leather goods. Sailor-suit flaps with prints of child-like motifs of whales, dinosaurs and fish gave it all a lighter attitude. Simons definitely set the tone for a new fall-season.

An no, no news about Christian Dior yet.

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan ss2012

And again, Raf Simons left the audience at Jil Sander breathless, this time after presenting his spring 2012 collection. It was minimalist indeed, with the white cotton shirt as the centerpiece and starting point of the collection. Pure and simple. Other elements of the collection was marriage and women at beauty salons. The silhouette was gracefoul and lean, with mid-calf skirts and sleeveless tops. The show opened and closed with white dreses, the first strict and elegant with a sensual undertone, the last romantic and clean. In between there were suits and skirts and jackets and tops in paisley-print and gingham, sometimes with a transparant layer. Knitwear was based on Picasso’s ceramics.

Overall the collection had a cinematic feel and a Fifties vibe.

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan SS2012

Shorts, that’s exactly men need in steamy hot Milan right now. Eehm, in black? Well, why not. Since everybody visting Milan is wearing the bold colors of this summer why not try them in black? Raf Simons started the colorblocking trend at Jil Sander, so he’ll be the first to end it. Or to offer something completely different. And that’s what he did this afternoon with his Jil Sander ss2012 collection.

To be honest, all that black soothes the eye. And Simons didn’t give up on color yet, he just added fragments or fragmented colors to the black. In cotton knits, printed stiff T-shirts, the petrol-colored jackets and with the snake-skin pouches attached as a small life-vest to the models’ body. It seemed leather accessories were a big, loud message too.

Although all the black was a surprise,  the collection didn’t have the impact his eye-popping colors had a year ago. Look around you and see what it did to the streets. And the big wave still has to come. Let’s take it positive: black matches beautifully with bright orange, yellow and pink. Black is still the new black, but differently.

Arnhem Mode Biennale 2011: Prada & Jil Sander

Jil Sander and Prada designed two of the most popular collections of this season, which made their contribution to the Arnhem Mode Biënnale extra special. Prada brought pieces of their actual Milan catwalk to Arnhem and Jil Sander’s collection can be looked at through several magnifying lenses.

Prada

Jil Sander

Check out the gallery below:

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2011

Raf Simons sent out another strong collection for Jil Sander. Coming fall it’s about streamlined ski-wear with a classic early 60’s twist and – again – couture-inspired volumes. In bright colors but also darker ones, like forest-green and blue. And in thick, dense fabrics, even puffed up like down.

The collection focused again on cut and shape. Simons started from the couture sensibility of spring but with a Sixties vibe. Ski-pants with hooded sweaters with ski-motifs opened the show, followed by waffled knits.  Then came the big clothes,  cut in dense, solid, bold-toned fabrics with considerable self-structure. Simons added more volume with a broadened dropped shoulder that fell into folds in back. He used this technique for coats and dresses,  sometimes with loose half-belts in front or back.

It was not an easy collection. But new fashion is never easy to congest and accept. But someone has to stir up things and Raf Simons is doing a good job. he started the whole colorstory that’s filling the streets at the moment. And the next change is volume and proportion. It’s just a matter of time.

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2011

Raf Simons keeps on pushing the color-theme at Jil Sander. After two strong, minimalistic springcollections for him and her where he surprised the in all black dressed fashioncrowd with vivid colors and white T-shirts, his winter 2011 collection seems more in balance. He started with a dark suit, which actually was a mix of purple and black, combined with a shirt and sweater. But soon the colors changed into yellow, white, pink, orange and electric blue for total outfits and subtler mixes.

Simons replaced the mens shirt by T-shirts in shiny, bubbly fabrics and presented them in layers which added more volume and a fresh, modern touch to the minimal style.

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show SS2011

Set in an old park in the hills of Florence, Raf Simons sent out an energetic menswear-collection for Jil Sander thanks to the beautiful bright colors and vibrating stripes. I watched the Web stream – but even without being there the clothes looked crispy and clean and very upbeat. Color was the message, without trying too hard. They worked best when mixed together, like orange pants with a turquoise sweater or a purple coat mixed with pink, turquoise and nightblue. The patterns were surprising too, especially the multi-colored stripes that made a psychedelic effect and will definitely be adapted in the fast fashion-collections. Softer were the flowerprints, that gave a particular touch to the vibrant color-blocking.

The collection consisted of shorts (as seen in many other collections), casual jackets, shirts, trenchcoats and belts which gave  it all a sporty touch. Nice details: the reflecting spots at the back of jackets and the colored soles of the shoes.

Let’s hope men will catch up with it, at least with a  colorful shirt or coat – it will definitely make the sun come out.

Jil Sander Catwalk Fashion Show Milan FW2010

The soundtrack at Jil Sander consisted of shooting and screaming voices; this was a woman on a mission. It was from the movie Lara Croft: Tomb Raider. A part of the collection had the same sci-fi computer-game fantasy: form fitting catsuits,  rompers and knitted shorts suits all in black. The boots with velcro-closures did it too.

Another part of the collection Raf Simons presented, was modern and classic: fly-front jackets, skirtsuits, and slim coats in supple, light tweed and softly colored windowpane checks. This is the Jil sander-brand as we know it from her succesyears in the nineties. This was retro-minimalism at its best. Young women wil like the short skirts and tough boots, older women will feel comfortable in the black dresses and pantsuits. The luxury is in the fabric and make without screaming the brands name.

Milan Catwalk Fashion Show fw2010: Jil Sander

Raf Simons still tries to push the boundaries of traditional menswear at Jil Sander without being silly or looking forced. By using the best fabrics and skills of experienced tailors he manages to present a collection that’s far ahead of others and also very daring. I mean: who would put mobile pockets at jackets or lift the waistline? This was a tailored wardrobe injected with energy, with a concrete focus on shape and a forthlooking approach, using texture and construction to define a confident masculinity.

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