At Céline, Phoebe Philo described her look as “sharp, strict, reduced” which translated into workable separates which tried to harness the DNA of Celine — a bourgeois Parisian label that peaked in the 1970s. It was largely unremarkable, and underwhelming, even though the critics-who-don't-see have given it slobbering reviews, tails wagging. It seemed to me a watered-down follow-up from her wildly successful Spring show.
In much the same key, Stella McCartney sent out graphic coats with notches and slits and sweaters and slacks quite plain and very clean, for her eponymous line. It has a 1960s vibe to it and is one of her better efforts. It's neat, humourous and stylish, though the cocktail numbers with satin mermaid trains looked suspect.
I liked Hannah MacGibbon’s collection for Chloé most of all. I felt that it came closest to defining this season’s sensibility in a convincing style. Ms MacGibbon borrowed utilitarian masculine tailoring: The camel coat, the tan blouson, the butterscotch leather jacket, the herringbone tweeds and Prince of Wales checks, were taken from a British gent’s closet. The breezy wearability, however, was given her edge. She took that from the golden era of American sportswear (the 1970s), the days of early Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein — when racing to work while looking wholesomely sexy defined American glamour. Vogue used to call this look 'racy'. This collection wonderfully austere in another way: At just over 30 looks, this was one tightly edited collection, and I liked almost every look.
personally my fave is phoebe at celine. however cliched it might seem i think her collection makes the most sense of the 3. the magic to me lies in the restraint. it's not what she shows but what she chooses to show. a limited silhouette? so what. it represents her ultimate gut feeling of what she feels is right and right for now and that i absolutely respect. no other designer (besides dries) represented a collection that offered consumers something new (almost) whilst retaining their design philosophy.to me celine was the ultimate wardrobe, stella the ripoff evil sister stealing ideas (spring 2010 ruffled dress with braided horsehair hem? hello... i hear alber calling) and chloe? insipid rerun's of the golden girls. yes hannah presented a somewhat clear concise collection, but it feels like stella and phoebe had a hand in shaping those decisions. c'mon if i wanted a great coat and high waisted pants i would find michael kors or dare i say zara. to me it felt like that, high street done with better fabrics. im sorry for being so passionate but it annoys me that labels like chloe, balmain etc get away with showing the same stuff season after season. i don't expect a 360 change every season but show me you moved on. its like the tiger aunties in their 50's working in the hawker centers, permed fringes, pink eyeshadow and skorts. it's their comfort zone. almost too comfy. like girls who use too much eyeliner or people obsessed with botox and fillers. there is a time to admit 'defeat' and move on. i know its strange my analogies but if its done, you have to get it over and done with and find something else. it's not a rejection of the past but an acceptance of it and the eargerness to want to find something else to top it. i'll bring up prada, only because she does it so very well in the span of a season. you reject you find it strange and soon you love it. call it marketing, call it indiscriminate infiltration call it monopoly. you have to admit she moves things along. and fairly quickly i must add. but some how items from her collections manage to become 'classics' 2 or 3 seasons later they remain relevant. either by chance or calculation it is no mean feat.
ReplyDeleteand thus i applaud phoebe. for giving me that feeling. the excitement of a future classic waiting to happen.
amc
amc: Thanks for the interesting comment. All the three collections seem to me to be edited and are chockful of great clothes - with this i mean they are inventive and yet believable. i'm disappointed with celine as it doesn't offer a cohesive vision or have anything new to say. i'm aware that phoebe philo is one of those sacred cows of fashion, and i loved her work for chloe. with her last spring debut at celine, i think she was way ahead of the curve and caught one's breath with its sharpness. (a little digression: now that the season is actually underway, and i look at that collection again, i see a lot of it which is challenging and unfriendly, and i like it less than at first.) with this one, ms philo seems to be reiterating classics - as you pointed out - but not 'future' classics, just plain old classics with little of her signature verve.
ReplyDeleteit's hardly prada, i must say.
i'm sorry you don't like chloe but i like that it mines a period that is not used to death and looks to me fresh and original, although she has done this for 3 seasons, i think i see that she is trying to crave this out as her own niche, and i'm keen to see where she will take this. she seems passionate about this 1970s thing and i'm still loving the softness of it, the girliness that's non-frilly. i think this look has potential to grow into something interesting.
i agree with you about balmain, but only because it seems insincere, and betrays too much the hand of the paris vogue team.
please continue to comment so intelligently and passionately, it's great to read someone who obviously cares so much about fashion!