Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris Womenswear FW2017

Stella McCartney made a demonstrative statement on womanpower yesterday with her fall-show by drawing from two very different sartorial motifs, along the way imbuing the clothes with a newfound daring. McCartney approaches her work as a creative problem-solver, delivering wardrobe solutions for real women. So the juxtaposed bravado of equestrian-inspired tailoring and pointy-bra constructions startled. McCartney’s update, both under sweaters and in actual constructions, put the focus clearly on the breasts in a manner atypical today. The message was loud and clear: Women are sexual beings free to express their sexuality as they wish. They are also powerful, opinionated and strong.
Many of those women love great clothes, an essential fact of which McCartney never lost sight. She served them up with impressive tailoring, whether a great, loose-fitting coat or comfortably curvy coatdress in a natty British check. On a softer note: languid onesies with those bra constructions. McCartney went more casual with tomboyish paper bag overalls and a sweater sporting her animal motif du jour, a glorious pictorial of “A Horse Frightened by a Lion,” by the 18th-century painter George Stubbs.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Womenswear FW2016

No fuss clothing. Understated seduction. Practical chic. Sports meet sexy. That’s Stella McCartney. But also, how to look good and harm less. For almost fifteen years McCartney thrives on her mother’s vegetarian principles, tackling the challenges of trying to be slightly more responsible as a luxury fashion brand in the highest regions of the industry. No use of any skins. And until this very day, she has proven what’s she’s capable of. No lack of quality or style whatsoever. And this show was yet another what she does best: creating more and more moments of awareness towards our planet. But as complicated her brand might be, graceful simplicity is what we see on the catwalk. While Snaxx’ tune ‘Get on ya tofu’ echoes from the speakers, the models strutted down the runway in her signature slouchy but feminine looks. Plissé flares, pleated skirts, cheeky but romantic graphics of swans on dresses and skirts. She played a lot with layers and proportion, from bomber jackets worn over a coat, a deep blue knee-length sweater over a skirt, fluid dresses with ruffled strokes or silk and lace metallic slipdresses. And of course we spotted those big puffer jackets and parka’s. No surprise there, as we’ve seen them already many times here in Paris. But she did surprise us a little though, as they were made from velvet fabric and stuffed with feather-free wadding. Quite a statement to make. Needless to say though, as the music already scouted ‘I’m vegan bitch’, the show notes were right. This collection was absolutely signature Stella.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris Womenswear SS2016

Check, check, check. That’s how Stella McCartney opened her spring 2016 show. All in vivid colours such as red, green, black and yellow. Some of them as preppy polo shirts, as one shoulder dresses or maxi-skirts and tanktops. It was the perfect start to give you this relaxed, summer vibe.

It was a typical McCartney collection: sharp, simple tailoring with a feminine touch and a considerate approach to wearability. Because she knows like no other how to design clothes that actual women really would like to wear. In Dutch we have a saying for this, and it sort of sounds like: from a nice plate you cannot eat. Which means: only beauty won’t work. But that doesn’t seem to be the problem for McCartney. Her collection breaths comfort, and we were breathing ‘oooh’s’ and ‘aaah’s’ of excitement. The plissé pleated top over a plissé pleated skirt both in contrast zingy colours, the asymmetrical poloshirts worn over body-con stretchy skirts, and raw indigo denim looks. The familiair elliptical hemlines and slouchy tailoring was there as well. The collection ended with a range of lovely black and white, orange, yellow and blue (evening)dresses, providing discreet glimpses of skin and with sporty mesh inserts. Super sexy and feminine, but no I-cant-breath-or-move-in-this-dress situations. And that’s what we thank her a million for.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2015

For fall, Stella McCartney went for pragmatic sensuality, especially as it applies to day clothes.
The result: an engaging sophistication permeated the collection in which she both pushed and relaxed her specific parameters of feminine-masculine plays and deftly manipulated classics. Thick-knit sweater dresses worked on a slant and half open at the side over languid underpinnings bared an arm, a shoulder, a glimpse of leg. Bustiers in lightweight wools delivered discreet allure, matching trousers and long-sleeved shirts.

McCartney loves her Savile Row references and here delivered them with new femininity. Even at her most streamlined, she incorporated ladylike flourish. Mannish tweeds turned a shade gentle but unfussy in coats and dresses cut lean through the waist. The graceful ease continued for evening as McCartney made seemingly casual use of lush metallic jacquards and brocades, incorporating swirling insets into ivory dresses for a sexy effect.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris Womenswear SS2015

Like no other Stella McCartney is able to design clothes women really want to wear. And not just because they look so good, but because they’re wearable. Cause even now that wearability is high up on any designer’s agenda, not all designer clothes are that easily to wear in daily life. Most of Stella’s designs for summer 2015 are, although we don’t think we’ll be biking through Amsterdam in one of her floor sweeping, flapper, flared designs. Her unicolored, feminine designs seemed suitable for a large group of women, from almost any size or age. The roomy pants looked chic, the long knitted tops worn over knitted skirts appeared elegant and the ruffle/flapper details on the dresses made up for a feminine kind of playfulness. Bomber collars, sweater details, trench inspired epaulets, wrap skirts, large buckles, the chunkiest necklaces and cut-outs added to the modern character of the collection. Some models in checked numbers seemed to have just been lifted out of bed. This is comfort dressing with a twist.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris Womenswear FW2014

Please enjoy the pictures for now, our review will follow shortly.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris SS2013

Stella McCartney seemed in a happy mood regarding her ss2013 collection in vibrant whites, oranges and shots of green – and some black.  The colors were incorporated into an inventive lineup. In a season where sheer fabrics and layers are seen everywhere, McCartney added  layering pants — see-through pajamas under cropped trousers or long, crisp eyelets over snappy shorts. She also used structured organza for an warm-up jacket and sweatshirt. And McCartney combined sweatshirts over a dress in a key motif, superlean ribbed knits featuring big, bright ellipses on sheer plissé. On the tailored side, low-belted jackets and tuxedo-inspired day dresses looked simple and smart.

A  graphic component ran throughout, achieved with geometric layering and the recurring elliptical motif.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2012

Stella McCartney focused at the English country life and mixed that with a more urban, sartorial style. The clothes ranged from slouchy low-slung trousers to the more feminine, like curvaceous brown tweed dresses with ribbed knit collars and a trio of colored knits worked in the multi-textured Aran tradition.
McCartney also put an athletic direction into the series of dresses that closed the show — curvy and in ergonomically arranged collages of Brit tweeds and techno stretch.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris ss2012

The collection Stella McCartney sent out this morning was a fusion of sportswear, femininity and comfort. Vitality, relax and baroque were the keywords. The last balanced out the collection, since one of the main motifs was curling embroideries that edged the scalloped hems of miniskirts and the lapels on blazers. This neo-Baroque element gave the collection,  which was divided into tank dresses and tailoring, an elegant touch.

The tankdresses were short and formfitting. They came in combinations of white, black and cobalt blue. McCartney’s signature men’s wear looked fresh in white bonded materials, a clean-lined baseball jacket will surely be a hit.

The second half of the show introduced mini-prints and paisleys, shown on tailored jumpsuits and men’s pyjama looks. The prints came back at  little dresses, sometimes with a shot of color or with mesh insets.

Stella McCartney Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2011

Stella McCartney brought a strong, restraint, homme/femme collection to the audience. She not only played with sexes, she also played with surface and contrasting volumes. The show began with rippled organza cocoon tops in black and blue tucked into pencil skirts or trousers their full sleeves and voluminous shapes in contrast to the slim tailoring below the waist.

Then she sent out  oversized blazer dresses with exaggerated shoulders in brushed cashmere and roomy cable knits over loose trousers and pale sneakers with zips at the back. But she didn’t forget the sensual side of women, especially when it comes to eveningwear. Chiffon panels snaked around the sides of body-concious black dresses to make them even curvier.

She also seemed fond of a large polkadot-print,  having them onto sheer dresses or down the sides of sexy catsuits. She played with modern textures too, creating xl cocoon coats from gold felted wool and bonding dark blue velvet to scuba fabric for even sleeker tailoring.

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